Founder Spotlight: Marisol Villalobos (Amasar)
Meet Marisol Villalobos:
Amasar offers a 100% natural, gluten-free, fiber-rich breadfruit flour, perfect for creating delicious pancakes, waffles, baked desserts, and more.
Location:
Jayuya, Puerto Rico, USA
When did you launch the business?
2018
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Startup Stage?
Seed
What led you to where you are today?
A moment of homesickness while living in Milan sparked the idea for Amasar. Missing the flavors of Puerto Rico, especially breadfruit, Marisol Villalobos received one in a care package from her godmother. This led her and her husband, Jesús Martes Cordero, to explore breadfruit's nutritional benefits and its potential as a gluten-free, protein-rich flour. They returned to Puerto Rico, planted 500 breadfruit trees, and partnered with local farmers to create Amasar—a company rooted in tradition, sustainability, and love for their community.
What do you wish you knew before embarking on your entrepreneurial journey?
Before starting our journey, we wish we had fully understood how much resilience and patience it would take to build something from the ground up—especially in agriculture and food innovation. We also didn’t realize how important it would be to build strong networks early on, both for mentorship and for navigating the complexities of scaling a product with deep cultural roots.
What is the most difficult decision you've had to make regarding your business so far?
Taking a huge personal and financial risk to follow a vision rooted in tradition and sustainability.
What can you help the VEGPRENEUR community with?
We can offer insight into building a food brand rooted in cultural heritage and sustainability, especially using plant-based ingredients like breadfruit. We’re also happy to share our experience navigating product development and scaling. Additionally, we can support the community with knowledge around agricultural products, working with local farms, and creating transparent, ethical supply chains from the ground up.
How can the VEGPRENEUR community help you?
The VEGPRENEUR community can help us by sharing connections to distribution partners, retailers, and mission-aligned collaborators who are passionate about plant-based innovation. We’d also love support in amplifying the visibility of breadfruit as a sustainable superfood, and in exploring opportunities to expand Amasar to new markets and audiences.
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