This Virtual Pop-Up Shop Is All About SNACKS
What’s keeping my spirits up throughout various pandemic-related quarantines? Looking forward to the next snack. A warm cup of chai, a piece of sourdough slicked with tahini butter: That’s how I’m getting my work-from-home kicks. I realize this is a lot of pressure to put on snacks, which is why the launch of virtual pop-up The Shelf is the best news I’ve heard all year.
Running through the end of March, the online snack store is highlighting delicious and sustainably minded cookies, chips, coffee, plant-based milk, and more—all hand-curated by Goldune founder Azora Zoe Paknad. Just like Goldune’s home goods roster (stylish composters, biodegradable sponges, and cute counter caddies), each product on The Shelf is there to help shoppers cut through the green- and virtue-washed labels. “I went out into the world specifically looking for women- and BIPOC-led food brands who I felt set the bar really high in four main categories: Packaging, conservation, agriculture, and upcycling,” Paknad says.
Currently, 83 percent of products on The Shelf are women-owned, and 33 percent are founded by people of color. The decision to include diversity as a curation metric was a no-brainer for Paknad, who is Iranian American. Before starting Goldune, she rarely saw herself or her family represented in marketing campaigns for sustainable products like, as she puts it, “waifish white influencers hawking $600 hemp pants that only go up to a size 8.” So she created the store she wished existed.
But back to the snacks. Each brand you’ll find on The Shelf is taking a different approach to address the climate crisis. Though, Paknad says, they all have one thing in common: “They chose the future and they chose to be part of the solution, even when it's hard.” So, the spicy seaweed sprinkles electrifying my lunchtime salads and roasted veggies happen to be made from carbon-sequestering kelp. This umami-packed popcorn was grown and manufactured using 100 percent renewable energy. And this baking mix company turns would-be wasted by-products into drool-worthy cookies and brownies.
There’s a ton of good snacks on The Shelf, but these six are the ones that’ll be fueling my work days all month long.
All products featured on Bon Appétit are independently selected by our editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
1/6Sustainable Seaweed Flakes 2-Pack
The spicy seaweed blend offers a one-two-three(?) punch: fiery heat, smoky chipotle, and salty umami. It’s also made from West Coast seaweed, which the brand claims improves its ecosystem by absorbing carbon and nitrogen from the ocean. I’ll be sprinkling it on everything from desk-side jammy eggs to savory oatmeal to brothy ramen.
2/6Climate-Friendly Tomato Basil Crackers 3-Pack
Be warned: These healthy Cheez-Its might become a tough habit to kick. CEO Julia Collins made Big Business history when she co-founded Zume Pizza and became the first Black woman to own a private company valued at $2.25 billion. Moonshot is her newest venture—seriously delicious crackers made from wheat that’s regeneratively grown (which, according to the brand, is a farming method that stores carbon in the ground while renewing soil).
3/6Elevate Whole Bean Coffee Blend
Paired with a splash of creamy oat milk? Don’t mind if I do! Partners sources its coffee directly from producers around the globe, which cuts out the middleman and aims to create economic sustainability for farmers and entire communities. Plus, the coffee is bright and bold, and the colorful packaging—which is collected and upcycled after use—is just so dang cute.
4/6Solar Popped Classic BjornQorn 12-Pack
BjornQorn has long been the reigning snack table favorite at the BA offices (remember those?), based mostly on the fact that it’s almost impossible to stop eating once you start. Each non-GMO kernel is popped to perfection using entirely solar power(!) and is liberally dusted with salt and nutritional yeast. I award bonus points for the brand’s commitment to using 100% clean and renewable energy.
5/6Pulp Pantry Chip Variety Pack
According to its website, Pulp has upcycled 13,000 kilograms of veggie pulp since November 2019. The brand takes the fibrous by-product left over from juice makers and, with some serious culinary wizardry, turns it into four delicious flavors: classic sea salt, zippy salt vinegar, tangy jalapeño and lime, and spicy barbecue. Your virtual Zumba instructor would call it guilt-free snacking. We just call it really good.
