We recently connected with Jody Boyman and have shared our conversation below.

Jody, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

Hungry Planet began as a passion project. 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.

From an early age, growing up in St Louis, I became aware that our food choices have unintended consequences for our health, the environment and animals. I was a nature and animal-loving kid who rescued earthworms from pavement and baby birds who had plunged from nests. I had lots of inspirational quotes taped to my wall, including one from Chief Seattle: “We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.” Over time, I began connecting the dots and realized that while our planet is abundant, it is not without limit. Our daily food choices are, in fact, a vote for the world we want to inhabit, and future generations will inherit.

So, a few years ago my brother Todd (now CEO) and I decided to build a platform for positive change, one where people could eat their way to a healthier planet. 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 to fit our modern lifestyle.

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, they had to be a simple switch for conventional meat, while also delivering superior nutrition.

After a decade of culinary R&D, we developed the most authentic and complete range of plant-based meats available in the world – and the innovation continues. We offer 9 proteins: Beef, Chicken, Pork, Lamb, Turkey, Crab, Chorizo, Italian Sausage and Breakfast Sausage.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I was raised in the midwest, surrounded by voracious meat eaters from earliest memory. I also was born an ardnet animal lover and simply could not reconcile eating those I considered my friends.

It wasn’t until almost four decades after deciding to avoid eating meat, following careers as a wildlife photographer and psychologist, that I co-founded Hungry Planet with my brother. Our objective from day one was to make meat directly from plants that fooled and delighted even midwestern meat eaters while helping bend the curve on personal and planetary health.

Our meats are chef-crafted to be delicious, first and foremost, but they are also demonstrably nutritious, are non-GMO, and have a small ingredient deck. Importantly, since this is still a relatively new category, our meats prepare, cook and taste like conventional meat, and thus are a simple 1:1 swap in any favorite recipe, all global cuisines.

There are 140 million flexitarians in the USA who are actively seeking healthier meat choices without sacrificing taste – and they also want a more sustainable environmental footprint. Hungry Planet meats save on average 90% CO2, 90% water, and 70% land.

I love that our accomplished team is constantly innovating, finding ways to drive down costs while also enhancing our industry-leading nutritional profile which features lots of protein and fiber, with half the calories, a fraction the fat, and zero saturated fat.

I am honored to be a 2022 Forbes 50 Over 50: Entrepreneur award recipient and just returned from an inspirational week in Abu Dhabi at the Forbes 30/50 Summit that spanned International Women’s Day and included Hillary Clinton, Gloria Steinem, Billie Jean King, Olena Zolenska, and Malala Yousafzai. The event also featured some fantastic panels featuring Catherine O’Hara, Jessica Alba, Misty Copeland, Huma Abedin and Mo Abudu, among many others.

Have you ever had to pivot?

We had just loaded into Dot (our first major, national distributor) about 2 weeks before Covid hit, everything and everyone locked down, and the foodservice industry basically fell off a cliff. Until that point, we had been almost exclusively a foodservice company, so we were forced to pivot on a dime and get our meats into the hands of those who were hungry at home.

In short order, our nimble team developed 17 new retail items including pork gyoza, crab cakes, Thai meatballs, grilled and diced chicken strips and Italian sausage. Turned out lots of younger people, who are already hip to the health and environmental benefits of plant-based meats, were stuck at home and urged their parents to buy Hungry Planet so everyone around the table could enjoy the same meal, from vegan to carnivore. (I make my grandmother’s lasagne with Hungry Planet Italian Sausage and nobody knows the difference!)

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

My brother and I chose to co-found Hungry Planet because of our shared vision to make the world a better place. We looked at lots of options to make a difference at this juncture in our careers and ultimately settled on food because it’s humankind’s biggest common denominator, and thus our biggest lever for change.

Todd and I are both passionate about Hungry Planet’s mission to help bend the curve on personal and planetary health with the only full range of chef-crafted plant-based meats that handle, store, cook and taste like conventional meat.

And we work well together because of our complementary skill sets. And maybe most importantly, we are great business partners because we always have each other’s back!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.hungryplanetfoods.com
• Instagram: @hungryplanetfoods
• Facebook: @hungryplanetfoods
• Linkedin: hungryplanetfoods
• Twitter: @hungryplanetus
• Youtube: @hungryplanetfoods
• Other: Jody’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jodyboyman/

Image Credits
Hungry Planet