Soylent

Soylent is a simple, nutritious, and affordable food that possesses all the essential ingredients a body needs to be healthy.

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Hunger vs. Food Insecurity

Food insecurity is often connected with a lack of resources — employment, income, housing, or adequate healthcare, just to name a few. These kinds of issues don’t exist in isolation and often complicate each other. For example, if you don’t have enough to eat, you turn to low-cost, low-quality foods to feel full. But those foods don’t necessarily deliver the nutrients your body needs, and you end up still feeling hungry. So you eat more low-quality food and then the cycle continues. To compound the issue further, obesity is also increasingly common among food insecure populations in the Western world. Obesity and other health issues can prevent individuals from gaining long-term employment, and with no employment, they can’t afford housing, and without housing..

To put it too simply: Food insecurity is complicated.

What are the statistics?

Food insecurity is a big idea to wrap your head around. To put it in perspective, here are a few stats from some trusted non-profits who have made it their mission to bring an end to food insecurity and are leaders in their field.

More than 41 million Americans are food insecure. That’s more people than in the entire state of California. (Feeding America)

More than 820 million people are food insecure worldwide. If these food insecure individuals made up a country, it would be the third largest country in the world, behind China and India. (World Food Program)

Malnutrition costs the U.S. economy more than $160 billion annually. That’s more than the total cost of Hurricane Harvey — our nation’s most costly natural disaster to date. (Bread for the World)

What's Soylent doing about it?

You’ve heard us say before that we’re on a mission to make unhealthy and unsustainable food voids obsolete. Helping to end food insecurity is a part of that mission. And while we’re experts on nutrition, we still have a lot to learn about the food insecurity crisis.

That’s why we partner with organizations who are experts in food insecurity. These partners include food banks, food rescue organizations, homeless serving organizations, international hunger relief, and disaster relief. To date, we have donated more than 1.6 million meals, through a combination of product and financial support. But there’s still a lot more to do.

Mark your calendars

Mark your calendars: On World Food Day (10/16) we are partnering with the World Food Program USA on their #ZeroHunger by 2030 initiative. We’re donating 1 meal to World Food Program USA for every bottle of our ready-to-drink Soylent sold — for the entire day! That means we can solve your hunger and work to end food insecurity at the same time. Talk about win-win.

The more you buy, the more we give! That means 1 case for you = 12 meals for World Food Program USA, 2 cases = 24 meals, 3 cases… well, you know how math works.

As we look forward to 2019, we’re working to expand our #SoylentForGood philanthropy strategy. We’ll be investing in a variety non-profits who are all working to end food insecurity both domestically and abroad. Join us!

On October 16th, 2018, Soylent will donate 1 meal - at the cost of $0.33- for each bottle of RTD product purchased, excludes powder purchases. For every new subscription 12 meals will be donated. Applicable to all RTD products purchased through 11:59pm PDT on October 16th. This offer is exclusive to sales made on Soylent.com. We will donate a maximum of 35,000 meals to WFP USA. Offer applies to U.S. customers only but void in IL, HI, MS, MA, SC and AL. No portion of the purchase is tax deductible. Learn more about WFP USA HERE.

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A Case for Blue

Our newest flavor rhymes with Banilla.

So. Why blue? Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, may I present my case for blue.

Opening Statement

Let me begin with a slightly different question: What color is vanilla? Many traditional flavors are tied to a color. And maybe more importantly, many colors are intrinsically tied to a specific flavor in our minds and our palates. See something red? You expect strawberry. See green? Lime. Orange? Yeah, you get the picture. So what about blue? While many may answer blueberry, if you’ve ever made a blueberry smoothie, you’ll know that blueberries are actually quite purple — which is already spoken for by grape drink.

Yum. Purple.

So picking a color for a flavor can be rather complicated, and getting it right is crucial from a design perspective. Ever eaten what you thought would be a lime candy that turned out to be green apple? Gross.

After much research and discussion, we at Soylent determined that the best possible color for our newest, most requested flavor, Vanilla, was blue. Please find my evidence below.

Exhibit A: Vanilla isn’t “brown”

When you ask people what color they think vanilla is, they will often think of the color of vanilla beans, vanilla ice cream, or maybe vanilla extract and give you an answer of something in the brown or beige spectrum. While this is a good starting point, let’s consider Vanilla in the context of other popular flavors: chocolate, coffee, caramel, peanut butter – all kind of brown. So what about white? Our neutral Original couldn’t be packaged in anything but a crisp, white canvas. And beige? That pairs nicely with our creamy vanilla latte-like flavor in Cafe Vanilla. With our Original, Cafe Vanilla, and Cacao filling out the spectrum of white to brown, we have to start thinking outside the brown box.

Our hypothetical future product offerings could get messy QUICKLY!

Exhibit B: Nothing is really blue

With the exception of some minerals, nothing on Earth is actually blue. No, blue raspberries are not a thing, and as discussed previously, blueberries are kind of purple. So outside of the ocean and the sky (which are kind of the same, non-blue phenomenon), you won’t really find much blue out there on our little blue dot. I don’t mean to say that blue is unnatural, but this ties into our color association exercise from earlier. Because of this lack of blue in plants and food-stuffs, blue isn’t really intrinsically tied to too many flavor profiles, traditionally speaking… except for vanilla, which leads me to my next point.

Indigofera — traditionally used to produce indigo dye. Not traditionally blue.

