Berenice Tenorio’s entrepreneurial spirit was born and nurtured in the small town of San Bartolo Tutotepec, Hidalgo, Mexico, where she was born and raised by her single mom. She said her successes in life can be traced back to watching her mom own and operate a small family restaurant. “Here, she had a front row apprenticeship to what it takes to run a business, understand the consumer and create a product that secures a loyal customer base,” said her staff.
After studying international business in college and spending time in Australia, Tenorio decided to set sail for a. career in international markets and moved to the U.S. After 10 years of experience in the food industry, she branched out on her own and founded Nuestra Cocina, where she serves as the president.
Nuestra Cocina is a company that focuses on developing quality Hispanic food products included cheeses, creams, yogurts, desserts, salsas and specialty meats. Nuestra Queso is highly recognized as one of the leading Hispanic dairy brands in Chicago and throughout the Midwest. The company’s signature products are sold locally and in 3,000 supermarkets in 25 different states in the U.S., as well as Dubai.
Since its inception, the company has been growing at a double digit rate, landing at $20 million for 2023. Nuestra Cocina products have been recognized with numerous prestigious awards in the dairy industry, including recognition by Negocios Now as one of the 50 fast growing Hispanic businesses in Illinois.
“Berenice maintains that what drives her every day is providing premium products to a sophisticated consumer that appreciates quality Hispanic food products at their kitchen tables,” said her staff.
With 20 years of experience in the food industry, Tenorio said the most important thing is that she has enjoyed her passion for the food industry and international markets. “This passion has been the main drive to accomplish the company growth, expansion and to lead and inspire my team to contribute with this,” she said.
Tenorio is also passionate about interacting and supporting the indigenous women from the region where she was born in Mexico and offers scholarships for students with limited resources so they can complete their education. “I struggled financially to complete my university education in Mexico,” she said. “I strongly believe that I am where I am today is thanks to this education; education has changed my life and I want to change the life of many young generations.”
For her passion, empowerment and philanthropic work, Tenorio has been named a titan.
