Hungry Planet

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Company: Hungry Planet
Website: www.hungryplanetfoods.com

More about Hungry Planet

Our planet is hungry for creative, sustainable ways to feed our rapidly growing human family. At Hungry Planet™, we set out on a mission to bend the curve on human and planetary health by matching familiar, favorite textures and flavors with nutritious plant-based ingredients. Developed in the heart of the Midwest, our foods are hearty and satisfying with a focus on food taste, not food tech.

We have developed a global plant protein platform that delivers on taste, texture, AND healthfulness. Compared to conventional meat and to other popular plant-based options, our meats have as much (or more) protein, fewer calories, less fat (no saturated), less sodium, and are packed with dietary fiber.

Our full range of plant-based meats fit seamlessly into the existing food value chain by shipping, storing, preparing, cooking and tasting just like conventional meat. It's a simple 1:1 switch in any cuisine, any recipe.

Available nationally for foodservice through Dot Foods, and for retail on our website where a locator map identifies restaurants, delis and grocers where you can find and enjoy Hungry Planet. Now also available at Amazon and Costco.com.

Key information

We offer ~30 items, including 17 retail SKUs brought to market during the pandemic. Our headquarters is in St Louis, MO where you can find us on shelf at hundreds of locations - and in dozens of restaurants.

Contact information

Website: www.hungryplanetfoods.com

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: (800) 822-3100

Veganism

Are all the products your entity (business, brand, organisation) produces and/or retails suitable for vegans? If no, then, unfortunately, you cannot register as we only accept submissions from 100% vegan entities.: Yes
Which of the following best describes you (professionals and sole traders) or your organisation?: Plant based

Ownership

Is your organisation an independent business/brand or a corporate owned business/brand?: Independent
Are you a Grassroots organisation (for projects, charities/NGOs)?: No
Are you a BAME (Black, Asian & Minority Ethnic) owned/run business/organisation?: No
What type of business/organisation are you?: Company
Are you a woman-owned/run business/organisation?: Yes

Social, Economic and Environmental Justice

Which social, economic or environmental justice causes does your entity (business, brand, organisation) support or promote (e.g. through social media posts, donations, attending protests and other direct actions etc.)?

Animal rights

Climate justice

Environmental justice

Environmentalism

Food justice

Global justice

Other

What do you do to support or promote each of the causes you have identified?

Social media posts

Does your business/organisation have an ethical labour policy or code of practice (either formal or informal) which ensures fair labour practices?

Yes

Does your business/organisation have policies and practices which actively promote diversity and inclusion?

Yes

Is your business a member of the World Fair Trade Organisation?

Environment and Sustainability

If any of the products you produce and/or retail, or ingredients you use, have a sustainable production certification, please indicate which certifications apply?: Other certification
Overall, how many of the products that you produce and/or retail, or ingredients you use, are certified by the sustainable production certifications listed in the question above?: Some (less than a third)
Are any of the products that you produce and/or retail, or ingredients you use, produced using sustainable production methods albeit uncertified?: Unsure
Are any of the products that you produce and/or retail, or ingredients you use, free of palm oil?: All
Do you reuse, recycle and/or donate any waste products (e.g. food, plastics, packaging etc.)?: Yes
Do you only use recycled or recyclable materials for packaging?: Yes
Is all of your packaging biodegradable?: No

Energy, Transport and Distribution

How many of the products you produce and/or retail, and/or the ingredients you use, are made in the country in which your entity (business, organisation) is based?: All

Giving Back

Does your business support or give back to the local community in any way?: Yes

What was the motivation behind your project? What did you want to change in the world?

Our mission is to bend the curve on personal and planetary health though delicious, nutritious plant-based meats. Hungry Planet began as a passion project - to make a better, more just and sustainable world. We wanted to do something meaningful to solve two of the world’s most pressing problems: the health of humankind and the health of our planet. So, a few years ago my younger brother Todd - who is now CEO - and I decided to build a platform for positive change, one where people could eat their way to a healthier planet while staying true to our deepest values. From the beginning, we approached the opportunity differently. We’d already been eating plant-based for decades, but we knew that in order to transform our food system, we had to create delectable plant-based meats that would appeal to everyone. We set out on a mission to craft a wide range of proteins to feed our growing human family, prevent environmental destruction, avert global pandemics, and reduce animal suffering. Crucially, this range of meats had to be a simple switch for conventional meat, while also delivering superior nutrition.

Who is the team behind your project?

From about 2015 until a couple years ago, we were a very small team who wore many hats including sales, marketing, operations, PR, social media, design, etc. In the past 2 years, we’ve been rapidly building a world-class team, to scale expeditiously in order to meet global demand. In January of this year, we announced a $25M raise that is further accelerating our growth. The focus into the future continues to be on building a thriving business, remaining true to our mission, and creating a team capable of bending the curve.

What one thing about your project would most surprise us?

That we have had this vision for about 18 years and were waiting and planning for the right time, once the market was truly ready. At the start of the pandemic, we had just loaded into the largest foodservice distributor. Shortly thereafter, foodservice fell off a cliff and we were effectively dead in the water. Horrendous timing! Fortunately, our agile team was able to pivot and bring forward - by over a year - a suite of retail items so we could reach those hungry at home. In short order we developed 17 retail products that are now on shelves. Our 3 new RTH meals are maybe the most exciting to me for applications across university and healthcare: we offer a Chicken Piccata, a Salisbury Steak, and an Italian Sausage Meatballs with Penne.

We are now in all 362 Sprouts, Abertsons, Tom Thumb, Randall’s in the Southern US and soon adding hundreds more Albertsons in Northern CA and Seattle geographies. Food Bazaar on East Coast. Also available at Costco.com, Amazon, our own website (free shipping!) Our FIND US page on .com shows the most up to date list! https://www.hungryplanetfoods.com/find-us/

Also, we encourage folks to follow us on social media for all kinds of announcements: @hungryplanetfoods

If your project could be granted one wish, what would you wish for?

To end the suffering of all sentient beings and for all to live in harmony with each other and our earth.

Is there anything else that you would like to share with us about your project?

We are proud to be the first to offer authentically delicious plant-based meats with demonstrably superior nutritionals that perform spectacularly as a 1:1 swap for conventional meat in any cuisine and any recipe - and nobody tastes the difference. All our meats are packed with protein and fiber and tend to have about half the calories, a fraction the fat, no saturated, lower sodium and significantly fewer overall ingredients. All NON-GMO. Our health and environmental claims are clearly stated on our retail packs. Our beef patties, for instance, have 75% less fat and 31% fewer calories, no cholesterol or saturated fat, with a whopping 22G protein - higher than conventional beef.