Exhibit C: Vanilla has actually been blue the whole time

Yeah, it’s like the Sixth Sense but Bruce Willis was Vanilla the whole time! Or something. Basically, vanilla has always been blue. Let’s hop on over to the Google machine, shall we? A quick image search for “vanilla flavored” things yields some interesting results:

Notice anything?

You may not have realized it, but food companies have been signifying vanilla flavor with the color blue all around you probably since they figured out how to make blue ink from indigo flowers, purple cabbage, or some other not-actually-blue material.

Closing Arguments

So combine these undeniable facts from the very scientific process I just laid out with our current product line and what do you get? The only logical color for Soylent Vanilla is the color blue. Next time you’re at the grocery store, take a look at the ice cream, the flavored milks, the cake mixes. You’ll probably see more blue than you’ve ever noticed before. I rest my case. Now go try a case of Vanilla.

About the Author: John Zelek is Associate Creative Director at Rosa Foods. He works on all kinds of creative projects for Soylent, and feels very strongly about the color blue.

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Original Powder 1.9 Is Coming

We’ve made changes to taste, texture, and composition based on your feedback to Original Powder 1.8. Overall, the serving size for Powder 1.9 is up from 87g of Powder to 90g per 12 fl oz of water. The net weight of a pouch has also been increased from 435g to 450g.

What else is so great about our new formula?

Improved Flavor

We’ve balanced out the flavor profile to give the sweet, subtle flavor of Original Powder an even smoother finish. You could even say we gave it more of that velvety “mouthfeel” celebrity chefs are always talking about.

And that’s not all! There are also some equally exciting — though maybe less glamorous — updates to the Powder 1.9 nutritional profile.

More Potassium

To further align with new Reference Daily Intakes (RDI) guidelines from the FDA, we’ve increased the amount of potassium per serving to 940mg, up from 700mg per serving. This increase in potassium may be especially beneficial for those who might have a high-sodium diet.

More Fiber

To help support a fiber-rich diet, we’ve also increased the fiber content per serving to 5.6g, up from 5g of fiber per serving. And insoluble fiber, cellulose, has been added to our fiber blend too. Previously only soluble corn fiber was used.

So order up and let us know what you think! We hope you enjoy this new version of Original Powder. And don’t forget, Soylent Powder is also available in rich, chocolatey Cacao too.

Thanks for your continued support and feedback — we literally couldn’t have done this without you!

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Guess Who’s at Kroger Stores

Hint: it’s us. Soylent is now available in Kroger-owned stores! That means we’re popping up in Kroger divisions all over the country, places like Ralphs, Fred Meyer, King Sooper, and Frys! Just head to the Nutrition Section at participating locations and you'll see us on the shelves.

This year we’ve expanded our retail footprint all across the US through partnerships with retailers like Kroger, 7-Eleven, and Walmart — making it easier than ever before to pick up Soylent for your summertime adventures. Check out our Store Finder for a participating retailer near you.

Thank you for your continued support! Now get out there and enjoy your Soylent.

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It’s a Berry Good Day

The best part of all, Soylent Strawberry is available right now on soylent.com. Shop Now! Our new flavor will be available soon on Amazon. You’ll also spot Soylent Strawberry at select retailers starting July 30th. Check out our Store Finder to find a retailer near you.

Why Soylent Strawberry? We’ve been getting tons of requests for a new flavor and strawberry is consistently at the top of everyone’s list. It wasn’t easy to get the right balance of light and fruity in Soylent Strawberry, but now that we’ve perfected our new caffeine-free flavor, we’re so excited for you to try it. Visit soylent.com/FAQ for additional information and comprehensive product information.

To keep up with demand for convenient, ready-to-drink nutrition, we’ve also added a new production line and a new bottle! You may see both bottles out in the world and in your upcoming shipments. Learn more at our FAQs.

We hope you enjoy the new Soylent Strawberry — fruit is back in our ready-to-drink lineup just in time for summer. Keep an eye out for more exciting developments to come. Thank you for your continued support. Now get out there and try Soylent Strawberry today!

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#SoylentForGood partners with NY Food Banks.

New York City has a well-deserved reputation for being one of the best food cities in the world. However, while it’s earned its place as a foodie Mecca, it’s also true that nearly 2.4 million people in New York state struggle with hunger, with about half of that number living in New York City. One in 8 residents in New York currently find themselves in this unfortunate situation.

We find this statistic deeply upsetting, and are committed to doing our part to help. That’s why today we’re announcing our latest #SoylentForGood initiative: for every bottle of Soylent sold in New York retail stores during the month of June, we’re donating a bottle of Soylent to help make New York more food secure. Help us reach our goal of providing New Yorkers in need with up to 40,000 complete meals donated! We would like to thank our partners in this effort: City Harvest of New York City and Island Harvest of Long Island — who are on the frontlines of fighting hunger every day.

Each bottle of Soylent is designed to be a complete meal, including 20g of protein and 20% of your daily recommended micronutrients.* Improving access to quality nutrition is a big challenge, but together we can make sure that every New Yorker has access to more quality nutrition. Find out how you can help by visiting https://www.cityharvest.org and https://www.islandharvest.org.

To find a store near you, check out our Store Finder for more information. The Soylent team is incredibly thankful for your continued support. Please help us spread the word and use #SoylentForGood on your social media.

We’ll be directing our donations to City Harvest and Island Harvest to reach NYC and Long Island.

*See nutritional facts panel for fat content.

