Vite Ramen edges closer to launch

Vite Ramen hit their funding goal in a mere 24 hours reaching a massive 388% of their target before finishing their Kickstarter campaign 32 days later with 4,295 backers pledging $249,087 to bring the project to life.

Nutritionally Complete ramen is definitely going to be a thing then; and a lot has been happening since; backer surveys have been sent out and things are progressing quite nicely it seems, for the most part. In their 8th update they explain that they made a minor mistake with shipping and have failed to secure the flat rates they were hoping for or anticipating higher costs for volume backers, explaining that it “turns out it costs more than $8 to ship 100 packs of noodles” – who knew!?

Missing something like this isn’t totally uncommon with Kickstarter, and it doesn’t sound like a major gotcha or gameover for them, but it must be a pain.

I really like the sound of Vite Ramen but I’m not in the states and couldn’t back the project, I’m super excited to see where they take it though. Read on for their latest public update…

As you might’ve noticed, the Kickstarter/Backerkit surveys have been sent out! Check your emails and your spam folders; this is how you can input your shipping address, choose your flavors, t-shirt sizes, and add on additional ramen, thermochromatic bowls and shirts!

In our Backerkit add-ons, you might also notice an extra item: S.O.S.: Save Our Shipping! We weren’t able to secure a flat shipping rate, and shipping costs have risen since we’ve launched the Kickstarter. I also forgot to set different shipping rates for the higher tiers (turns out it costs more than $8 to ship 100 packs of noodles!)

So what does that mean for you? Not much! We believe we should own up to our mistakes. You won’t have to pay an extra dime, because we don’t feel that it’s fair to spring surprise costs on you. However, if you’re in a position to help, we’d be incredibly grateful if you chose support us through the S.O.S. option! You can add $10, $25, or $50 (holy crap thanks!) to your pledge to help us soften the blow of the thousands of extra dollars of shipping we’re facing. It means a lot to us, and we’ll find a special way of thanking these donors in the future!

Onto noodle news!

Following the inulin tests from last week, we had one more fiber source to try: soluble corn fiber! During this past week of experimentation, we found that it provided many of the same texture and taste benefits as inulin, without the potential for additional gastrointestinal issues! A number of you noted that inulin could be gastrointestinally distressing, and the literature supported that a significant amount of the population might be intolerant to some extent. Corn fiber, however, seems to be much better tolerated (yay!), while providing much of the same benefits as inulin (double yay)!

While we wait for additional supplies to arrive, we’ve continued to run production efficiency tests. Because of how much water we have to eject from the noodles (almost 2 liters every 30 blocks!), combined with the heat in the warehouse, we’ve been experimenting with ways to keep the overall humidity down and prevent the water activity from going up! Some variations we’ve messed with are punching holes through the molds, varying spacing and speed through the microwave, blowing a fan directly through the chamber, and running two big dehumidifiers (among other things).

That’s all for this update! Thanks for reading and your support, and as always, feel free to ask any questions you might have!

P.S. What do you call cheese that’s not yours? Nacho cheese!