“Would you like to try our dumplings?” I was asked while perusing the Winter Fancy Food Show floor. The answer to that question is always yes, especially when I found out these particular dumplings are plant-based. The question came from Eric Wu, Co-Founder of Sobo Foods, who gladly shared his insights with me.
“When we started building Sobo, we thought we were getting into it because we’re passionate about food sustainability. And if we can build a $100 million business, the amount of industrial animal agriculture that we can displace in peoples’ diets is a dream,” Eric told me. “But after we started building this business, we’ve been inspired by the fact that we get to tell stories about our immigrant families. We get to talk about what it’s like being first-generation kids growing up in America and having one foot in one culture and the other foot in another. We get to show people that Asian American food deserves to be healthy and nutritious. It deserves to be thoughtful and modern, and it deserves to be made with ingredients that represent our values.”
At the event, Sobo was showcasing three products: Chinese-inspired "Pork" & Chive, Japanese-inspired Curry & Potato, and Korean-inspired Kimchi & Mushroom. As Sobo’s top-selling SKU, it was little surprise that the “Pork” & Chive flavor blew me away. It was definitely one of my favorite items I sampled at the show.
“The Winter Fancy Food Show was Sobo's first trade show—really, it was Sobo's first proper introduction to the world,” Eric continued. “Not only did we have dozens of substantive conversations with retail buyers from all across the country, we also managed to generate a lot of buzz during the show for our brand. Between our TV appearances, trending articles, and pitching Sobo as one of the Final 4 on the big stage for the pitch slam, our little brand from California’s Bay Area managed to get some outsized attention in Las Vegas, Nevada. We can't wait to continue that momentum when we go to the biggest trade show of all this March: Natural Products Expo West.”
Packed with veggies and protein, Sobo’s 100 percent dairy-free and meatless dumplings are packaged in 45 percent post-consumer recycled pouches and fully recyclable corrugated cases. The frozen component also reduces food waste at the manufacturer, retailer, and consumer level.
Something tells me we will be hearing much more from this up-and-coming brand, so stick with us.