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Soylent and WFP Innovation Accelerator help bring Hydroponic farming to Africa

This week, #SoylentForGood is proudly renewing our support for World Food Program USA for the third year in a row. Without you, our loyal customers, we wouldn’t be able to fund such programs, so we also wanted to take this opportunity to say THANK YOU.

Recap of Soylent and WFP USA:

Beginning in May 2016, Soylent became an official supporter of World Food Program USA, a non-profit organization that supports the lifesaving work of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), the global leader in the fight to end hunger.

Recently, we have directed most of our funding to the WFP’s Innovation Accelerator. Launched in 2016, WFP’s Innovation Accelerator identifies, supports and scales up solutions to address global hunger. They address global malnutrition while developing technologies that can prevent food scarcity for the long term. Challenging the status quo is in our DNA at Soylent, so this new initiative at WFP quickly caught our team’s attention. While we believe that Soylent can help in many situations and circumstances, we also recognize that we do not have all the answers. Just as our founder Rob Rhinehart’s entrepreneurial spirit sought to solve some of the issues with our global food ecosystem and consequently created Soylent, we want to help support new, promising ideas that help further our vision.

Sahwari refugee camp. Photo Credit: Danish Refugee Council

For 42 years, Sahrawi refugees have been living amongst five camps in the Sahara desert near the town of Tindouf in Western Algeria. WFP supports 125,000 of the most vulnerable. The harsh and isolated desert environment has limited opportunities for agriculture and self-reliance. Though helped by humanitarian assistance, food security assessments have shown that 19% of Sahrawi children under 5 suffer from chronic malnutrition and 43% of Sahrawi women between the ages of 15 and 49 suffer from anemia within the camps.

Soylent helps bring sustainable Feed Production with Hydrograss in the Sahara

WFP’s Innovation Accelerator and Soylent are bringing a new technology to camps in the Sahara to help refugees produce their own food: Hydroponics

With low-tech hydroponic systems, and a blend of nutrients targeted at the exposed roots, plants are able to quickly grow and thrive in the desert without soil or a lot of water.

Photo Credit: WFP/Nina Schroder

During the first phase of this pilot (November 2016 – April 2017), WFP and OXFAM tested the concept of growing barley in the desert with a high-tech container unit and adapted the technology to local needs with the support of Sahrawi engineer Taleb and other refugees. As a result, with the support of Soylent, the refugee community developed the new Hydroponic Fodder unit and adapted it to local conditions. The unit can now be produced at 10% of the cost of the previous version by using only locally available materials, which contributes to the sustainability and ownership of the initiative.

Photo Credit: WFP/Nina Schroder

The first use case for these units have been to grow barley grass, which is among the fastest-growing, high-nutrition feed sources for livestock, thus providing key sustenance and nutrients for the chain of life in the Sahara. Growth takes 7 days from seed to harvest, with 10% of the water requirements and none of the soil requirements of traditional methods.

Photo Credit: WFP/Nina Schroder

Prior to the hydrograss units, livestock relied on garbage as a source of nutrition, leading to poor health and consequently little value to the refugees. The results of the project have been very promising, more than doubling milk production and increasing the health, life expectancy and reproduction of the local goats. Now, the families can provide more milk to their kids. This innovative approach shows tremendous promise of improving the nutritional status of the families and improving the camp’s resilience and self-reliance.

Photo Credit: WFP/Nina Schroder

Soylent believes in the promise of plant-based diets. However, we also want to ensure that all people receive a complete meal, for example in areas like the dessert, where a nutritious plant-based-only meal may not be accessible. While the earliest applications have been for animal feed, we are excited at the prospect that the same concept and technology will also be used to grow fresh produce to be directly consumed by people. Currently first tests for fresh hydroponic vegetable production in the camps are being conducted. This pilot in Algeria was so successful, it is now being replicated in countries like Sudan (again with Soylent’s support) as well as Chad with increasing applications beyond animal feed. In Peru, a localized Hydroponic DIY solution was developed with families living in slums to grow vegetables for their own consumption.

Photo Credit: WFP/Nina Schroder

Your purchase of Soylent supports the development of sustainable technologies we believe are the most promising for ending food insecurity and improving quality of nutrition around the world.

If you want to help us in our efforts, help spread the word. For every Friend Referral, we donate $1 to WFP USA!

Why Hydrograss Can Work:

Hydroponic grass modules are owned by entrepreneurial Sahrawi refugees and their families. Growing hydroponic grass and hydrograins allow these vulnerable people to produce their own food and rely less on international aid.

Hydroponic barley grass, as a primary hydroponic grass, provides highly nutritious food for livestock and humans.

Hydroponic cultivation uses 90% less water than conventional agriculture. Hydroponic grasses like barley require a minimum amount of water, materials, inputs and labor. Hydroponic grass modular units are simply designed with locally available materials.

The local adaptation of the units, supported by Soylent has helped to reduce the cost of each unit to 10%

Because Hydroponic barley grass cultivation does not require soil and does not grow very tall, it can be vertically farmed, saving space and energy. This makes growing fresh food possible in an area, where no traditional cultivation was possible before.

Hydroponic systems can be adapted to grow various feed and vegetable crops, which is the next step.

Training and ongoing support, along with accessibility, storage and logistics, are a key part of the program.

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Your Every Action Impacts the Planet

The Earth is big, and we humans are small. We knowingly live on the most vulnerable planet is modern history, yet visualizing our individual responsibility can still be a challenge. But our actions matter.

