ManiLife was born after founder Stu Macdonald spent a year in Argentina, working for a peanut butter social enterprise. There, he met the people behind the peanut estate that ManiLife still partners with today. When his first ton of peanuts landed in the UK, disaster struck: the manufacturing partner pulled out. So, with 45 friends and a rugby club kitchen, Stu made the first 4,000 jars by hand. Fast forward to today, ManiLife operates out of its own 13,000 sq ft “ManiFactory” in Derbyshire, with over 11,000 UK distribution points. The first ton took six months to sell; now, they produce over 80 tons a month which they still make in small batches.