Top 10 Most Innovative Vegan Companies of 2020
At the heart of the vegan movement is a deep passion for progression, creativity, and innovation. Every vegan must be somewhat resourceful with their food, apparel, and even common household items. That’s why innovative vegan companies are so important for our planet, the animals, and our health! As long as consumers can find delicious, nutritious, and accessible products, we will see this movement grow more and more every day.
So, keep reading and check out which companies have been doing the most to provide us with high-quality vegan products that will make living ethically that much easier!
NotCo.
This Chilean company has developed an AI program named "Giuseppe", which determines which plants will best replicate animal ingredients! It holds a database of over 7000 different plant molecules, which it then analyzes when provided with an animal-derived food, so it can decide which plants are most similar. They then have chefs and sensory specialists figure out what to do with the ingredients provided, so they can create plant-based products that are almost identical to their animal counterparts in every way. So far, their incredible food technology has helped them create milks, yogurts, cheeses, mousses, and other vegan dairy substitutes.
Geltor
Geltor creates high-quality, animal-free ingredients for the beauty industry, including elastin and collagen derived from plants. As well as being free from animal ingredients, their products are cruelty free and sustainable. Their first product, created in 2018, has even won the CEW Beauty "Innovation of the Year" award, as it was the world’s first animal-free collagen!
Geltor has since created Elastapure, a human elastin alternative synthesized through plant-based fermentation, and HumaColl21, which has shown to deliver even better results than marine collagen.
Good Catch
Chefs Chad and Derek Sarno, pioneers of the plant-based seafood movement with impressive credentials in the food tech industry, have created an entire line of vegan tuna, fish burgers, and other delicious foods that will satisfy your tastebuds without harming our oceans’ rapidly disappearing marine life. See website here!
Their ingredients include mainly protein-packed legumes and algae oil, making their products sustainable and nutritious. Not only has Good Catch been a huge hit since their debut, they have recently opened a 42,500 square foot facility in Ohio, after receiving large investments from a number of celebrities, including Paris Hilton, Woody Harrelson, and Shailene Woodley, and partnering with Bumble Bee Foods!
Desserto
Yes, vegan cactus leather is a thing! This innovative team from Mexico, led by Adrián López Velarde and Marte Cázarez, has showcased their vegan fabrics all over the world - even at Monte Carlo Fashion Week.
Two years of research and development were put into their project, until they were finally able to perfect their cactus leather in July of 2019. Since then, their sustainable vegan textiles have won multiple awards, including the Good Design Award, Green Product Award, and the LVMH Innovation Award. Desserto leather can be used for footwear, accessories, furniture, and even cars!
Ripple
While plant-based milks are almost all a healthier alternative to dairy milk, some can be high in fat and especially in sugar. Others are low in sugar and overall calories, but may instead lack nutrition.
A low-sugar and high-protein alternative in the plant-based milk market, Ripple has come to challenge the idea that plant-based milks lack the nutrition found in dairy milk. In fact, their milks contain 50% more calcium than dairy, and are fortified with iron and vitamin D!
Impossible Foods
Impossible Foods has set out to make plant burgers mainstream — and it’s happening! Their meat-free meat is not only available at tons of popular restaurant chains (including Burger King, AppleBee’s, White Castle, and Little Caesar’s), you can now buy it at a supermarket near you! Kroger, Dillons, King Sooper’s, Smith’s, and Ralphs now hold Impossible patties! Made from soy and potato protein and plant-based heme iron, Impossible meats offer that savory, umami bite with none of the animal cruelty or environmental impact! There is some controversial around this brand thought. Some people do not consider it as a true vegan brand. To learn more about this, check out this article Is the Impossible burger vegan?
Miyoko’s Creamery
Miyoko Schinner, the founder of this vegan cheese company, is making non-dairy products mainstream! A vegan Certified B Corporation, Miyoko’s top-tier products are making vegans and non-dairy dieters all of the world, very happy.
In fact, Starbucks is now testing their cream cheeses at a single Seattle location! Hopefully we can soon start to see these incredible cashew-based cheeses at locations all over the country.
Nuggs
Ben Pasternak, 19-year-old Tech Wiz and CEO of Nuggs, has set out to make vegan nuggets that beat their meaty counterpart in nutrition and flavor! With almost 2x the protein found in chicken nuggets, 20% less calories, and 0 cholesterol, we have a clear winner, with this innovative plant-based nugget.
With 65k followers on Instagram (where they share hilarious memes about their viral product), Nuggs is on a mission to dominate the plant-based chick’n market!
Athletic Brewing Co.
When founder of Athletic Brewing Co, Bill Shufelt, decided to shift away from his unhealthy lifestyle, he left alcohol behind, as well. However, having studied in Vermont, where the craft beer scene was booming, he missed having a refreshing beverage on hand every once in a while. And most non-alcoholic options he’d encountered were left him unsatisfied, to say the least.
That’s when he decided to team up with an award-winning craft brewer in Connecticut to start his own non-alcoholic beer company, that would provide tons of variety, and rival even high-quality alcoholic craft beers! Their NA beers can now be found all over the country, and are praised by beer critics everywhere.
Beyond Meat
Like Impossible Foods, Beyond Meat’s objective is to build meat from plants. The main difference between these two leaders in the plant-based burger market is that Beyond Meat’s products are more widely available for consumer use, and don’t contain Impossible Foods’ famous “soy heme iron”. Meanwhile, Impossible Foods, up until recently, had been focusing mostly on B2B sales — hence, their partnership with food industry giants like Burger King.
However, Beyond Meat’s products are sold both in supermarkets all over the world, and at various restaurants. They have partnered with chains like Dunkin’ Donuts, Carl’s Jr., Del Taco, and TGI Friday’s, to promote their burgers at as many locations as possible!
Which one of these companies caught your attention? Would you buy beauty products made with plant-based collagen? What about cactus leather accessories? Let us know in the comments section below! Thank you for caring about our planet and the animals!