Food Should Taste Good Acquired by From The Ground Up Parent Company

Food Should Taste Good Chip bags

Powered by Real Food From the Ground Up continues to expand its salty snack business with the acquisition of tortilla chip brand Food Should Taste Good from General Mills.

Terms of the deal, which closed on January 3, were not disclosed. There will be no job losses at General Mills as a result of the divestiture, a spokesperson told NOSH, and no employees will be transitioning to the buyer.

Executives from Powered by Real Food From the Ground Up declined to comment for this story.

Founded in 2006 by CPG executive Pete Lescoe, Food Should Taste Good was acquired by General Mills in 2012. Though the company previously sold a wider assortment of snacks including kettle chips, crackers and pita puffs, it currently offers an array of tortilla chips made in a variety of flavors and with different base grains.

Following last year’s exit of long-time backer and co-founder Jason Cohen and his investment firm Halen Brands, Powered by Real Food From the Ground Up has been on an expansion tear, building out a portfolio of salty snacks designed to complement its flagship brand of veggie-enhanced chips, crackers and veggie straws. Late last year the company launched You Need This, a millennial and Gen Z skewing salty snack line, and acquired puffed chip brand Popchips.

Food should taste good, From the ground up, you need this, pop chips bags

The better-for-you tortilla chip category is large with established  players, such as Campbell’s Late July brand, as well as emerging brands including Siete Foods and Hippeas, which just launched tortilla chips. Bean-based tortilla chips Beanfields and Beanitos also both changed hands in the last several years, selling to Boosh Foods and The Good Bean, respectively.

The divestiture is part of General Mills’ Accelerate strategy, which is designed to help the food conglomerate focus on the most profitable parts of its business and increase value for shareholders. Unveiled in early 2021, the strategy applies the four key pillars of “boldly building brands, relentlessly innovating, unleashing scale, and being a force for good” across “core markets, global platforms and local gem brands that have the best prospects for profitable growth.” Other divestitures have included the sale of its Hamburger Helper and Suddenly Salad businesses, as well as its European Yoplait business.

On its second quarter earnings call in December, General Mills said its U.S. Snacks business was up 18%. Executives said the company would further invest in the hot snacks and fruit snacks subsegments, two “key platforms where we see sustained growth into the future,” as well as continue to build its snack bar offerings.

“Consistent with our Accelerate strategy, General Mills is reshaping its portfolio,” said Chelcy Walker, a spokesperson for General Mills. “This sale is to the right buyer with clear expertise in the tortilla chip business.”