A startup offers “climate candy” that is filled with faulty vegetables.
The first-ever “climate candy” has been invented by a descendent of the Dum Dums lollipop dynasty, using excess and defective fruits and vegetables. Six carrots, three beets, one sweet potato, half a squash, and a quarter of a pumpkin are saved from the trash with every pack purchased, according to Amy Keller, co-founder and CEO of PurePlus, a business committed to minimizing food waste.
Ms. Keller describes herself as the “disruptive granddaughter” of Norman Spangler, a second-generation leader at the Spangler Candy Co., located in Bryan, Ohio, that makes marshmallow circus peanuts, lollipops, and candy canes. Alongside Emmy Award-winning producer of Live 8 benefit concerts Kevin Wall and his wife, behavior geneticist and emeritus professor of psychiatry at the University ofLos Angeles, California. In order to create nutrient-dense plant-based powders that may be utilized in a variety of food and beverage applications, PurePlus collaborates with farmers to harvest and process perishable produce.
Last year, PurePlus debuted its first consumer brand, FAVES Fruits & Veggies Sweets, offering a sustainable spin on Starburst fruit chews. Available in grape and strawberry flavors, the plant-based candies contain PurePlus’ proprietary powder, plus tapioca syrup, erythritol, sustainable palm fruit oil, sunflower lecithin and stevia extract. One package delivers a full serving of fruits and vegetables.
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“FAVES has set out to solve the climate crisis by preventing food waste by upcycling perfectly good fruits and vegetables to create a candy that’s good for people and the planet, thus, making both healthy choices and climate impact more accessible,” said Ms. Keller, a climate activist and seven-time Ironman triathlete. “We don’t make a product unless it will deliver a real benefit and is truly sustainable.”
You may buy FAVES on Amazon.com and myfavesweets.com. According to Ms. Keller, the business has also worked with online food sellers Foxtrot and SnackMagic and is preparing a future roll-out in natural and specialized supermarkets.
In a preferred series seed round headed by Trousdale Ventures and PTK Capital, the company raised $1.5 million to support the brand’s development and launch.”We’re starting small, being that category definer, and we are making sure we are really thinking about how we are innovatively using those funds for the next 12 months leading into our Series A round,” Ms. Keller stated. “I owe it to my investors and to my board to make sure we’re generating this critical cash flow to fuel growth.”
This year, the company wants to rescue 2.2 million defective fruits and vegetables. Hard candies, which, like the chews, maintain the nutrients of the fruit and vegetable ingredients while providing an opulent, nostalgic experience, might be included in future product development, according to Ms. Keller.
According to Ms. Keller, “We never wanted to be just another fruit leather or snack.” “You know what will satisfy a sweet tooth when you’ve been eating Dum Dums since you were a year old.”