Cold foods processors that invest in sustainable initiatives have another reason in 2021 to be kind to the planet. Recent research shows a growing number of consumers are partial to brands with an environmentally focused business plan.
A report released last summer by IRI and the NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business found that consumer packaged goods (CPG) marketed as sustainable increased to a 16.8% dollar market share, up 0.6% from 2019. The research also shows that products purchased from companies with clear sustainability goals have grown seven times faster than conventional products in recent years, and those numbers are expected to increase.

In the past decade, several cold foods processors have implemented sustainability goals into their business plans where they may not have existed before. Meanwhile, others have made environmental initiatives a foundational tenet of their company from the start, and are well-positioned to succeed with today’s consumers. We checked in with two of those brands to find out how they’ve grown their sustainable footprint while staying profitable: frozen fruit processor Firestone Pacific Foods, and frozen plant-based dessert brand Must Love.