10 of the Coolest, According to Me, Vegan Brands to Watch
The future looks bright and tasty
By day, I am a CPG (consumer packaged goods) copywriter and marketer. I just went freelance and started working for myself after a relatively brief blip into the so called “security” of being a full-time, W2 employee for the first time in my adult life. I thought I’d made it, for like 5 seconds. And then I got laid off, totally unexpectedly LOL.
Anyway. Now that I’m all-in on the freelance life, which surprise, also comes with no real security lol, I’m getting to call browsing the grocery store “part of my job.” I stroll the aisles of Whole Foods, Publix, and Earthfare for fun, mentally earmarking brands I think I’d like to work with or who’s marketing particularly jumps out at me as impressive. Sussing out the hottest new launches, rebrands, and collabs in the grocery world is something I always did, without knowing it, and without getting paid. So now, I love being about to professionally geek out about groceries, specifically, vegan, do-gooder brands reshaping the food industry.
I’ve been vegan since it felt like there was basically just Silk, Tofurkey, and Morningstar, and boy have the options come a long way. My favorite type of brand are those not overtly vegan, but making products we’re all already hungry for and picking up, but made with just-so-happens-to-be plant-based ingredients.
If we’re going to see the widespread, mass change to our food system that we need — to support an exploding population, to curb the worst of the climate criss, to mitigate growing antibiotic resistance, and prevent the next pandemic — we need tons of brands making affordable, accessible, delicious, and nutrition plant-based alternatives of the foods people already love.
People don’t like change! But if alternates exist that taste just as good and are just as affordable or cheaper, people will eat those things.
With that in mind, here’s a handful of the brands doing just that, who I think are doing some of the most exciting, needed work out there, while simply making really delicious, awesome products. I keep an eye on these, for marketing inspiration, and to remember just how possible change is. We’ve come a long way since rice milk and tofurkies!
Rebellyous: Delivering “price-competitive plant-based chicken for schools, restaurants, stadiums" etc, this company makes a version of chicken I’ve yet to try myself but am dying to, and I really admire what they’re doing from the perspective of making a totally realistic-tasting and textured dupe, for the masses, going into k-12 schools and such. One to watch, for sure.
via Rebellyous Konscious Foods: Plant-based cheese, chicken, and beef is one thing, but seafood? Konscious Foods, a Canadian company made by the folks behind Gardein and Yves, are tackling plant-based versions of sushi, salmon, crab cakes, and more — with products available in many cases in the grocery store freezer section. I know — it sounds weird — but give it a go. I’m fully addicted to their Kimbap and Onigiri as quick lunches, and their Smoked Salm’n was SO realistic I had a hard time downing it, as a longtime vegan who never loved fish! But if you do, or if you love sushi, this is the brand for you.
Just: IDK if you’ve heard but like eggs, are kinda expensive. Not just this, but the way chickens are kept to produce your grocery store eggs is one of the most heartbreaking situations. I don’t get into the animal cruelty piece of this often, because as awful as it is, it’s not what tends to change people’s minds en masse. But it is horribly upsetting, and as a lifelong chicken girlie, I coujld never support it. Luckily, Just Eggs are making very egg-like products you can scramble, pour into an omelette, etc. Eggs ick me out, and these are so realistic, I can’t stand the taste — which if you are an egg person, should be the best possible endorsement!
Prime Roots: Another awesome, women-owned company directly targetting food service versus consumers — think grocery store deli counters and restaurants — Prime Roots is doing some very innovative things in the world of plant based deli slices, made with koji, a japanese fungal protein! This is a great example of a company not doing anything lab-made or super processed, though I don’t personally have issues with either of those routes and think we need an all-approaches on deck.
via Prime Roots Darë Cheese: Ask most vegans or would-be vegans, or just anyone interested in eating more plants, and cheese almost always comes us as the major hurdle. It’s just been so hard to find a truly satisfying dupe for cheese in the past, made without dairy. The taste would be off, or the texture rubbery, or the shreds wouldn’t melt. There are many companies making serious headway on the plant-based cheese front, but one of my very favorites happens to be made right here in my own community and the most delicious in my opinion, and that’s Darë. These aren’t sliceable or shredded cheeses — these are party cheeses, all soft schmere style decadence in options like pepper jack or garlic brie or balsamic fig. Multiple guests have eaten it at parties we’ve thrown, and not believed it was vegan.
THIS: Not one I’ve been able to personally try, sadly, as it’s a UK-only brand for now, but it’s one to watch. THIS makes plant-based chicken, beef, lamb, and pork products sold in UK supermarkets. They’ve bagged some very large investments, have super swanky branding, and while not reason enough to love a brand usually, for veganism to go mainstream, we need lots more brands in this camp. THIS was actually named the fastest-growing brand in Britain in 2023.
Juicy Marbles: Plant based eating will never take off at the scale it needs to, if people don’t have a good steak and pork alternative — it’s just the facts. That’s where Juicy marbles comes in, with their hyper realistic meaty steaks, newly released lamb, tenderloins, and more. I have some in my freezer. I admit, I am a little scared — it looks so meatlike (are we detecting a trend here!?) but I will try soon and report back.
via Juicy Marbles Violife: Another “mainstream” vegan brand, Violife still had to be on this list, because I think they make simply some of the very best products out there right now. Looking to get a good basic shredded or sliced cheese? You need theirs. Looking for cream cheese or sour cream? They’ve got that too. I’m very excited to try some of their newest innovation unveiled at this year’s Expo West, the Superbowl of grocery, like their new coffee creamers.
Nature’s Fynd: Another brand doing very cool things with…fungi! A lot of people have developed a hesitancy to vegan products that are highly processed…though I feel a lot of these people eat McDonald’s with no second though, but that aside, the fungi approach is a smart one, to quell such naysayers. Nature’s Fynd makes one of my very favorite plant-based yogurts, just unveiled super cute new branding and celeb endorsements, has Eric Ripert as their culinary advisor, and more importantly, offers a “complete vegan protein with all 20 amino acids,” sustainably grown and nutritiously dense.
Oatly: A well-known oldie relatively speaking, Oatly is impressive and making incredible products, with super smart branding. They first caught my attention when I tried them out in the UK, and was so wowed by their plain old vanilla ice cream, I think about that experience fondly to this day. Their milks are the gold standard for many coffee shops, and I think they make the creamiest ice cream in the game.
via Oatly 
There are so many many more brands like these! I might make a part 2 of this. But let me know — what innovative, game-changing plant-based brands are you excited about? Sound off in the comments please!
xoxo
- Emmy
These sound really interesting!!
I keep laughing at the whole “eggs are so expensive “ thing. I’m like, you know you don’t have to eat them? There are plenty of other things to use instead. But I guess it’s more fun to complain about it. Anywho, thank you for this list! I love hearing about other vegan brands