Stevens Point Sauce Company hits the sweet spot

STEVENS POINT — Lucas Krupp had years of kitchen experience under his belt before starting his own sauce company. Krupp grew up with a passion for making sauces, soups, pickles and jams. His lifelong hobby turned him into founder of his own company when he realized all the sauces on store shelves were packed with artificial ingredients.

Stevens Point Sauce Company, founded by Krupp, uses only organic spices and maple syrup to make their sauces. “We don’t use any high fructose corn syrup, table sugar; we don’t use any of that here. We want to show people we can sweeten our foods without having to go through all these lengths. We make something that families can feel good about putting on the table and featuring our heritage in Wisconsin, being that maple syrup.”

All but one of Stevens Point Sauce Company’s product line-up features maple syrup. Their jalapeno lime hot sauce is the one outlier, made for those who like citrus and spicy flavors. Their other sauces all feature maple syrup as a natural sweetener.

The company makes all their sauce in Wisconsin, out of a kitchen in Stevens Point and a kitchen in Niagara. Krupp’s friend, Adam, works on production of the sauce in their Niagara kitchen.

While the sauce is made and sold widely in Wisconsin, it is also available in multiple states. Locally, Stevens Point Sauce Company has been warmly embraced by the community it is named after. In Stevens Point, the sauces can be found at Agora Makers Market, Alleviate Wellness, Feltz Dairy, Festival Foods, Hometown Pharmacy, NDC Natural Market, Rose House, Ruby Roasters Café, and the Stevens Point Co-Op.

“Our first ever account was with the Stevens Point Co-Op, they carry just about all our flavors,” Krupp said. “At Ruby Café, they carry it retail but they also serve it on the menu. They go through about five gallons of ketchup every month. They put it right on their farmer’s hash plate and in there with the hash browns.”

Plover also has a few local businesses that sell the sauce, with Mission Coffee and the Food and Farm Center carrying an assortment of sauces from Stevens Point Sauce Company.

Maple sweetened ketchup may be the product that launched the company to their start of success; however, Krupp has a different personal favorite.

“My favorite in our lineup is our golden mustard barbecue sauce. I have a lot of family in Florida, so every year I drive through South Carolina and I make a point to eat a lot of barbecue when I’m down there. Maybe the golden mustard is the German in me, but it’s always really called to me.” Krupp said.

Krupp is looking ahead at the future for his company, with hopes to sell his product at more local events and get onto the menu at more restaurants. Looking further into the future, he hopes to open his own barbecue counter in Stevens Point.

“We’re working on what’s called a shadow kitchen. So it’ll be a to-go kitchen, not where people can sit and eat, but they can pre-order their food and pick it up. I would love to be serving our sauces on our own sandwiches. It’s something we might be doing once every month or so. We’re going to get out feet wet with actually serving our sauces on sandwiches to the public, and maybe eventually getting a food truck or a small restaurant.” Krupp said.

When asked what the best part of owning his business has been, Krupp said, “It’s got to be the community. The dollar signs aren’t always there for us, but the community is. Just about anyone you could think of from bankers to radio stations to local farmers have reached out to just try and see if they could do anything to help.”