10 Fast-Growing Snack Food Startups to Watch

Variation of snack foods.

Here at Startup Savant, we love startup culture. That’s why we identified the most exciting, innovative, and creative snack food startups to watch in 2024 and beyond. From smart apps that log your fridge's snack inventory to plant-based protein powder— these are the top snack food companies to follow. 

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Top Snack Food Companies to Follow

Every year, new startups pull to the forefront of their industry through exciting innovation and industry-disrupting business models. We’ve rounded up the most exciting snack food startups of 2024 that startup-lovers, investors, and aspiring entrepreneurs should follow. 

Disclaimer: With so many exciting startups launching and growing worldwide, we aren’t able to cover them all. Furthermore, the startups that are listed below are not officially ranked and are listed in no particular order.

1. Planet FWD

Location: San Francisco, California
Funding: Series A, $15.2 Million

Planet FWD is a snack food startup that aims to create a regenerative snack food platform. By using compostable packaging and regenerative ingredients in their products, the startup hopes to contribute significantly to reducing the carbon footprint of the snack food industry.

2. Magic Spoon

Location: Brooklyn, New York
Funding: Series B, $120.8 Million

Magic Spoon's mission is to bring the magic of childhood back to the breakfast table for adults while keeping it healthy. This startup's cereal products are non-GMO, keto-friendly, and free from grain, gluten, soy, wheat, and artificial sweeteners. Their not-so-secret ingredient is allulose — a natural sweetener sourced from maple syrup and figs that has no impact on the body's glycemic index.

3. Goldbelly

Location: New York, New York
Funding: Series C, $133.1 Million

Goldbelly, at first glance, may not look like much more than a food delivery service, but the devil's in the details, and this innovative startup is taking food delivery to a whole new level. The startup's mission is to share international cuisine with American consumers and make it easier than ever to try different foods. In addition to their impressive menu from a range of restaurants, the company also offers live cooking classes with chefs, meal kits, food gifts, and care packages.

4. Licious

Location: Bengaluru, India
Funding: Series F, $489.9 Million

Licious is a snack food startup based in India seeking to introduce its local market to the direct-to-consumer food industry. The business was founded in 2015 and has seen tremendous growth since then and managed to create a reputation for itself for convenience, quality, and reasonable pricing. The company's product range has been increased to include cold cuts, value packs, and ready-to-eat meals.

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5. Duffl

Location: Los Angeles, California
Funding: Series A, $13.3 Million

Duffl is an innovative startup that focuses on a very specific market — college students, specifically those that live on campus and do not have time to get their snack fixes. The startup says its mission is to be a one-stop shop for snacks, groceries, and toiletries delivered sustainably by students and for students. The company currently operates at UCLA but with its most recent funding, it has expansion plans to other universities.

6. Sibö

Location: The Hague, Netherlands
Funding: Seed, $897,500

Sibö is one of the few snack food startups focusing on the biotech space. The company's name comes from the name of the primary deity in Costa Rican Talamancan mythology. The legend goes that this deity showed the people of Costa Rica which foods were good to eat, and now, the namesake startup hopes to do the same by sourcing new food-industry raw materials to create sustainable and healthy solutions for this space. Among its sub-companies is Costa Rica Insect Company (CRIC), which focuses on finding solutions in the insect world to global food issues.

7. MOA

Location: Spain
Funding: Seed, €1.5 Million

MOA is on a mission to turn agri-food waste and by-products into sustainable next-gen protein, which the company says has nutritional value by using a combination of artificial intelligence and biotechnology. The startup formed in response to growing global food demands and the resulting increase in waste and pollution, which damage the environment. The diminishing amount of arable land available for food production is another problem this biotech snack food startup hopes to solve by providing sustainable food sources using waste materials from crops that have already been grown.

8. `SKIMO

Location: Zug, Switzerland
Funding: Pre-Seed, $200,000

`SKIMO enters the snack food startup space through the tech door. Their smart technology offers anyone with a food inventory problem a solution. Their apps cover everyone from vending machine suppliers right down to the average Joe with a smart fridge at home. By using AI, the startup's products work to streamline all aspects of the food chain — online, offline, as well as logistics.

9. Smartsweets (Acquired by TPG Growth)

Location: Vancouver, Canada
Funding: Series Unknown, $3 Million

Smartsweets is the brainchild of Tara Bosch, who couldn't find the type of candy she wanted in stores, so instead of waiting for someone else to create it, she started her own business to fulfill the need. Bosch wanted a healthier option than traditional sweetener- and cornstarch-filled candy, and she knew that there were fibers and plant-based natural sweeteners that could replace those unhealthy additives. What started as a home industry is now a thriving business, growing fast, with its products available in over 18,000 outlets.

10. IWON Organics

Location: Corte Madera, California
Funding: Seed, $1 Million

IWON Organics was founded in 2016 by entrepreneur and fitness enthusiast Mark Samuel. Samuel's own love for high-protein snacks and shakes took a knock when he realized that he was becoming intolerant to milk-based products, so he started experimenting with switching out animal protein for plant protein. The resulting product and its positive impact on his health inspired him to start a company aimed at producing plant-based, high-protein snacks and shakes.

Recommended: Check out our full list of the top startups to watch!

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