Everything matters in a world made of matter. Especially in today’s postmodern world, seemingly inconsequential decisions can have the most profound, lasting effect.

This Earth Day, we’d like you to consider one small decision you can make right now that will add up to a lasting, positive impact for our world:

Enjoy one sustainable, plant-based meal.

Here’s why:

Population growth is outpacing food production. Nearly half of the Earth’s arable land is dedicated to agriculture, 70% of which is dedicated to livestock. Since we haven’t yet located a backup Earth, we will need a backup plan. Even though agricultural productivity is increasing, many experts believe that population growth will outpace food output within the foreseeable future.

The gorilla in the room is a cow. Our favorite foods like beef and dairy are the biggest contributors to pollution, water usage, waste and carbon emissions.

Old Bessie loves water

Did you know that about half of America’s water usage goes toward raising animals for food? One pound of beef requires 1,800 gallons of water (1)! That’s right! Old Bessie drinks up three Olympic swimming pools during her lifespan. Today’s modernized water cycle has an incredible impact on the planet. After Bessie drinks and excretes it, it gets transported, purified and transported again and again. Meanwhile, water usage per pound for most plants, especially scientifically developed seed and legume crops is a fraction of that.

When a quarter pounder is equivalent to a 4-hour long shower, it makes sense to consider some smarter alternatives.

Addressing the sustainability of our eating habits is simpler, less obvious way to make an even bigger difference, every single day.

For every apple you eat, another goes into a landfill.

Food waste is such a... waste. Meat processing, retailing and storage lets about 20% of Bessie to go uneaten and end up in the trash (2). And it’s not just our gentle hooved friends -- 35% of fish end up in landfills - equivalent to 3 billion Atlantic salmon. And here’s the catch-22 about our plant-based, colors-of-the-rainbow diets: 45% of fruits and vegetables grown never get eaten.

Part of Soylent’s mission is to minimize waste by selecting sustainable, science-based sources of plant-derived ingredients from sources, like soy and corn. We leverage advanced, safe breeding technologies that offer crops with no discernible difference other than better yields and lower water and chemical input requirements. And then we have developed processing technologies that removes impurities and contaminants and provides a longer shelf life with no spoilage.

The end result is that we can process and use the entire plant, while wasting very little.

Addressing how we process, package, distribute and consume food, and handle food waste is critical for our future here on Earth. We’re going to need these technologies to minimize the impact on the environment, and more efficiently feed a rapidly growing human population farther into the future.

Taking one step towards a sustainable plant-based diet puts us all on track towards a healthier, happier future for our planet…

Follow us on Instagram and join in the conversation.

Footnotes:

1. Mekonnen MM and Hoekstra AY. The green, blue and grey water footprint of farm animals and animal products. UNESCO Institute of Water Education, 2010. Vol. 1. Source: http://waterfootprint.org/media/downloads/Report-48-WaterFootprint-AnimalProducts-Vol1_1.pdf

2. Global Initiative on Food Loss and Waste Reduction, United Nations FAO. Source: http://www.fao.org/save-food/resources/keyfindings/infographics/fruit/en/

Additional References:

1. Scientific American: 10 Calories in 1 Calorie Out

2. Reducitarians “Why?”

3. Climate Impact: Biking vs. Driving

4. Carl Sagan’s “Pale Blue Dot”

5. National Geographic News: Farming Claims Almost Half of Earth

6. Vox: How to Feed 3 Billion Extra People

7. Climate Change Calculator

8. Vox: How much of the world’s cropland is actually used to grow food?

9. Vox: These maps show where all the world’s cattle, chickens, and pigs are

10. NPR: Grocery Stores get mostly mediocre scores on their food waste efforts

11. Trash to Treasure: Changing Waste Streams to Profit Streams

12. BBC: How many Earths do we need?

13. Center for Sustainable Systems: Carbon Footprint Factsheet

14. HuffPost: Breathtaking Effects of Cutting Back on Meat

15. Earth Day Initiative

16. UN Global Initiative on Food Loss stats

17. UN State of Food Security 2017

18. Environmental Defense Fund: Fighting Global Warming with Food

19. Green Living Ideas: Why a plant-based diet can save the planet

20. Business Insider: Here’s what your food would look like if it weren’t genetically modified

21. Veganism by the Numbers

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Announcing our Earth Day Promo

Soylent products are not only engineered to be as nutrient-dense as possible. They are also designed to minimize your impact on the environment:

Soylent leverages modern breeding technologies (GMO) that serve to maximize crop yield, reduce high-erosion farming, and reduce requirements for water and agricultural inputs.

Modern soy and corn-derived ingredients enjoy a supremely efficient production system in the U.S. that minimizes waste and carbon emissions compared to either domestic animal or imported plant-based ingredients

Many ingredients in Soylent use parts of the crop that often go to waste, such as corn fiber.

Every Soylent product has a one-year shelf-life without refrigeration. Compare that to fresh, organic meat and produce that goes funky in 2 weeks, under refrigeration.

Soylent Powder is among the most nutrient-dense substances on the planet, with the water removed. Powder is packaged in large unit sizes to minimize packaging and waste.

There are no peels, seeds, skin or bones in Soylent to cut off and throw away.

Taking one step towards a sustainable plant-based diet puts us all on track towards a healthier, happier future for our planet.

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Soylent Originals: RAC

André Anjos, the artist behind RAC, is a music producer, dj, and performer. After finding early success remixing songs for artists like Rivers Cuomo of Weezer and Classixx, RAC set out on his own to create a sound unlike any other. He recently released his second full length album, Ego, and with that release, a national tour. We caught up with the longtime Soylent drinker at his stop here in LA.

