# Kate Torgersen

> Kate Torgersen is the founder and CEO of Milk Stork, the world's first breast milk shipping service for traveling professionals. After lugging 26 pounds of milk home from a business trip while nursing infant twins, she co-invested $25,000 with her father and built a logistics platform now serving 850+ companies, having shipped more than 7.5 million ounces of breast milk across 112 countries. A former 18-year Clif Bar communications executive with an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute, Kate turned a deeply personal frustration into a category-defining company backed by Backstage Capital and named to Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies list.

- **Role:** Founder & CEO at Milk Stork
- **Organizations:** Milk Stork, Clif Bar & Company, General Assembly
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Bachelor of Arts, University of California, Berkeley, Master of Fine Arts (MFA), San Francisco Art Institute
- **Known for:** Founded Milk Stork, the world's first breast milk shipping service for traveling professionals, Shipped 7.5+ million ounces of breast milk across 112 countries, 85,000+ deliveries completed; 850+ corporate clients offering Milk Stork as employee benefit

## Career timeline

- **1991-1995** — Studied at University of California, Berkeley
- **Early career** — Worked as a firefighter
- **Early career** — Worked as an archaeologist
- **2005-2008** — Pursued MFA at San Francisco Art Institute
- **~2000-2016** — 18-year career at Clif Bar & Company, rising to Executive Communications Manager
- **2014** — Co-founded Milk Stork on Mother's Day with $25,000 personal investment alongside father Mike Torgersen
- **2015** — Officially launched Milk Stork in August
- **2016** — Transitioned to part-time at Clif Bar to focus on Milk Stork
- **2018** — Raised $900,000 seed round led by Clif White Road Investments
- **2019** — Named to Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies list (Travel category)
- **2019** — Featured on the Today Show
- **2020** — Launched MotherShop - curated products made by moms, for moms
- **2020** — Raised $1M round led by Backstage Capital
- **2021** — Shipped breast milk kits to athletes at Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics (21 gallons)
- **2023** — Good Housekeeping 2023 Best Parenting Awards Winner for Pump & Ship product

## Achievements

- Founded Milk Stork, the world's first breast milk shipping service for traveling professionals
- Shipped 7.5+ million ounces of breast milk across 112 countries
- 85,000+ deliveries completed; 850+ corporate clients offering Milk Stork as employee benefit
- Named to Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies list (2019, Travel category)
- Good Housekeeping 2023 Best Parenting Awards - Pump & Ship winner
- Raised $3.2M total in venture funding including Backstage Capital
- Provided milk shipping kits to athletes and staff at 2021 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics
- Built service available in 112 countries
- Taught entrepreneurship/coding at General Assembly
- Featured in TIME, Forbes, Fortune, People, Today Show, ABC GMA, Harvard Business Review, NPR

## Latest updates

- **2023-01** — Good Housekeeping 2023 Best Parenting Awards Winner for Pump & Ship
- **2023-01** — Announced Tiffany Aquino, MPH as first-ever Head of Product
- **2022-01** — Partnership with &Mother organization to create equitable sporting culture for breastfeeding athletes
- **2022-01** — Partnership with ConceiveAbilities for #MilkBankChallenge, targeting 1 million ounces donated to milk banks
- **2021-08** — Shipped breast milk kits to athletes and staff at Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics
- **2020-10** — Raised $1M led by Backstage Capital
- **2020-05** — Launched MotherShop - curated products by moms, for moms

## Links

- Website: https://milkstork.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/katetorgersen
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/MilkStork
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/milkstorkmama/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/MilkStork

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/kate-torgersen
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-13