ELMWOOD PARK, NJ. — The mission of Dr. Praeger’s Sensible Foods hasn’t changed since two cardiothoracic surgeons launched the company in 1994, according to Andy Reichgut, chief executive officer. The mission is to create convenient frozen products that are healthy and taste good.

“The company has done really well, obviously, basically focused on veggie burgers, kid’s snacks (known as Littles) and meals where the first ingredient is always vegetables but delivers enough on taste,” he said in an interview with Food Business News.

Dr. Praeger’s is innovating in retail with plant-based burgers and snacks and in foodservice with a falafel burger available on menus at Yard House and Bahama Breeze restaurants. Additional products will be forthcoming in the next few months, Reichgut said.

While the plant-based meat alternative category has experienced declining sales in recent years, he said Dr. Praeger’s has grown 30% in retail, due to the company’s Perfect Burger and other items.

“We’re doing what we said we would do, but we acknowledge that people aren’t going to just eat vegetables all the time,” Reichgut said. “If we can get people to switch to vegetable products once a week, that’s good.”

A major asset for Dr. Praeger’s is being around for 30 years with a familiar label, and Reichgut said the company has become a “trusted partner” within grocery club, mass channels, foodservice and even private label.

“Everybody knows our quality,” he said. “We self-manufacture our products in a very high-quality facility; we don’t co-pack with somebody else. We have relationships with our farmers so we know where our products are coming from. Having a legacy of 30 years, we’ve built those relationships so it’s easy to procure those high-quality products.”

Photo: Dr. Praeger's Sensible Foods

That history also means Dr. Praeger’s doesn’t have some of the challenges startups have, he added. As an example, Reichgut told a story about a recent experience with the Denny’s chain, which he said began carrying a “fake meat burger” when “meat-mimic” products were first trending.

“After that contract ended, they immediately came back to a Dr. Praeger’s branded black bean burger,” he said. “Ours is by far the best, and consumers would agree. They want real food; they don’t want a science project. You’re not compromising, and you don’t want to apologize for it.”

The plant-based burger category is crowded, which he said “is really dominated by Beyond (Meat) and Impossible (Foods).” Many players in the space have been unsuccessful, he added, and there is major consolidation going on, particularly with plant-based burgers and plant-based chicken.

“The category has been in decline for three reasons,” Reichgut said. “The products cost more than (conventional meat). They don’t taste as good. A hamburger is considered as tasting better than a meat-mimic burger, and, in many instances, chicken. And, in many cases, they’re not that healthy.”

Some of Dr. Praeger’s frozen burger products use peas, butternut squash, sweet potatoes and carrot puree, he said.

Reichgut said the plant-based burger category “has a place in people’s lives” and he hopes it will start growing again and that more consumers observe meatless Mondays and experiment with plant-based burgers.

He doesn’t see Dr. Praeger’s getting into the “hybrid” or “plant-rich” category of products that contain half animal-based ingredients and half plant-based ones.

“I don’t want to pooh-pooh it because every time you can reduce meat consumption, the planet is healthier and you are healthier, but that is not what we stand for at Dr. Praeger’s,” he said. “We are really hyper-focused on vegetable consumption being the silver bullet to help people. If we can get people to eat more vegetables, we are helping to accomplish what Dr. Praeger’s set out to achieve.”

Reichgut became CEO in July 2022, about a year after Vestar Capital Partners acquired a majority of the privately held company. He had previously been general manager of Upfield’s Violife vegan cheese company and executive vice president of New Classic Cooking’s Veggies Made Great business.

He said Vestar — which has also invested in Roland Foods, Nonni’s Bakery and Titan Frozen Fruit and has held stakes in Birds Eye, Michael Foods and Celestial Seasonings — brought in resources to help Dr. Praeger’s continue on its initial path.

“They bought this mission because they believed literally in what Dr. Praeger started in 1994,” Reichgut said. “They all believe in what we’re doing. It hasn’t slowed down growth at all; it’s actually accelerated it.”