As diet trends evolve and people’s diet restrictions continue to be become more rigid, established food brands and even food upstarts have to be more conscious of the ingredients they use in their products.
For new Chicago startup Prevail, which is making an “ingredient-conscious” beef jerky, those diet restrictions began at home. The startup, founded by Glen Kohn, makes a beef jerky product that’s soy-free, gluten-free, non-GMO, keto-certified and paleo-certified.
Kohn’s wife and two children both have serious food allergies. They are celiac, making them allergic to gluten, and also have sensitivities to soy, dairy and refined sugars. Now, the entire family follows the paleo diet, Kohn said.
“My family is inundated with food allergies,” he add. “So we learned to make a lot of things on our own at home.”
Kohn, who has long enjoyed cooking and smoking meat, eventually developed a recipe for beef jerky that his wife and kids could safely eat. And in November 2017, after receiving good reviews on his home-made jerky, Kohn decided to launch it into a business.
In April, Prevail was up and running, manufacturing the jerky in Springfield and selling it on its website. Kohn said Prevail’s jerky is more tender than other brands, and is made from 100 percent grass-fed and ethically-raised cattle. The jerky comes in several flavors, including original, umami and lemongrass sichuan. But Kohn’s favorite is the spicy flavor.
In addition to Prevail’s website, its jerky can be bought on Amazon and Kickstarter, and in a variety of local outposts, such as The Hoxton hotel in the West Loop, City Fresh Market at Union Station and Brooklyn Boulders’ West Loop location.
Down the line, Kohn said he envisions selling Prevail in national grocery chains, such as Whole Foods.
A similar jerky startup, Chomps, also based in Chicago, has been growing steadily since it launched in 2012. The startup makes paleo-friendly, gluten-free, Whole30-approved and non-GMO beef jerky sticks. Chomps can be found in Target, Trader Joe’s and Publix locations nationwide.
Its primary difference from Prevail is that Chomps makes a jerky stick as opposed to jerky bits. But Chomps’ jerky serves many of the same diet-restricted populations that Prevail aims to.
But even still, Kohn said there’s room in the clean jerky industry for Prevail to compete because his startup differentiates itself with unique flavors.
So far, Prevail has been bootstrapped by Kohn. To spread awareness of Prevail, the startup is hosting tasting events around Chicago.
“We’re trying to bring awareness to the Prevail brand concept itself,” Kohn said.
