Canada’s Feel Foods Ltd. announces a key advancement in extending the shelf life of its Black Sheep Vegan Cheeze brand, enabling the company to accelerate its market expansion.
Feel Foods says it has utilized a High Pressure Pasteurization (HPP) technique to extend the cheeses’ shelf stability by over 100%, more than doubling the product shelf life from five weeks to ten. The process does not require any heat or synthetic preservatives. Through this innovation, Feel Foods says it can now achieve wider distribution channels throughout Canada and begin entering US sales.
A family of brands
Black Sheep Vegan Cheeze is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Feel Foods, which first acquired the British Columbia-based cheese maker in 2021 to help the brand scale operations and launch e-commerce. Founded in 2017 by husband-and-wife team Jenna and James Johnson, Black Sheep Vegan Cheeze offers a variety of artisan dairy-free cheese alternatives, including Herbed Vozzarella, Vrie, Camemvert and Smoked Vouda.
Black Sheep’s products are currently sold in over 70 grocery stores and foodservice locations throughout British Columbia. Aiming to grow its family of plant-based companies, Feel Foods also acquired Plantastic Foods last fall to help that label, which sells gourmet vegan cheesecakes, increase its market exposure and reach across Canada.
Greater freshness and longevity
Last December, Feel Foods and Black Sheep Cheeze revealed they were co-developing a new plant-based scrambled egg product, though neither company has released additional details. While that awaits further news, it is clear the HPP preservation process will readily facilitate Black Sheep’s cheese growth and expansion.
“We will continue testing to further extend the shelf life of our hand-crafted specialty vegan cheezes,” says Feel Foods Director and CEO David Greenway. “Using HPP technology is a real game-changer, not only for product freshness and longevity, but also for the logistical benefits as Feel Foods continues to expand throughout Canada and looks to expand into the USA.”
