Los Angeles plant-based egg company Yo Egg is releasing its new products into retail in the U.S.
Yo Egg is the first plant-based company to manufacture egg products that can be prepared sunny-side-up or poached, shipped frozen and able to be fried or boiled.
The eggs will be supplied by distribution company Whitestone Natural Foods and sold in four-packs in the freezer section of grocery stores in Los Angeles, California, including Besties Vegan Paradise, Rainbow Acres Natural Foods, Hanks Organic, Follow Your Heart Market and PlantX-XMarket Venice.
“We’re starting small with individual operators in the better-for-you natural foods category,” Yo Egg CEO Eran Groner told media company AgFunderNews. “Then we’re targeting regional players such as Bristol Farms, before going after accounts such as Sprouts and Whole Foods. We’re launching at $6.99 but soon we hope to get that down to $5.99.”
The whole egg products, which are currently patent pending, feature an egg white and runny yolk made from soy protein, chickpea protein, sunflower oil and an alginate film.
Groner said the company has plans for expansion throughout California, New York and hopefully nationwide in 2025. The company launched its products into the foodservice sector as recently as April 2023.
While Yo Egg has started with plant-based eggs, it plans to release a patty into the retail market soon, hardboiled eggs later into 2024 and a liquid yolk product in 2025.
Yo Egg will compete with other plant-based egg products
Other plant-based egg products are already in the U.S. retail market, with one of the most popular being JUST Egg.
In April 2020, JUST Egg launched a frozen grab and go egg to be eaten on top of toast or inside a breakfast sandwich into grocery stores, restaurants and other foodservice distributors across the U.S. The product was debuted into approximately 5,000 stores, including Whole Foods Markets, Albertsons Safeway, Gelson’s Markets, Stop & Shop, Kings Food Markets and Giant Martin's.
Additionally, in May 2020, the sixth largest U.S. egg producer at the time, Michael Foods, agreed to be the exclusive manufacturer, supplier and distributor of JUST Egg.
