Business is booming for Harvest Pack, a company based in Torrance, CA, that provides compostable and easily recyclable food packaging. Founded by siblings Christina and Alex Pou, Harvest Pack works with more than 500 restaurants and food service producers across the country, including the upscale LA-area Erewhon health-food chain. Chowbotics, the “salad robot” that recently announced a deal with Saladworks to expand to more than 100 locations, uses Harvest Pack’s 100% plant-based, compostable food packaging to keep its meals safe and fresh for consumers.
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| Siblings Christina and Alex Pou founded Harvest Pack seven years ago. They are having their best year ever partly because of surging demand for take-out food during the pandemic. Image courtesy Harvest Pack. |
Harvest Pack makes its food packaging from various plant fibers, including wheat, bamboo, and sugarcane fibers, said the company in response to questions from PlasticsToday. “Sugarcane fiber, also known as bagasse, is a residue that is left after juice is extracted from sugarcane. Usually the sugarcane fiber left from the extraction gets discarded as waste,” explained the Pous.
“We regenerate the material to make it into bagasse fiber products. These fibers are 100% compostable. This reduces the environmental impact and reduces landfill waste by transforming production waste into a new product,” they added. In addition to the company’s compostable single-use containers, Harvest Pack also offers a line of recyclable PET foodservice items.
After seven years in business, the surge in plastic waste caused partly by double-digit growth in take-out food because of the pandemic has given new meaning to their mission. Harvest Pack’s founders are committed to making sure their compostable food packaging is a go-to option for food service providers.
“During this extremely difficult time, food service businesses have really needed a lot more support,” said Christina Pou, adding that the company has also been donating a range of PPE products to various organizations. “Our second quarter earnings alone equaled our entire revenue for last year. So, yes, we are able to help the food services industry and it’s a win for our climate and efforts to reduce waste, as well.”
