Ajoa Mintah is a Ghanaian Canadian engineer and entrepreneur known for founding Four All Ice Cream, based in Kitchener, Ontario.
Ajoa Mintah | |
---|---|
Born | 1977 (age 46–47)[1] |
Nationality | Canadian |
Education | University of Waterloo |
Occupation(s) | Super boss and Mummy |
Early life and education
editMintah was born to Ghanaian parents who married after meeting in Canada. Her father worked in food science, including for a time with United Nations, and her mother was a lawyer.[1]
Mintah studied chemical engineering at the University of Waterloo.[2][3] She graduated with a BASc in 2001.[2] Before transitioning her career into ice cream production, she took a course about ice cream in the food science department at the University of Guelph.[1]
Career
editAfter graduating from the University of Waterloo, Mintah worked in automotive, research and consulting, and accounting sectors.[4][1]
Four All Ice Cream was founded in 2017.[4] The business began production in a factory space in Kitchener, holding pop-up shops in the Region of Waterloo before opening a retail space in 2020.[5] The name of the company is tied to Mintah's focus on four categories of ice-cream; nostalga, foodie, vegan and classic flavours.[3][6] Her ice cream uses locally sourced products and relies on a stabilizing process she engineered in order to extend the product's shelf life while minimizing additives.[1]
In August 2021, Mintah created a flavour called Our Heroes Eat Ice Cream in recognition of front line hospital works, with some of the proceeds from sales going to a fund to support staff at Kitchener's Grand River Hospital.[7]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e D'Amato, Luisa (June 2017). "Mintah's Magic" (PDF). Grand: 28–33. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
- ^ a b Antooa, Ryan (22 October 2020). "The inside scoop on Four All Ice Cream". University of Waterloo Magazine. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
- ^ a b Patterson, Mackenzie (22 July 2021). "How Four All Ice Cream is Making Ice Cream for Everybody". Toast. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
- ^ a b Davis, Brent (16 June 2018). "Kitchener entrepreneur tastes success with a sweet treat". therecord.com. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
- ^ Jinah, Zayn (7 March 2020). "Two new uptown Waterloo businesses looking to fill void of recent closures". Kitchener. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
- ^ Fisher, Aidan (14 May 2019). "The sweet taste of success: Q&A with Ajoa Mintah". MENU. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
- ^ Lampa, Nicole (23 August 2021). "Four All Ice Cream creates special flavour in support of frontline workers at Grand River Hospital". Kitchener. Retrieved 21 February 2023.