News

CHICAGO, IL and VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 9, 2023­­­­­­ – The Planting Hope Company Inc. (TSXV: MYLK) (OTCQB: MYLKF) (FRA: J94) (“Planting Hope” or the “Company”), a plant-based food and beverage company focused on producing the world's most nutritious and planet-friendly products, is pleased to announce that Dot Foods, the largest food industry redistributor in North America, has elected to carry an additional nine Planting Hope products, including an additional three RightRice®️ shop-keeping units (“SKUs”) and six Hope and Sesame®️ SKUs.

“Through our expansion of both Hope and Sesame® and RightRice® with Dot Foods, we are cracking the code on ‘last-mile’ distribution to foodservice end-user locations across North America, including major retail and wholesale distribution centers and food preparation locations,” said Julia Stamberger, Planting Hope CEO and Co-Founder.  “With the introduction of nine additional Planting Hope SKUs into Dot, we can now scale our products quickly to foodservice end-users, where we achieve increased velocities, better margins and terms, and reduced placement costs in new accounts. Dot Foods continues to be a leader in making better-for-you food products available to their customer base, reaching every corner of the food distribution grid in the USA.  Foodservice operators from national chain restaurants to local eateries will be able to buy our products through their existing broadline and local distributor partners quickly and easily. Now we can reach every restaurant, café and institutional foodservice operator who has been requesting availability of our products, through their own distribution networks.”

In its capacity as the largest food industry redistributor in North America, Dot Foods supplies wholesalers and distributors with the products they require for foodservice and retail customers through order consolidation and cross-docking. Dot’s distributor customers receive frequent shipments that consolidate many brands and items into their distribution centers, providing foodservice and retail locations with the flexibility to order as little as a single case of product, delivered within 72 hours. Product is often cross-docked, eliminating the need for that product to be assigned a full warehouse slot in a distributor or for that distributor to carry inventory of that item in its buildings.  The Dot solution provides a reliable, cost-effective opportunity for distributors to access myriad products and brands that are available in the Dot universe, opening up products to be carried by any of the end-user clients that Dot’s 4,500 wholesale clients service across foodservice and retail supply chains.

On November 10, 2022, Planting Hope announced that the Company had become a vendor to Dot Foods, initiating listings through Dot with Original RightRice® Veggie Rice in bulk 5lb bags and Hope and Sesame® Barista Blend Sesamemilk in 32 oz shelf-stable cartons.  Now an additional three RightRice®️ SKUs and six Hope and Sesame®️ SKUs have been added to Dot warehouses as of March 6^th, 2023.

In total, 11 Planting Hope SKUs, four RightRice SKUs and seven Hope and Sesame SKUs, are now available to customers across North America through Dot Foods:

“Dot continues to see growth in the plant-based category. Planting Hope has some unique items that will help round out our offering,” said C.J. Pilliod, Senior Business Development Manager at Dot Foods. Dot Foods is the largest food industry redistributor in North America, operating across dry, refrigerated, and frozen distribution channels to more than 4,500 end user clients that range from retailers to foodservice distributors and operators of all kinds. 

“Truly, a partnership with Dot Foods is the critical ‘linchpin’ in opening up foodservice distribution in North America across our brands,” continued Ms. Stamberger. “We look forward to continuing to build our distribution through Dot with other Planting Hope products with direct applications in foodservice channels, from grab & go to cafés to quick service restaurants to managed foodservice operations at college and university, hospitals, and corporate campuses.”

To notify customers that Planting Hope’s new items are now available for purchase through Dot, these items will be spotlighted in Dot’s weekly customer email the week of March 6^th. This ‘New from Dot’ email features the latest product launches at Dot and reaches all of their wholesale clients and distributors.  The new Planting Hope products will additionally be featured in an ad on Dot’s wholesale ecommerce site.  

