More than just fuel

When you think of freeze-dried food, what springs to mind? A cheeky Pot Noodle? A foil pouch of steaming brown mush? Whatever it is, you’re unlikely to find it emotionally or nutritionally rewarding. That drove Giulio Bertelli to found Akta a year ago, bringing quality ingredients, balanced nutrition and emotional reward to the freeze-dried meal market. As bowman on offshore racing boats for many years, he recognised the opportunity. ‘The general understanding of freeze drying is not positive,’ Bertelli says, ‘but the technology is not the problem – most of the time, it’s poor-quality food packed with additives.’