Misfits Market Launches Private Label Brand
Online grocery platform Misfits Market has launched its first private label, Odds & Ends, which includes pantry staples such as coffee and snacks like nuts, dried fruit and dark chocolate-covered mini pretzels.
Many of Misfits Market’s Odds & Ends products have been specifically designed to address supply chain inefficiencies. By working directly with farmers and producers who share the company’s vision of eliminating waste, Misfits Market is taking new steps to prioritize sustainability and utilize creative sourcing methods to offer high-quality staple products at value.
For example, Misfits Market’s new direct trade premium coffee blend is purchased directly from the farms where it was grown in the context of lasting and mutually beneficial relationships, providing growers with fair prices and stable incomes while protecting them from market risk and volatility. The end result is a better market for their coffees and more accessible, high-quality coffee for consumers.
“Three years ago, Misfits Market set out to rebuild the food supply chain from scratch in order to provide everyone, regardless of where they live, access to quality food at an affordable price,” said Abhi Ramesh, CEO and founder. “It’s clear that shoppers are looking for new ways to save, especially with food prices at all-time highs. Our value-conscious customers are saving an average of $25 per order and with the launch of our new private label line, we’re excited to provide our customers with an even wider variety of affordable and sustainably sourced pantry staples.”
To date, the company has sent out nearly 13 million orders and rescued more than 230 million pounds of food. In Q1 alone, the company has experienced record-breaking growth fueled by expanding to all of the lower 48 states, launching product categories such as wine, releasing the brand’s mobile app and now Misfits Market’s private label launch.
Subscribe now to Gourmet News for specialty food industry updates.
Cedar’s Foods Donates $100K to World Central Kitchen for Ukraine Relief
Cedar’s Foods, a Haverhill, Mass.-based company with national distribution of hommus and Mediterranean products, has donated $100,000 for Ukraine relief, to World Central Kitchen to help feed refugees.
Since military operations began in Ukraine, millions of Ukrainians have fled their homes to stay in western Ukraine or other countries and WCK is serving millions of fresh meals to displaced families. Working at a 24-hour pedestrian border crossing in southern Poland, WCK began serving hot, nourishing meals within hours of the initial invasion, and are now serving round-the-clock dishes at eight border crossings across the country.
Additionally, WCK is supporting local restaurants preparing meals in cities across Ukraine including in Odessa, Lviv and Kyiv. WCK teams are also on the ground serving thousands of meals every day in Poland, Romania, Moldova, Hungary, Slovakia, and Spain.
As part of Cedar’s with Heart, the company’s non-profit initiative to invest and honor its employees, communities, and consumers, the national leading hommus brand in the natural and organic grocery channels is committed to fighting food insecurity both in its community and around the world.
“At Cedar’s, we believe in the power of sharing better in the form of authentic, honest foods. Cedar’s with Heart extends that mission to not only share better with the world, but do better for the good of our community and our planet,” said Charles Hanna, CEO and president. “We hope to lead by example through our acts of service and our commitment to promote positive change for the next generation and generations to come. The humanitarian crisis in Ukraine is one of the worst that we have seen in decades. Our commitment to fight food insecurity transcends borders and when we heard of the great work WCK is doing, we wanted to help.
“Knowing better means doing better not only for our community, but for our global community as well. No family should have to worry about where their next meal will come from, especially after fleeing their homes and making the daunting journey to refuge,” Hanna said. “Food is a human necessity, a common ground among us all. It provides comfort and a sense of hope and stability. As a leader in the food industry, we are proud of the work WCK is doing on the frontlines and honored to be able to support them in feeding Ukrainian refugees.”
World Central Kitchen is first to the frontlines, providing meals in response to humanitarian, climate and community crises. When disaster strikes, WCK’s Chef Relief Team mobilizes to the frontlines with the urgency of now to start cooking and provide meals to people in need. By partnering with organizations on the ground and activating a network of food trucks or emergency kitchens, WCK provides freshly made, nutritious meals to survivors of disasters quickly and effectively.
Is your specialty food company contributing to Ukraine relief? Let our Senior Editor, AJ Flick, know by emailing her at aj_flick@oser.com and subscribe to Gourmet News for updates!
Belle Pulses to Expand Production in Response to Global Food Supply Chain Crisis, Russian Invasion of Ukraine
International markets for pulses entered a period of unprecedented uncertainty following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the resulting wave of sanctions from North America, European Union member states, and most of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization member countries. On average, Russia produces 3,800,000 metric tonnes and exports around 1,000,000 tonnes of peas annually and Ukraine’s pea exports can reach up to 500,000 tonnes per year.
Belle produced approximately 90,000 metric tonnes of protein in 2021. As a response to increased global demand, Belle is planning increased shifts at its main plant in Saskatchewan to increase Canadian annual production capacity to nearly 100,000 metric tonnes annually while adding up to an additional 15,000 metric tonnes per year of annual production capacity at its United States facility.
“Belle is receiving increased recognition from international customers looking to secure quality, safe and reliable proteins at scale,” said Mark Coles, chief investment officer. “Shareholders should know that Belle is increasing its production capacity as it is our goal to help support the global food industry. Belle has emerged as a pivotal player in global pulse protein production and continues to draw significant interest in its products. We will continue to expand Belle’s operations and are looking forward to showing the world its ability to procure, process, and deliver proteins to the international marketplace.”
The importance of high-quality, transparent, and sustainably produced agricultural products and pulse crops has become increasingly important on a global scale and recent supply chain disruptions and sharp increases in fertilizer prices have created a significant strain on food production. In addition to corn and wheat, pulses are at the center of the global food industry.
“It has always been our investment thesis that the globe will shift to more sustainable and environmentally friendly proteins. The next 24 months will be crucial for international food security as one of the world’s largest producers of fertilizer, agricultural crops and pulses is effectively closed off from the rest of the world,” said CEO Marc Aneed.
Canada is already one of the largest producers of agricultural products in the world at a time when people, companies, and countries need to secure their food supply. The globe is now turning to Canada for secure supply of pulse crops, proteins, and agricultural products.
“Belle processes crops that are considered nitrogen fixers and typically require less fertilizer than other common agricultural crops,” Aneed said. “Pulses add nitrogen to the ground instead of removing it like traditional crops thereby allowing proper plant crop rotations that help to rejuvenate valuable farmland.”
Eat Well owns 100 percent of the 42-year-old Belle Pulses, one of Canada’s largest processors of plant-based proteins. Belle supplies a broad range of customers in over 35 countries, including global strategic food companies and significant ingredient distributors. Belle is increasing its production capacity up to 115,000 tons of fully traceable product, yielding over 20,000 tons of pure plant protein (or the equivalent of producing millions of hamburgers annually and saving the lives of hundreds of thousands of cattle). Management believes that the company keeps approximately 89,500 tonnes of methane from entering the atmosphere each year.
With operations spanning across Saskatchewan and in the United States, Belle is primarily located in Saskatchewan, a province with a rich agricultural history of feeding the world. Known as the breadbasket of Canada, Saskatchewan is home to 40 percent of Canada’s cultivated farmland. Additionally, Saskatchewan is the world’s largest exporter of lentils, dried peas, canola, oats, wheat, and flax.
For more specialty food industry news, subscribe to Gourmet News.