Long hours in the studio and days on the road often leave André without a good option for food. Inspired by Rob’s first blog post on the subject in 2013, André has been using Soylent ever since as a way to stay in the zone while writing new music or getting ready for a show.

Nowadays, with RAC’s skyrocketing success, Soylent helps fuel him on days packed with setups, sound checks, and interviews. Much like many of us, he’s the ultimate multitasker. Be sure to check out http://rac.fm for music, tour dates, and more!

When hunger strikes, you can’t always stop for a nutritious, complete meal. That's where Soylent can help. Have an interesting story or know someone who's an Original? Email us at [email protected].

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Introducing Cacao Powder

Grab-and-go nutrition.

Over the last few months, we’ve been focusing on our ready-to-drink lines, but we’ve never forgotten our first - Soylent Powder. Cacao represents more than a year of constant development to deliver a product that offers an outstanding rich chocolatey taste. We are pricing our new Cacao pouches at the same as Original at $64 for a single order of case containing 7 pouches, with a 5% discount for subscribers. Tub pricing will be $34, with a 5% discount for subscribers.

The new RDI guidelines bring some big shifts in the nutritional profile of our powder. The biggest changes come in the form of potassium, which increased from 760 mg to 940 mg per serving, to comply with the new regulations. Additionally, fiber increased from 5g to 6g per serving. All vitamin and mineral content has been increased or decreased to fall in line with the new RDI format. You can read more about the new RDIs on the FDA website. Eventually, all Soylent products will be updated to conform to this new RDI format.

As our team has grown, we have been able to take on new projects and direct more attention towards expanding our family of powder products. You can expect more powder developments throughout the coming months. Cacao powder is available now on Soylent.com, and soon to be available on Amazon.com.

We have some fun merchandise to give out for creativity with our new powder! Simply email, tweet, or tag us with your work, and we’ll send you a branded blender bottle, t-shirt, or other fun Soylent SWAG. We hope you enjoy this new flavor and version, and thank you for your continued support!

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A Message from Soylent CEO Bryan Crowley

In the last year, we’ve been very busy and the company has seen tremendous growth. We’ve introduced two new products in Soylent’s Cafe line, Cafe Vanilla and Cafe Chai, and I’m thrilled to share that Cafe Chai recently won Best New Product at BevNet’s Best of 2017 Awards. Amazon has been an amazing partner helping us get more Soylent in the hands of more consumers nationwide, and we’re now one of the fastest-growing brands on Amazon, as well as #1 in the meal replacement category. This past summer, we partnered with our friends at 7-Eleven to test expansion into retail and blew away our expectations. Now we are expanding with 7-Eleven and other retailers in markets around the country. And I’m also proud of our #SoylentforGood program, which has donated over a million meals and counting, sent meals to support disaster relief and contributed funds to the World Food Program USA to support their mission of Making Hunger History! When you’re trying to do something truly innovative, there will of course be challenges. We’ve had a few along the way, but we’ve learned from each one and have come out on the other side smarter and more determined than ever.

So where are we going from here? One of the first things Rob and I did together when I joined as President was to define our vision and mission. We didn’t hire a bunch of consultants - we worked with our team, and what we came up with has been the driving force of the company from the beginning and will continue to provide the focus we need to truly make a difference. Our vision is big but simple: we want to change the way the world looks at food. How? By leveraging science and technology to provide complete, convenient, and sustainable nutrition to the world. That’s our mission.

Rob proved that you can use smart science and deliver an affordable and sustainable food in a powder form that you could actually live off of. And Rob did just that, consuming only Soylent for 30 days - now that’s commitment! Many of you did the same thing and shared your experiences with the world, and the rest is history. Next, Soylent changed how you can get your food by selling online with an innovative subscription model. With the launch of ready-to-drink Soylent, we are proving that you can “drink” a complete, nutritious and filling meal on the go, at the office or whenever you need to fuel your day. And there’s more to come.

People always ask me if we’re trying to eliminate traditional food. The answer is no - we love food. It is connected to the fabric of what defines cultures and makes us human beings. What we do want to replace is all those times you need food as fuel, and you either skip a meal or make an unhealthy, unsustainable or expensive choice throughout your busy week. We call these “food voids” and we’re on a mission to make them obsolete with a healthier, more sustainable choice.

I want to end by thanking Rob and wishing him the best in this next stage of his journey. His continued support is invaluable, and we are all indebted to his passion and commitment for the company he created and the community he cultivated. I look forward to working with him in his new role in the months and years to come. And thanks again to the Soylent community - I am excited to continue getting to know you in my role as CEO as we work together to change the way the world looks at food.

Bryan

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Soylent’s Next Chapter

A Message from Rob Rhinehart

If you love something, set it free. Soylent and the people involved have become the loves of my life. Starting from scratch and turning my passion for a better food system into a booming business with world class products and employees has been the experience of a lifetime. And both the business and I are still quite young.

I have seen the company evolve with scale, and done my best to guide it toward my vision and support those involved. Along the way I have seen my role as CEO evolve, especially enjoying the process of delegating my responsibilities to more skilled and experienced scientists, managers, and executives. These specialists are clearly better at their roles than I would be, especially if I were handling tons of other responsibilities simultaneously, which is the exciting early stage of a startup. But that time has passed.

