Black-Owned Food Companies We Love for Offices

Supporting Black-owned food companies through your office snack program matters—during Black History Month and every day of the year. It’s a subtle but powerful way for your company to show its values. And when you find the right brands, it’s healthy and delicious, too!

Here are two of our favorite Black- and female-owned businesses for offices. Their snacks are healthy, allergy-friendly, and easy for employees to munch on at their desks or on the go. 

Partake: Healthy Cookies That Feed Kids in Need

Partake’s cookies look like any other grab-and-go treat, but they’re far from ordinary. Every box is certified gluten-free, vegan, non-GMO, kosher, and free from the top nine allergens. The cookies come in go-to flavors ranging from Crunchy Chocolate Chip and Soft Baked Lemon to  Vanilla Wafers and Classic Grahams. 

Founder Denise Woodard’s Story

The Crunchy Chocolate Chip cookies are founder Denise Woodard’s favorite flavor. She created Partake in 2016 to help her daughter, Vivienne, enjoy snacks despite her food allergies. It was an uphill battle even though she had a decade of experience in the food industry. 

“Women, particularly women of color, are underfunded. I had no connection to the venture capital world, [so] I knocked on a lot of doors [and] spent a good amount of time sending LinkedIn messages to ask questions and request introductions,” Denise told The FruitGuys. 

As someone who’s both Black and Asian American, Denise faced discrimination on two fronts. But she didn’t give up. For two years, she sold her cookies to grocery stores across New York City from her car. Finally, the southwest region of Whole Foods Market picked up Partake—and the brand took off! 

The FruitGuys has delivered Denise’s cookies to offices and schools nationwide for years now. We love that Partake is a Certified B Corp that believes in “radical inclusivity,” which Denise defines as “pushing for transformative changes that create a truly equitable and accessible society.” 

How Partake Gives Back to the Black Community

Partake partners with hunger relief organizations to provide food and resources to food-insecure kids and families, especially those with allergies. #HashtagLunchbag, Eat. Learn. Play., and The Birthday Party Project are a few of its current and former partners. The issue of food insecurity is close to Denise’s heart in part because Black children are more likely than kids of other races to have a food allergy and/or live with low or very low food security. 

Partake also launched an annual fellowship program called Black Futures Fellowship to further the careers of active historically Black college or university (HBCU) students in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) space. 

“I founded Black Futures Fellowship, now a 501(c)(3), in 2020 when I was building out the Partake team and found the applicant pool lacked diversity,” Denise said. “Thinking back to my own career, to date, I realized that in many rooms I was often the only woman—particularly the only woman of color.”

Black Futures Fellowship matches active HBCU students with paid internships at CPG food and beverage companies, and so far, they’ve placed more than two dozen fellows.

Every Body Eat ®: Snack Thins That Empower People From Underserved Communities

Every Body Eat ® is a Chicago-based business making sweet and savory snacks. At The FruitGuys, we love their crispy Snack Thins, which are certified gluten-free, vegan, kosher, seed oil-free, and non-GMO. They’re also free from 15 major allergens and made in a dedicated allergy-friendly facility.

Cofounder Nichole Wilson’s Story

Future cofounders of Every Body Eat, Nichole Wilson and Trish Thomas, met by chance at a school book fair for their kids. They got to talking and soon discovered two shared passions: coaching entrepreneurs and seeking out delicious, allergy-friendly food.  

Nichole’s family lives with multiple food allergies, and Trish was on a dairy-, gluten-, and corn-free diet to manage her autoimmune disease. Before long, the new friends decided to combine their business skills with Nichole’s experience in the food industry to create a snack that everyone they loved could enjoy.

Today, Every Body Eat ® makes sweet Cookie Bites, savory Snack Thins, and crunchy Crispbread Crackers. The Snack Thins are crispy, salty, and delicious—kind of like a chip and cracker hybrid.

“We make them thinner than thin so they melt in your mouth,” Nichole told The FruitGuys. “Our high-quality ingredients, olive oil, and real herbs and spices pack them with flavor. But what makes eating them special is that they can be safely shared with all the people we love—regardless of dietary restriction or preference.”

Nichole believes that owning a business as a Black woman comes with a lot of responsibility. 

“Being a Black business owner means building something with intention, knowing that ownership itself carries weight. It’s about creating opportunity and leading in spaces where Black-owned companies have historically been underrepresented,” she said, adding, “With Every Body Eat ®, that responsibility shows up in how we lead, who we hire, and the food we make.”

How Every Body Eat ® Empowers Through Employment

Every Body Eat ® helps support the Chicago community by strategically hiring people who need a leg up, then offering them career training and other tools to succeed. The idea came from Nichole’s experience working with local youth-equity initiatives. 

“We own our own manufacturing facility, and our amazing production team hails from some of the most disinvested neighborhoods in Chicago. We are helping our talented team build careers, stabilize families, and contribute back to their communities,” Nichole said. 

Not only is Every Body Eat ® a women- and Black-owned business, but its team is also about 80% people of color. 

A Final Note: Why Support Black-Owned Food Businesses?

Black-owned businesses are underrepresented on the snack shelf. In 2020, Black people made up 14.2% of the U.S. population, but they only accounted for 2.4% of all business owners. The Brookings Institution reports that if Black business ownership keeps growing at the pace it is today, it could take more than 250 years for those percentages to align.

However, the historic gap is closing. The number of Black-owned businesses in the U.S. jumped 13.64% from 2017 to 2020. Overall business growth during that time was much slower, measuring just .53%. By supporting Black-owned food companies in your office, you can help speed up this shift toward equity. 

As Nichole put it, “Black businesses are worth celebrating because visibility matters. When Black-owned businesses thrive, they expand what feels possible to employees, consumers, and the next generation of entrepreneurs.”

Shop Black-owned Businesses for Your Office Snack Program

You can find healthy snacks from Partake, Every Body Eat®, and other businesses owned by members of underrepresented communities in The FruitGuys’ office snack boxes. You can also order them in bulk through the form below! Bulk cases are perfect for celebrating Black History Month or Juneteenth with your team, or stocking your break room any time of year.