Fry’s celebrates 30 years of innovation & passion

The inspiring success story of how a little KZN family business became a pioneering plant-based food brand and a global success is one that has its roots firmly in family values and a passion for animals and the planet.

The Fry Family Food Co. had its start 30 years ago in a humble home kitchen, where Wally Fry, looking for ways to cater for his active family’s vegetarian needs, learnt how to make vegetarian sausages using a home mixer and good ingredients.

Initially a very happy omnivore, Wally married Debbie Fry (a die-hard vegetarian) and they had their first daughter, Tammy. They lived on a humble plot in rural KwaZulu Natal outside Durban and to earn money Wally farmed goats. Some of Tammy’s earliest memories are of connecting with the animals on the farm and a realisation that the meat her family ate came from those animals she loved. It wasn’t long before a young Tammy made the decision to not eat meat.

– Tammy Fry

A short while later, while visiting a local piggery he’d helped build, Wally had his ‘aha’ moment. He’d always supported his wife’s vegetarian choices, but when faced with his young daughter’s principled determination and the cruel realities of the piggery, he was able to make the shift himself.

In the early 90s in South Africa meat-free options were rare. Meat alternatives were practically non-existent, and not very satisfying for a converted meat eater. Never one to be put off by a challenge, Wally decided to try creating plant-based meat alternatives in his kitchen. It was highly experimental, and there were many failures, but the result was the quintessential Fry’s sausage. The sausages were a hit. Wally, encouraged by the response, took a batch to the local retailer to gauge interest. Within 18 months of that first sale, Fry’s was in 2000 retail stores across the country.

From there it was all about rapidly innovating product lines and growing the business locally, and then globally. UK was the first country the company chose for export. Australia soon followed, with Germany, Greece and other EU countries in hot pursuit.

The first Fry Family Food Co. products were developed with a couple of stainless-steel pots and a run-of-the-mill home industry food processor – a far cry from their current offering of over 40 different products in 28 countries worldwide - all of which are produced in their state-of-the-art, Pinetown factory that employs over 400 people.

An impressive story for sure, but the family aren’t done yet.

Tammy, who’s early determination inspired the start of the business, joined Fry’s as warehouse hand about 25 years ago. She is now the global brand lead for Fry’s. “We know now that veganism and plant­based diets are the future. But this wasn’t the case when my dad started out. Fry’s was born long before the trend of plant-based eating was a thing and he grew the business out of necessity,” she explains.

Underpinned by their fundamental value of ‘principles over profit’, the family grew the business and the plant-based food category in multiple markets. It was a long slow road. “Financial resources were always our major challenge. Being a family-owned business, we did not have the same financial resources as a global corporate enterprise, and so the way we grew our business was far more organic,” she says. She explains that Wally and Debbie always shared the belief that the business had to fund its own growth. “With the radical growth for demand for vegan products - the pressure to innovate, employ resources, build new manufacturing plants and enter new markets was intense. We realised we needed to rethink the future of the company.”

A great indicator of potential in the category are the results of the RSA top end surveys with 2 000 consumers conducted in 2012 and again in 2021. The percentage of meat eaters dropped from 60% to 29% and meat reducers nearly doubled from 33% to 60% over the nine-year period. Additional research has also shown an 81% growth of ‘flexitarians’ in South Africa in the higher income brackets.

With this potential for growth came an understanding that Fry’s would need to keep up, especially with so many more players entering the market.

In late 2019 the family started talks with an investment company called Blue Horizon. Led by a team of visionaries, Blue Horizon were on a mission to start a global plant-based food company that would change the food system. They wanted to make plant-based eating the new normal by gathering select heritage and start-up plant-based brands under the umbrella of LIVEKINDLY Collective. In March 2020, just before the global pandemic changed the world, the family joined the Collective.

“2020 was a whirlwind. It was a year of change and acceptance for the whole world. It was quite something to navigate such a radical business move during the pandemic. It certainly taught us how to adapt,” says Tammy. “It helped that we were working with some of the top food executives in the world, from marketing to finance to R&D to production. It also helped that we were all in the same boat.”

Despite the global lock downs and economic impact of the pandemic, the LIVEKINDLY Collective team were unwavering in their mission. Fry’s was successfully launched into the US market in March, in all Sprouts stores nationwide, with more retailers to follow soon.

Locally, brand awareness for Fry’s increased from 64% in August 2020 to 82% in January 2021 and in March LIVEKINDLY Collective formed a Joint Venture with RCL FOODS called LIVEKINDLY Collective Africa which will market and distribute plant-based products (including Fry’s) into South and sub-Saharan Africa.

“LIVEKINDLY Collective Africa is the embodiment of our mission to make plant-based eating the new normal,” she explains. “We will see category growth at scale and speed and plant-based foods will now be more accessible for more people. The benefits will come through RCL’s partnerships with restaurant chains, distribution networks and even on the level of agriculture projects and raw materials.”

Currently there is a pilot project in Mpumalanga growing yellow peas as a form of plant protein. “Accessing locally produced raw materials will change the game for Fry’s,” says Tammy.

The majority of Fry’s products are made from a blend of non-GM soy and wheat proteins. Tammy explains that while soy has been predominant in the plant-based meat space, in the next few years the category is likely to see a variety of protein alternatives including yellow pea, faba and mung.

“One of the key focuses for our new product development teams is cleaner labelling. The Collective is determined to create a culture of recognisable ingredients and clear ingredient labels that are simple for the everyday consumer to understand.

We will also see products that have a closer resemblance to meat like structures texturally as well as better bioavailability. Plant proteins need to equal or better the qualities of meat, not only from a texture and taste point of view but also from a nutritional point of view. To shift consumer mindset and to encourage more consumer trial (and loyalty) we need to make the eating experience of plant proteins equivalent to that of meat,” she explains.

What does the future hold for the Fry’s brand and for the Fry family? “This is the brand’s 30th year and we are taking the opportunity to celebrate what we’ve achieved as a family. Some of us are actively involved in the Collective, heading up NPD and the ANZ regions and will continue to play key roles in the growth and expansion of the Fry’s brand. More importantly, we remain at the helm of the mission to change the way people eat and to make plant-based foods more delicious, more accessible and most definitely ‘the new normal’.

The Fry Family Food Co. – www.fryfamilyfood.com