Soylent executive chairman Rob Rhinehart

After much deliberation I have decided to pass the reins to a new CEO with more management and industry experience. Effective immediately, I will support Soylent as Executive Chairman. As Founder and largest shareholder, as well, I will still do everything in my power to ensure its continued success.

Over a year ago it was serendipity that introduced me to Bryan Crowley. Bryan is a passionate, creative, experienced leader that knows the food and beverage industry inside and out, and is dedicated to supporting and developing those around him. He has been Soylent's President for the better part of a year and has already had an untold positive impact improving our distribution, marketing, supply chain, product, and organization - all the things a good CEO should do.

We have put in place a three-year roadmap for the business, and I have complete confidence in the Leadership Team's ability to execute it. I am more motivated by the success of the company and brand than my own title. I have no doubt this is the best thing for both the business and myself, and am excited to watch Soylent continue to grow into a huge, impactful business.

Rob

A Message from Soylent CEO Bryan Crowley

First of all, I want to take a moment to say hello and thank you to all of our Soylent friends out there who have helped turn Rob’s vision into one of the most talked about and fastest growing brands in the food and beverage industry! I’ve been in this industry my entire career, and I’ve never seen anything like it. I couldn’t be more excited to be part of this community and take on this new, expanded role for the company.

Soylent CEO Bryan Crowley

Rob and I have spent a lot of time together since we met just over a year ago discussing the history of the brand; the people here, both past and present, who have helped get us where we are today; and our shared vision for the future. We also spent a lot of time just getting to know each other and our friendship has grown each day. When Rob asked me to step into the CEO role, I told him I had one condition - I would only do it if he would continue to partner with me to help bring our vision to life. He agreed, of course, and Rob will continue to be a guiding force in his new position as Soylent’s Executive Chairman.

In the last year, we’ve been very busy and the company has seen tremendous growth. We’ve introduced two new products in Soylent’s Cafe line, Cafe Vanilla and Cafe Chai, and I’m thrilled to share that Cafe Chai recently won Best New Product at BevNet’s Best of 2017 Awards. Amazon has been an amazing partner helping us get more Soylent in the hands of more consumers nationwide, and we’re now one of the fastest-growing brands on Amazon, as well as #1 in the meal replacement category. This past summer, we partnered with our friends at 7-Eleven to test expansion into retail and blew away our expectations. Now we are expanding with 7-Eleven and other retailers in markets around the country. And I’m also proud of our #SoylentforGood program, which has donated over a million meals and counting, sent meals to support disaster relief and contributed funds to the World Food Program USA to support their mission of Making Hunger History! When you’re trying to do something truly innovative, there will of course be challenges. We’ve had a few along the way, but we’ve learned from each one and have come out on the other side smarter and more determined than ever.

So where are we going from here? One of the first things Rob and I did together when I joined as President was to define our vision and mission. We didn’t hire a bunch of consultants - we worked with our team, and what we came up with has been the driving force of the company from the beginning and will continue to provide the focus we need to truly make a difference. Our vision is big but simple: we want to change the way the world looks at food. How? By leveraging science and technology to provide complete, convenient, and sustainable nutrition to the world. That’s our mission.

Rob proved that you can use smart science and deliver an affordable and sustainable food in a powder form that you could actually live off of. And Rob did just that, consuming only Soylent for 30 days - now that’s commitment! Many of you did the same thing and shared your experiences with the world, and the rest is history. Next, Soylent changed how you can get your food by selling online with an innovative subscription model. With the launch of ready-to-drink Soylent, we are proving that you can “drink” a complete, nutritious and filling meal on the go, at the office or whenever you need to fuel your day. And there’s more to come.

People always ask me if we’re trying to eliminate traditional food. The answer is no - we love food. It is connected to the fabric of what defines cultures and makes us human beings. What we do want to replace is all those times you need food as fuel, and you either skip a meal or make an unhealthy, unsustainable or expensive choice throughout your busy week. We call these “food voids” and we’re on a mission to make them obsolete with a healthier, more sustainable choice.

I want to end by thanking Rob and wishing him the best in this next stage of his journey. His continued support is invaluable, and we are all indebted to his passion and commitment for the company he created and the community he cultivated. I look forward to working with him in his new role in the months and years to come. And thanks again to the Soylent community - I am excited to continue getting to know you in my role as CEO as we work together to change the way the world looks at food.

Bryan

[soylentme]

#SoylentforGood Success on World Food Day

On Monday, October 16, 2017, you stepped up to recognize World Food Day with Soylent and our giving community. With 50 percent of revenue on all new orders exclusively on Soylent.com going to World Food Program USA to support the U.N. World Food Programme’s Innovation Accelerator and One America Appeal, your thoughtful purchases contributed to tens of thousands of dollars donated to these important organizations. The entire Soylent team extends a heartfelt thank you for your generous support.

We also wanted to take this moment to provide some additional details on our #SoylentforGood initiative, and give you a bit more insight into where your funds have been directed. The U.N. World Food Programme identifies, nurtures and scales-up bold solutions to challenges in humanitarian and development contexts. The program currently supports more than 30 internal innovations and external start-ups across all WFP operations, with a global goal of a world with zero hunger.

Below is a blog post from the WFP that we wanted to share to give our community a sense of the wonderful work they are supporting with their Soylent orders:

Innovation Is Transforming The Way Refugees Grow Food

A changing climate. Raging wars. New challenges. In order to create a future of Zero Hunger, the World Food Programme must constantly adapt.