About Dot Foods
Dot Foods, Inc. carries 125,000 products from 1,020 food industry manufacturers making it the largest food industry redistributor in North America. Through Dot Transportation, Inc., an affiliate of Dot Foods, the company distributes foodservice, convenience, retail, and vending products to distributors in all 50 states and more than 55 countries. Dot Foods operates 12 U. S. distribution centers, which are located in Bullhead City, Arizona; Modesto, California; Bear, Delaware; Vidalia, Georgia; Burley, Idaho; Mt. Sterling, Illinois; University Park, Illinois; Cambridge City, Indiana; Williamsport, Maryland; Liverpool, New York; Ardmore, Oklahoma; and Dyersburg, Tennessee. Dot’s 13th U.S. location will be located in Manchester, Tennessee. Dot Foods’ Canadian operations are located in Toronto, Ontario and Calgary, Alberta. A new Dot Foods Canada distribution center is currently under construction in Ingersoll, Canada. For information, visit DotFoods.com.

About RightRice®
RightRice® is a vegetable-based, protein-rich, lower carbohydrate alternative to white rice that’s packed with fiber and complete plant-based protein. RightRice® is the first of its kind: a shelf-stable grain that’s 90% vegetables (lentils, chickpeas, green peas), and delivers on taste, functionality, and nutrition. With more than 9g of complete protein and 5g of fiber per 50g serving, RightRice® provides almost four times the protein and 40% fewer net carbohydrates than traditional white rice, plus it can be prepared in 12 minutes. RightRice® is available in Original (unflavored) and pre-seasoned flavor varieties, including Garlic & Herb, Spanish, and Cilantro Lime. RightRice® Risotto provides a protein-rich, easy-to-cook alternative to traditional risotto. All RightRice® products are made using real herbs and spices, and are plant-based, non-GMO verified, gluten-free certified, and kosher certified. RightRice® products are currently sold in more than 8,500 doors in leading retailers across North America, including Whole Foods Market, Wegman’s, Kroger, Sprouts, and Publix, and in Canada can be found at Walmart stores. RightRice® is ideal for foodservice applications, and is featured on restaurant menus, including CAVA locations nationwide. RightRice® has received awards and acclaim since its launch in 2019, including People Magazine’s Best Plant-Based Food Award, NOSH’s Best New Product, and Sunset Magazine’s 2021 Pantry Award, in addition to being highlighted as the Best Alt Grain Grocery Store Swap by goop. RightRice® Risotto was awarded Best Sauce/Store Cupboard Product in FoodBev’s 2021 World Plant-Based Taste Awards and received the 2021 Eco Excellence Award for Best Gluten Free Product, in addition to being chosen as a 2021 Editors’ Pick for Best New Product by Progressive Grocer. For more information visit: www.rightrice.com.

About Hope and Sesame®
Hope and Sesame® has cracked the code on unlocking the dense nutrition in tiny sesame seeds to create a plant milk that’s good-for-you, planet-friendly, and delicious! Sesame is highly sustainable, thriving in arid climates with very little water, is naturally drought- and pest-resistant, and can self-pollinate. Nutritionally comparable to dairy milk, Hope and Sesame® Sesamemilk delivers 8g of complete protein per serving (including all nine essential amino acids) – that’s 8x the protein in most almond and nut milks and 2x the protein in most oat milks! Developed for and approved by top baristas, Hope and Sesame® Barista Blend Sesamemilk froths, steams, and foams like a dream, is great for latte art, and delivers 4g of complete protein per 8oz serving. Sesamemilk is an excellent source of both vitamin D and calcium, and its core ingredient is the ultra-nutritious pulp upcycled from sesame oil extraction. All Hope and Sesame® products are vegan, Certified Gluten-Free and Certified Kosher, free from soy and dairy, Non-GMO Project Verified, and Certified by the Plant Based Foods Association. Hope and Sesame® Sesamemilk is one of the only plant milks globally that is Upcycled Certified™ by the Upcycled Food Association. Available in both refrigerated 48 oz bottles (three flavors) as well as shelf-stable long-life recyclable aseptic cartons (seven flavors, including Barista Blend) in both US and Canadian bilingual packaging.

