After a typically indulgent holiday season, January beckons those seeking more mindful eating habits through plant-based choices. Amy’s Kitchen meets these aspirations with more than 150 meals that transform vegetarian eating from daunting to delightful.
Veganuary is an event organized in January each year that encourages people to eat vegan food and use vegan products. If you’re just starting your plant-based journey, Amy’s many vegetarian options can help you make the transition to veganism smooth, if that’s your goal.
Veganuary.com calculated that roughly 25 million people worldwide chose to participate in the monthlong challenge that encourages people to adopt a vegan diet for at least 31 days. Previous Veganuary supporters have included Billie Eilish and Paul McCartney.
And Amy’s Kitchen is on board. “We really make food like you would expect to see it being made in a restaurant or even a home kitchen,” says Amy’s Kitchen President Paul Schiefer. “And I would say that has stayed true from the day Andy and Rachel [Berliner] started the company in 1987 to today.”
Amy’s Kitchen recently launched its frozen breakfast category with creative protein-rich options. For example, the Gluten-Free Tofu Scramble Breakfast Wrap offers a convenient option filled with savory organic tofu, hash browns, and vegetables.
Amy’s Kitchen’s recent soup launches celebrate international cuisines. The Pasta Fagioli features house-made tubetti pasta and cannellini beans swimming in herb-infused tomato broth.
Southern comfort shines through Amy’s 3 Bean Vegetable Chili, which merges three bean varieties with house-made tofu in a medium-spiced sauce. Amy’s Kitchen’s Roasted Sweet Potato & Coconut Curry is a vegan creamy, savory Malaysian-inspired mix of fire-roasted sweet potatoes and organic vegetables smothered in a coconut curry sauce.
Family-Size Solutions
Family packs address both convenience and value. Amy’s Kitchen offers a family-size vegan Pad Thai. Larger portions maintain Amy’s quality standards while offering economical solutions for family meals.
Rachel Berliner, Amy’s Kitchen co-founder, reads and responds to every consumer letter received.
“There have been many wonderful moments over the years,” Berliner told the Talented Ladies Club. “I do love reading letters from Amy’s fans who discover our ‘free-from’ foods and tell us things like: ‘Thank you — I thought my life was over’ and ‘I thought I’d never eat my favorite foods again.’ Often they say they were depressed and ‘You’ve saved my life.’ Some of these letters just make me cry. It’s wonderful that we can make food that really has such an impact on people’s everyday lives.”
The brand’s dedication to feedback shapes product development and quality control. Their commitment to organic ingredients stems from founder Andy’s early observations of pesticide impacts on farming communities and water systems.
“We knew we didn’t want to put pesticides in the soil, but we didn’t understand the grand scale of global warming and all that 33 years ago. But as the years went on, we became more aware of it and have tried to do better and better,” Andy Berliner said on the “Lead With We” Podcast.
The company maintains direct relationships with farmers and growers, collaborating on varieties and processing techniques to secure optimal ingredients. This hands-on approach extends to their manufacturing, where traditional cooking methods prevail over conventional food processing tactics.
Sustainability Meets Accessibility
In addition to being a delicious alternative, plant-based protein choices significantly reduce environmental impact. Amy’s veggie burgers generate only 10% of the carbon footprint compared to traditional meat-based options. Its production facilities increasingly utilize renewable electricity, currently at 35% to 40%, with plans to reach 100%. Approximately 75% of packaging materials are either compostable or recyclable, with ongoing trials to address the remaining 25%.
Distribution includes retail locations such as Target, Kroger, Walmart, Costco, and Whole Foods, making these sustainable options widely accessible. New breakfast items range from $3.99 to $6.69, while recent soup additions retail between $3.99 and $4.99.
“Amy’s Kitchen has been recognized as a ‘Giga Guru’ by Walmart’s Project Gigaton for 2024,” Amy’s Kitchen posted on LinkedIn. “This achievement reflects our deep commitment to sustainability across our entire supply chain. We’re proud to continue our journey of environmental responsibility, working diligently to reduce emissions and create a more sustainable future for our planet. Sustainability isn’t just a goal — it’s a core part of who we are.”
The company continues expanding organic agriculture sourcing while maintaining its commitment to authentic cooking methods. And Schiefer adds that customers keep coming back for more.
“What we absolutely know is that when you try Amy’s, you love Amy’s, and we have some of the highest loyalty and repeat rates of any food brand,” Schiefer shares. “So certainly getting Amy’s known to more people, enjoyed by more people will be a big part of it.
“And, of course, with that growth allows us to source more and more acres of organic agriculture, employ more people within our plants, and really continue to scale and grow what we do.”