That’s why the world’s leading humanitarian agency solving hunger is working with the public and private sector to develop better tools and strategies to feed families in need through its Innovation Accelerator.

Launched in 2016 and based in Germany, WFP’s Innovation Accelerator identifies, supports and scales up solutions to address global hunger, including a virtual farmers market in Zambia and “food computers” in Jordan.

Now, in one of the most remote refugee camps in the world, WFP has introduced a smart new way to tackle food insecurity among refugees who lack access to land: Hydroponic agriculture.

Located in five camps near the town of Tindouf in Western Algeria, Sahrawi refugees live in a harsh and isolated desert environment. With limited opportunities for self-reliance, refugees in the area depend on humanitarian assistance to survive. At the same time, one-quarter of the population suffers from chronic malnutrition.

Nina Schroder, Project Manager at WFP’s Innovation Accelerator, explains the vicious cycle of malnutrition in the Sahrawi refugee camps.

“Animals play very important role in their culture, but also for their diet. As they themselves are completely dependent on food aid, they very rarely have the means to actually feed their animals. So very often, [the animals] actually end up eating garbage, leading to very poor nutritional of the meat and milk they produce.”

To ensure that animals can provide the necessary nutrition for people living in camps, WFP is reinforcing its food assistance activities with hydroponic growing in Algeria. This low-tech, small-scale project builds on existing expertise to improve food security and contribute to resilience in the camps.

In only seven days, fresh green barley fodder can be produced from seeds using minimal quantities of water and no fertilizer, with a daily harvest of up to 130 pounds per day per unit. One unit can feed up to 20 animals, supporting approximately seven families.

The units are run by a groups of Sahrawi refugees, while receiving technical and business training. Different from the traditional way of distributing food basket to the refugee, this approach is highly innovative and offers refugees the chance to sustain themselves and become progressively less reliant on international aid.

New innovations like these have the potential to transform the lives of vulnerable populations across the world and address the roots of hunger, strengthening food systems, speeding up humanitarian response times, harnessing local knowledge and making funds stretch even further.

Alice Manos, WFP USA This blog post originally appeared on wfpusa.org and has been republished with permission.

Your World Food Day purchase contributed to an important step in the ending the cycle of food insecurity across the globe and supported relief efforts here in the U.S. and its territories. We are proud to share this mission with all our community. If you would like more information on Soylent for Good, or just want to get involved, please reach out to [email protected]. Thank you for your continued support!

[soylentme]

Soylent to Donate 50 Percent of All New Sales on World Food Day

Our contributions to World Food Program USA began more than a year ago, and we are proud to foster efforts that have provided hundreds of thousands of meals around the globe. Soylent’s mission is to leverage science and technology to provide complete, convenient and sustainable nutrition to the world. We recognize that accomplishing this goal requires partnering with other organizations pursuing new and innovative solutions to these issues. Therefore, we have directed our contributions to the World Food Program’s Innovation Accelerator. Launched in 2016, the WFP Innovation Accelerator identifies, supports and scales high potential solutions to hunger worldwide. We look forward to highlighting some of these innovative solutions in subsequent posts.

The One America Appeal is a joint appeal that was originally launched by all five living former American Presidents to encourage their fellow citizens to support recovery efforts from Hurricane Harvey — which inundated the Texas Gulf Coast with unprecedented flooding. This special appeal has been expanded to include areas most affected by Hurricanes Irma and Maria.

We continue to seek partnerships and opportunities to provide assistance to our community, especially after major natural disasters. For instance, in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, we worked with our retail partners to donate over six thousand meals to the Houston area to assist in the recovery.

Your World Food Day purchase is an important step in ending the cycle of food insecurity across the globe, and we are proud to share this mission with all our Soylent community. If you would like more information on #SoylentforGood, or have ideas that Soylent can help bring complete nutrition to your community, please reach out to [email protected]. Thank you for your continued support!

*Eligible times are from 12:01am to 11:59pm PST

**Residents of IL, MS, MA, SC, AL may not participate.

***Up to $100,000 to each organization.

[soylentme]

How to Design a Bottle

Our new Sqround bottle next to our old, less efficient bottle. Clean!

Before we dive into the details of our new bottle, let’s talk about why most bottles are round. Many internet commenters have correctly identified that beverage containers are often round due to pressure - a pressurized cylindrical container pushes outward with equal force in all directions. This is crucial for pressurized beverages. However, Soylent is not pressurized. The number one reason this container was round was it is the simplest bottle shape to move through a production line. Round bottles are easier to wash, move smoothly around corners, and don’t have a front or back, making them easy to label. However, round bottles do introduce some problems after production - problems we wanted to solve. Plus, we like a challenge.

Here at Soylent, we are all about creating the most efficient food of the future, and when you’re dealing with direct to consumer shipping, wasted space is the enemy. One of the main drivers for a sqround bottle was packaging efficiency. Until we invent teleportation, Soylent will likely be packed in a rectangular box. Since circles and right angles don’t really play well together, we were wasting a bit of space. A square shape could minimize the wasted space in the box by replacing empty air with delicious Soylent, resulting in a more-than 15% smaller (and more efficient) box! That’s one point for sqround.

