Zoglo’s Incredible Food Corp [CSE:ZOG] is a plant-based food company which is riding the zero meat revolution in the North American market. While its main focus is the Canadian retail market, it is really a global venture which had its roots in the Israeli kosher food market.
This week we had the opportunity to speak to both the company’s CEO, Tony Morello, and COO Jim Delsnyder, about the company and its plans for international expansion.
Who are Zoglo’s Incredible Food Corp?
Zoglo’s has been a beneficiary of the explosion in technology within plant-based foods, from heat and serve tech that was soya based, to a much more advanced offering that is interchangeable with real meat products. While the most advances have been seen in the European market, Zoglo’s now sees considerable opportunities within the Canadian and US markets where it already has 12 SKUs.
These products are designed to provide a very similar experience for the consumer, and the SKUs on offer from Zoglo’s demonstrate the sophistication of the offering and how far it has travelled.
On the Podcast
Zoglo’s is also just finalising an acquisition of Europe-based Monday Swiss, which will allow it to acquire the European know-how of this business and use it to carve out more market share in North America. Delsnyder estimates the North American market to be 2-3 years behind the European market in terms of product development. “That is what has attracted the retailers to our products, it is the innovation,” he says on the podcast.
Monday Swiss has leading edge technology and is already manufacturing the 12 SKUs it is selling in Canadian stores. CEO Morello reckons the acquisition will also form the basis for further expansion in the European market.
Zoglo’s is constantly innovating – e.g. bringing out fish alternatives and indeed meals targeted at children. It has a great innovation pipeline which will help it to establish its leadership position in the North American market. Morello says he is seeing consumers of meat looking out for non-meat alternatives which they can use one or twice a week – i.e. people who are not dedicated vegetarians, but recognise the health benefits of cutting down on their meat consumption.
The first mover advantage is also significant here: Morello tells us about his roadmap for success and how the company is learning from the advances it made in Europe to provide it with wins in North America. He points to alternative canned tuna as something that they can deploy into North American stores quickly, because they can see it sells in Europe. The team is exploring distribution options in the US at the moment and hope to fully launch into the US market later this year.
Zoglo’s is well-positioned to also capitalise on the shift towards zero meat that is being driven by concerns about the environment. Morello sees this as movement, a new way of life, which he thinks will be with us forever. The younger generation especially are looking at this food category as a way to help the environment. Zero meat offerings are also being helped by the fact that meat itself is becoming more expensive, making plant-based options more affordable and more predictable in terms of their pricing profile.
