CHICAGO — The Planting Hope Co. Inc. announced it has acquired the RightRice business assets of Betterer Foods, Inc. for $7 million. The transaction includes inventory, key contracts, brands and other intellectual property. In addition, Keith Belling, founder and chief executive officer of RightRice, has entered a consulting agreement with Planting Hope, and several members of the RightRice operations, sales and manufacturing team are set to join the company.
Introduced in 2019, RightRice is a shelf-stable vegetable grain that is a blend of more than 90% vegetables, including lentils, chickpeas, green peas and rice. RightRice contains 10 grams of complete protein and 5 grams of fiber per serving.
“The RightRice brand and products add another high potential line of breakthrough innovation to Planting Hope’s growing portfolio of plant-based, planet-friendly, highly-nutritious brands,” said Julia Stamberger, CEO and co-founder of Planting Hope, which develops, launches and scales plant-based and planet-friendly food and beverage brands. “RightRice products are truly a differentiated grain alternative, balancing great flavor and compelling nutritional benefits in the form of rice, a grain that is familiar to billions of people on the planet. We believe the RightRice products present meaningful innovation with strong growth potential globally.”
RightRice is available in Whole Foods Market, Kroger stores, Sprouts and Wegmans, as well as online at amazon.com and RightRice.com. The product also is found in several fast-casual restaurants and cafes, as well as in meal prep and meal delivery services.
In addition to RightRice, Planting Hope’s portfolio includes Hope and Sesame, a sesame milk brand; Mozaics, vegetable chips featuring peas and beans in a popped snack chip format; and Veggicopia, which includes single-serve dip cups and snack olives.
