Kristian Tapaninaho, the founder and Co-CEO of Ooni and pioneer of home pizza making, is turning up the heat in a whole new way, this time, in your toaster. RaiRai is a new food start-up on a mission to revolutionise the UK bread aisle with proper Finnish rye bread.

Available now and exclusively online at rairai.com, the first product available is the Dark Malt Rye Slices. 

Made in Finland using traditional methods, finely milled Finnish flour and a slow-fermented rye sourdough starter, each 345g bag contains 6 squares (12 slices). RaiRai is currently sold in boxes of 5 (that’s 60 slices per order), delivered nationwide.

The bread is soft, malty, insanely tasty, naturally super high in fibre and endlessly versatile. It’s blast-frozen at peak freshness in Finland and sold ambient in the UK. It’s a hardy bread that can be refrozen and consumed on demand, so it’s always soft, fresh and convenient. Best served toasted then loaded with your topping, the malty flavour amplifies everything you put on it.

“In Finland, if you ask for bread you get rye bread, it’s part of life.” says Kristian Tapaninaho, Founder of RaiRai. “For 20 years I’ve brought it back to the UK in suitcases to fill my freezer wondering when someone would launch it here, and eventually I realised, if no one else is going to do it, I will.”

A new chapter for the bread aisle

In the last 10 years the bread aisle has been demonised, and many consumers now avoid it altogether. RaiRai brings new innovation in the UK bread category as a simple swap that offers a wealth of health benefits without feeling like a ‘health product’.

Consumer understanding of ‘gut health’, ‘good foods’ and ‘gut brain connection’ are at an all-time high. Fibre really is the holy grail when it comes to gut and cardiovascular health and RaiRai has it in abundance. A comparison of fibre content with other common gut health foods:

“RaiRai has quickly become a daily ritual in my house, enjoyed by the whole family.” says Claire Grant, Head of RaiRai. “Rye is a nutritional powerhouse – it offers many health benefits, but most importantly, it keeps me full and offers sustained energy through the day (very helpful when starting a business!)”

RaiRai can be found at Speciality & Fine Food Fair this year as part of the IND!E Collection on Stand 2400. 

What makes RaiRai different?

Unlike the dense, sour German-style rye breads seen on UK supermarket shelves, RaiRai is softer, more flavourful and more versatile. It’s delicious simply with butter, piled high with a topping of choice or used to soak up a stew or hearty soup. 

Ingredients:

Wholegrain Rye (40%) (Wholegrain Rye Flour and Grains), Water, Wheat Flour, Potato Flakes, Rye Malt (3%), Wheat Gluten, Salt, Yeast, Flour Treatment Agent: Ascorbic Acid, Barley Malt Flour, Fermented Rye Starter

Nutrition per 100g:

• Fibre: 9.9g
• Protein: 9.3g
• Fat: 1.8g
• Sugar: 1.2g
• Salt: 1.10g

Claims:

• Made with a sourdough rye starter
• High in fibre
• A source of protein
• No artificial preservatives
• Low fat
• Free from added sugar