Hope and Sesame® products have received myriad industry and consumer awards, and they keep coming: Hope and Sesame® Barista Blend Sesamemilk was awarded Best Novel Creamer by Good Housekeeping in their 2022 Best Coffee Awards, won Best Product at Coffee Fest Chicago 2022, received the international Gama 2022 Innovation Award for Best Hospitality Product, and was a finalist for Best Product of the Year at the 2022 Specialty Coffee Awards. Additionally, Hope and Sesame® Unsweetened Sesamemilk received the Best Plant Milk award at Hong Kong LOHAS Expo 2023, won Best Milk Alternative and Best Plant-Based Sustainability in FoodBev’s 2021 World Plant-Based Food Awards, and signature Chocolate Hazelnut Sesamemilk flavor received the 2020 Sofi Award for Best New Product, Plant-Based Milk from the Specialty Food Association.

About The Planting Hope Company Inc.
Planting Hope develops, launches, and scales uniquely innovative plant-based and planet-friendly food and beverage brands. Planting Hope's award-winning and cutting-edge products fill key unmet needs in the skyrocketing plant-based food and beverage space. The Planting Hope brand family includes Hope and Sesame® Sesamemilk, Barista Blend Sesamemilk, and Sesamilk™ creamers, RightRice® Veggie Rice, Mozaics™ Real Veggie Chips, and Veggicopia® Veggie Snacks. Planting Hope products are currently found in more than 15,000 retail doors and 70,000 total distribution points across North America. Founded by experienced food industry entrepreneurs, Planting Hope is a women-managed and woman-led company focused on nutrition, sustainability, and representation. 

For more information about Planting Hope please visit plantinghopecompany.com, sign up for Planting Hope news emails HERE and follow on LinkedIn.

An informational webinar on The Planting Hope Company from CEO and Co-Founder Julia Stamberger is available HERE.

To follow the brands on Instagram and Facebook, please visit: @hopeandsesameco, @rightrice, @mozaicschips, @veggicopia.

To find Planting Hope products at a store near you in the United States or Canada, please visit the store locator at each brand website: Hope and Sesame store locator, RightRice store locator, Mozaics store locator. Planting Hope products are also available at plantinghopebrands.com  and ecommerce retailers including Amazon.com and Amazon.ca.
 

Contacts

Company Contact:
Julia Stamberger
CEO and Co-founder
(773) 492-2243
julia@plantinghopecompany.com

Investor Relations Contact:
Glen Akselrod, Bristol Capital
(905) 326-1888 ext. 1
glen@bristolir.com

Media Contact:
Alex Jessup, Jessup PR
(323) 529-3541
alex.jessup@jessuppr.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" (collectively referred to hereafter as "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements that address activities, events, or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will, or may, occur in the future, including statements about the Company's ability to execute on its goals, the timing pertaining to these goals the potential demand for the Company’s products, the timing and success of anticipated product launches and distribution of the Company’s products, and the Company's business prospects, future trends, plans and strategies. In some cases, forward looking statements are preceded by, followed by, or include words such as "may", "will," "would", "could", "should", "believes", "estimates", "projects", "potential", "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "continues", or the negative of those words or other similar or comparable words. In preparing the forward looking statements in this news release, the Company has applied several material assumptions, including, but not limited to, the assumption that demand for the Company’s product will be sustained or increase in accordance with management’s projections, that the Company’s internal research and analysis is indicative of broader market trends and the Company’s anticipated future demand for its products, that changes in consumer preferences in the plant-based food industry will continue in accordance with the Company’s expectations, that the Company’s current business objectives can be achieved and that its other corporate activities will proceed as expected, and that general business and economic conditions will not change in a materially adverse manner. Although the management of the Company believes that the assumptions made and the expectations represented by such statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that any forward-looking statement herein will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Although management of the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, or intended. Risks and uncertainties applicable to the Company, as well as trends identified by the Company affecting its industry can be found in the Company’s annual information form dated January 6, 2022 and the Company's continuous disclosure record available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Such cautionary statements qualify all forward-looking statements made in this news release. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.