As the Bacon family sheltered in place when the Covid-19 pandemic first hit Colorado, they decided to eat food that was sitting in their pantry for "who knows how long."
Little did they know, this experiment would lead them to launch their own plant-based food startup two years later.
Lentiful is a Colorado-based startup selling plant-based instant meals centered around lentils.
Today, the startup offers eight varieties of on-the-go lentil meals such as pineapple "chorizo," homestyle chili, Mexican green chili and Thai coconut curry.
Lentiful founder Ben Bacon said as he and his family switched to a plant-based diet, before founding Lentiful, they were constantly looking for easy, tasty, plant-based food to fill their appetite.
"As anyone who's made the switch [to plant-based eating] knows, it ain't always easy, especially with four kids, two dogs, back-to-back calls during the day and endless afterschool activities at night," he told Colorado Inno via email.
During the pandemic, the Bacon family made several meals from a bag of lentils in their pantry. This led the family to discover the various health benefits of lentils, such as how they can lower a consumer's blood pressure, increase their heart health and boost their energy, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Lentils are also rich in vitamins, fiber and minerals.
"We have seen a really big change in our health as we've cut down on meat and ramped up our plant-based eating over the past few years, especially around inflammation and general mood levels," Bacon said. "We just plain feel better."
Bacon, who previously worked in the natural food industry, said he wanted to share the benefit of lentils with everyone trying to eat less meat and improve their health.
Since launching in November 2022, Lentiful has participated in three pitch competitions, including recently winning a more than $6,000 prize at Naturally Boulder's 19th annual Pitch Slam and the People's Choice Award.
The Naturally Boulder competition held on Feb. 29 was special because it was close to home and took place in front of friends and colleagues, Bacon said.
"My 4 kids watched it on the livestream and supported me from our house in Broomfield," he said.
Lentiful also won the NOSH Live Pitch Slam in December.
Although Bacon has participated in a handful of pitch competitions, he said he still practices several times before going on stage.
"I practiced probably 30 to 40 times in the previous two weeks leading up to the [Naturally Boulder] competition," Bacon said. "Three minutes is not a lot of time, and if you lose your train of thought, you might leave some important points out. I made sure to have the entire script memorized cold."
Bacon said the cash prize will help fund Lentiful's future production runs as it prepares to launch in Whole Foods on the West Coast in June.
Lentiful also won a "robust suite of business services" and a free booth at New Hope's Newtopia Now event that will take place in Denver this summer, according to Naturally Boulder.
