Vegan Soylent Beverage Debuts on Amazon

Last week, the vegan meal substitute Soylent debuted on Amazon.com. The much-buzzed-about, intentionally bland-tasting product will be available for purchase through Amazon’s startup-oriented arm Launchpad—a significant opportunity for the Los Angeles-based business and its loyal customer base, who had until now only been able to purchase the product via Soylent’s website. Classified by the US Food and Drug Administration as a food product rather than a supplement, the company’s newest product—dubbed Soylent 2.0—is a 14-ounce, ready-to-drink vegan beverage that “contains all of the elements of a healthy diet, with limited contribution from less desirable components such as sugars, saturated fats, or cholesterol.” Oat flour, rice protein, omega-3 fatty acids, and high oleic algae oil are among its ingredients; a micronutrient blend provides vitamin D, folate, and potassium; and its flavor is neutral by design to allow for customers to adjust flavorings to their preference. Crowdfunding during the company’s development helped produce more than a million dollars, and the company has attracted a number of high-profile investors—including the CEO of The Climate Corporation and the co-founder of Reddit, which helped Soylent secure $20 million in funding in early 2015.