The original round bottle we used for Soylent Drink was designed to work smoothly in a specific manufacturing process (aseptic) and to support the weight of a few layers of boxes upon it while it travelled peacefully on a pallet, in a truck, headed to a 7-Eleven or Target. Soylent’s direct-to-consumer shipping model, however, introduces a great deal of unpredictability and abuse to the system. We can’t ask your delivery person to gingerly place a more than 40 pound box on your front stoop. Because of this, you may have noticed a few of the bottles you’ve enjoyed in the past had a nicely sized dent on the shoulder or around the bottom. Well, two flat sides are less likely to dent one another than are two cylinders. Sqround: 2, Circles: 0.

@soylent hey, almost all the bottles in my shipment are bent / dented up. is this normal?

— Shubhagata Sengupta (@shubsengupta)

November 18, 2015

Not anymore, Shubhagata.

While we’re on the topic of dents, let’s talk about paneling. In the past, most of our bottles arrived to customers with a large flat section on one side of a bottle. This is called paneling. Paneling occurs for a variety of reasons including: temperature change, elevation and pressure change, or oxygen absorption by the product. Whatever the reason, the amount of air in the bottle fluctuates after filling, usually creating a slight vacuum inside. In the presence of this vacuum, the weakest section of the bottle (the long, straight section of the profile) will pull in and create what looks like a dent, or panel, in a round bottle. When a sqround bottle faces these same forces, it actually becomes more square, arriving to the customer with four beautiful, intentionally flat sides. Game, sqround.

So why sqround? Why not a crisp cornered square bottle, you ask? Obviously, a perfect square would be most efficient in terms of packing. Squares, however, come with their own set of challenges. When bottles travel down the manufacturing line on their way to your door, they are constantly moving from single file to big groups, around curves and corners, and jostling into place. A bunch of round bottles will roll off one another and travel smoothly around corners, but a bunch of square bottles have a tendency to lock up with one another, kind of like a losing game of Tetris.

Say, this kinda looks like one of those newfangled Soylent bottles!

By generously rounding the corners of a square (to the industry-coined “sqround”) we solve these production line issues. In fact, the bottles are designed closer to round than you see in the finished product, but after the paneling takes place, they pull into the clean shape you’ll eventually hold in your hand. There were a few other important constraints that we had to consider like overall dimensions and the neck of the bottle remaining unchanged. Oh, and we wanted to finally do away with that pesky plastic wrap over the cap. Taking all of this into consideration, the fun work could begin.

We explored a wide range of reference material and design inspiration when sitting down to figure out the overall look and feel of the future of our packaging. One of the first images we conjured up was the milkman. Door to door staple food delivery was a hallmark of the 50’s, with milk, eggs, meats, and other perishables delivered right to your front stoop. Well now it’s 2017 and we’re delivering the only staple food you need right to your door. It made sense, then, to mimic some of the shapes and curves from the packaging of one of the most ubiquitous staple foods of modern history - the humble milk bottle.

Another reference point was Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. This classic is ripe with timeless design and a beautiful image of the future (visually speaking, at least - the whole Hal bit is a little more frightening than what we’re hoping for). The sets and props were so thoughtfully and impeccably designed that they are still relevant today, almost 50 years later. There are also some great designs for prepackaged space foods sprinkled throughout the film.

Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey

Lastly, we did our best to follow the “less but better” teachings of 1960’s Braun designs. These enduring designs are known for their stripped down features and clean lines. No unnecessary buttons or extraneous curves, just what you need; everything in its place.

Braun designs by Dieter Rams

This bottle has been in the works for over two years now, and we’re so thrilled to finally get it into your hands. We put a lot of thought into each detail, but in the spirit of iteration (and maybe a little bit of perfectionism), we can promise you that we won’t stop improving the design of the bottle, just as we won’t stop improving the formula it holds. Let’s all raise a sqround bottle and toast the future!

About the Author: John Zelek is Senior Creative at Rosa Foods. He works on all kinds of creative projects for Soylent, including the new bottles.

[soylentme]

Soylent to Test Ready-to-Drink Meals at 18 Participating 7-Eleven® Stores

“It is exciting that the demand for our breakthrough line of drinkable meals has moved beyond e-commerce,” said Rob Rhinehart, Soylent Founder and CEO. “This new collaboration with 7-Eleven will make Soylent an even better option for customers looking for convenience without sacrificing their health. We are thrilled to be working alongside the talented 7-Eleven team and look forward to building our retail presence nationwide.”

The 7-Eleven deal marks the first step in Soylent’s retail distribution plan. Products will be available at the following 7-Eleven locations in the Greater Los Angeles Area, subject to change:

1100 North La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles

7600 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles

5600 San Vicente Blvd., Los Angeles

5279 West Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles

10834 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles

11656 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles

11666 West Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles

3018 West Manchester Blvd., Inglewood

610 South Rampart Blvd., Los Angeles

3450 Overland Ave., Los Angeles

1516 Lincoln Blvd., Venice

630 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica

4436 Sepulveda Blvd., Culver City

5880 West Manchester Avenue, Los Angeles

1519 South Bundy Dr., Los Angeles

2541 South Barrington Ave., Los Angeles

11299 West Washington Blvd., Culver City

11075 West Olympic Blvd., West Los Angeles

“Soylent is a differentiated product for the on-the-go, millennial. It is a great example of a product that has reached online success in a short period, and we are excited to collaborate with Soylent to bring the drinkable meals to our stores in a single serving,” said Todd McFarland, 7-Eleven senior product director for vault.

Soylent’s line of ready-to-drink products are designed from the ground-up to provide the vitamins, minerals, fats, carbohydrates and protein that the body needs - all in a convenient, ready-to-drink package.