Member Highlight: Deliciou

To learn more about Deliciou, we asked their team to weigh-in.

 3 sentences or less, can you tell us about the work your company is doing and why it is important?

Offering customers more easy and delicious plant based alternatives is key to supporting the growth in customers cutting down on their intake of meat and dairy which improves people’s health, the environment and animal welfare.

What do you think others should be aware of with regards to the work your company is doing?

We’re taking an omnichannel approach to make our products as accessible to customers to support the growth of plant based.

How have the current circumstances of the world changed your business plan?

The disruption to the supply chain has reinforced the importance of security of supply, which has led us to double down on our efforts to sure up our supply chain to better meet our customers’ growing expectations for great value products and fast delivery.

Do you have any exciting news or launches occurring this year?

Our shelf stable Plant Based Meats launch in Whole Foods Market across all regions in March. Into the ambient meals section next to Annie’s Mac & Cheese. Whole Foods will also be the first grocer in the US to sell our newly brand seasoning tins from September. Launching variants including Vegan Cheese and Veggie Dust.

What is one thing you wish you knew as you began your work that you think is important for othersworking in this industry to know?

The importance of having robust processes in place to offset the exponential increase in complexity as the size of the business and number of employees increases.

Where can others find you online?

• Website: https://www.deliciou.com/collections/all-products
• Social Media:  https://instagram.com/deliciou

Member Highlight: Unovis Asset Management

To learn more about Unovis Asset Management, we asked their team to weigh-in.

What is the name of your company? 

Unovis Asset Management

In 3 sentences or less, can you tell us about the work your company is doing and why it is important?

New Crop was formed to help transform a harmful food system that deserves deep scrutiny. Any system – in this case, industrial animal ag – that relies on the suffering of other beings, and/or exploiting the desperation of anyone is one that needs to be challenged. We take animals out of the equation, offer consumers a great eating experience, and work to make this a wholly sustainable system – for animals, human health, workers’ rights, the environment, land, water…the planet.

What do you think others should be aware of with regards to the work your company is doing?

Our goal is long-term sustainable behavioral change, namely helping consumers move away from eating (or using) animals. To do this we need to meet consumers where they are, meet their culinary and dietary needs  and expectations. Raising awareness about the ethical and moral imperative of not eating animals is crucial but humans are fickle and we’ve seen with food, that unless there’s a convenient, affordable and tasty way to eat cruelly-free, the ethical commitment often doesn’t stick. Swapping one animal ingredient for an alternative non-animal ingredient, as long as it is on par, is significantly helping to move the mark. We are driven by an ethical urgency but we  focus on parity – in taste, price, awareness and convenience – so people can go about eating their meals and have an enjoyable culinary experience.

How have the current circumstances of the world changed your business plan?

Our plans have not changed dramatically. How consumers get their meals will change from time to time – and we adjust to that reality. Many companies in our portfolio shifted weightings from food service (e.g. QSRs) to retail and D2C. These will shift back as the world opens up to out-of-home dining. People are still eating the same amount of food, just getting it in different ways. So, we ask our companies to make sure they are paying attention and adjusting their strategic plans to meet the consumers where they are.

Do you have any exciting news occurring this year?

In our portfolio holdings we most certainly do! But we are not allowed to be the ones to share these – that’s up to the portfolio companies. For Unovis, we are very excited about our ESG & DEI work, which is led by our ESG Policy Director, Kirsti Gholson, and the team she is building to support these initiatives. We know that our funds’ mandates will help the world in myriad ways, but qualifying and quantifying these outcomes is not a simple task. In the next 12-24 months, we expect to be able to help put our progress into measurable reports to help make sure we, and those who invest in this sector, are putting our efforts into the most impactful outcomes.

What is one thing you wish you knew as you began your work that you think is important for others working in this industry to know?

Our food system is slow to evolve and the legacy we’ve created is deeply embedded in a system not looking for change but, rather, looking for efficiency. In reality, it is an exceptionally well run machine that is massively and fundamentally flawed. Humans needs nutrition and enjoyable culinary experiences – neither of which necessitate the abuse and suffering of others. Our strategy at Unovis is an attempt to use the parts of our food system that work, and reimagine and replace the parts that don’t. It will take time to dismantle and rebuild a 150-year-old industrial ag complex, 12,000 years of farming animals, and millions of years of consuming them – but we need to keep pressing onward and it will take a big tent and a lot of participants to make it work. What is noteworthy in the last 5 years is this: our tent is now one of the hottest tickets in town. We need to keep it fun, exciting, and impactful.

Where can others find you online?

Website: www.unovis.vc

Social Media: https://twitter.com/unovisvc