Why Patagonia’s First Acquisition In 20 Years Is a Regen Cracker Company Called Moonshot

Patagonia Provisions, the food and beverage arm of outdoor giant Patagonia, has announced the acquisition of Moonshot, a snack brand that is known for its environmentally-friendly and sustainable practices.

The acquisition, which marks Patagonia’s first in over two decades, is part of the company’s continued efforts to invest in businesses and products that support its mission to save the planet.

Last year, Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, now 84, transferred ownership of the company to the Holdfast Collective, a nonprofit that’s dedicated to preserving the planet.

“Instead of ‘going public,’ you could say we’re ‘going purpose.’ Instead of extracting value from nature and transforming it into wealth for investors, we’ll use the wealth Patagonia creates to protect the source of all wealth,” Chouinard wrote on the company’s website in September.

That commitment is echoed in Moonshot’s mission.

“I founded Moonshot with the vision of using the power of food to help tackle climate change,” Julia Collins, founder of Moonshot, said in a statement. “By joining Patagonia Provisions, who recently made Earth their only shareholder, Moonshot now belongs to the planet. I cannot imagine a more spectacular path forward for our mission, our team and our Climatarian community.”

Collins founded Moonshot with a vision to help consumers tackle climate change by offering sustainable food. The company sources wheat that’s grown using regenerative and organic practices. As the main ingredient in its crackers, the wheat is fully traceable to the farm and field. Moonshot’s crackers are also produced sustainably, using renewable energy in a LEED-certified facility, and the boxes are made from 100 percent recycled materials.

“To us, it’s not one action, but taking a full inventory of your company’s impact on the planet so you can holistically evaluate where you can make adjustments and drive change. It all starts with measuring your baseline carbon footprint so you can create an action plan from there and track progress year over year,” Collins said in an interview last year.

According to Paul Lightfoot, general manager of Patagonia Provisions, Moonshot’s impressive growth can be attributed to its focus on producing and selling nutritious and delicious crackers with a significantly improved carbon footprint compared to industry standard practices — values that align with those of Patagonia Provisions, which made the acquisition a natural fit.

Patagonia Provisions launched more than a decade ago. Its first product was wild-caught salmon. The label now produces more than 30 products, which are distributed through other outdoor retailers as well as natural grocers.

Moonshot’s commitment to its climate mission and its great-tasting product earned it the Expo West Virtual 2021 NEXTY Award for Best New Savory or Salty Snack.