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Ancient Crunch wants to rebuild the American snack set one savory treat at a time.

The four-year-old company (parent to MASA tortilla chips and Vandy kettle-style potato chips) is moving from direct-to-consumer upstart to national retail player. It is betting shoppers will pay more for snacks made with higher-quality, thoughtfully-sourced ingredients. 

From Clicks to Carts: Ancient Crunch has increasingly shifted its focus toward brick-and-mortar retail over the past year. Early placements brought it into natural independents and regional banners. Now it’s on shelf at Sprouts, Wegmans, The Fresh Market, Whole Foods and select Target locations with a door count surpassing 3,000. 

The Tallow Thesis: Grass-fed and finished beef tallow is the common thread across the portfolio. Founders Steven Rofrano and Seth Goldstein cited taste, high-heat performance and supply chain security as key advantages. 

• The company’s ingredient standards extend beyond the frying fat, including organic, nixtamalized corn and premium seasonings from Burlap & Barrel. 

Scaling the “No Compromises” Promise: Ancient Crunch has grown from producing with a  $1,200 fryer and tortilla chopper to a 25,000 sq. ft. facility producing tens of thousands of bags a day. But scaling the company’s “no compromises” proposition comes with the challenge of maintaining those standards as demand and distribution grow.

What They Said: “Our goal is to rebuild the American snack pantry with versions that are no different or better in taste and experience than the ones you’re used to, but made with ingredients that actually come from the farm, as opposed to a factory,” said Rofrano.

What’s Next? The company is now looking beyond chips, with popcorn set to become its next product line. Ancient Crunch is also building out its leadership team with two recent new hires. 

Read the full story with added context on Nosh

In this Nombase webinar presented by Can-One, Tom First, founder of Culture Pop, and Heather Wood, SVP of Marketing at Goodles, share how their brands turned better-for-you products into businesses built for sustainable growth. They discuss the decisions behind their formulations, packaging, channel strategies, consumer messaging, and paths to scale.

Check out the free replay here.

In this week’s notable new products roundup, Goldfish unveils a highly requested gluten-free version of its classic fish-shaped cracker, RXBAR, Planters and Dave’s Killer Bread introduce fall seasonals, and Flipz teams up with Dunkin’.

🆓 Check out the full gallery.

Ferrero Group has agreed to acquire Purely Elizabeth, following months of speculation that the better-for-you granola brand was exploring a sale. Read the story.

Laird Superfood is beginning to see the payoff from its push to build a broader platform, with acquisitions, retail expansion and early operating synergies driving a significant increase in scale. Read the story.

BranchOut Food is heading into the back half of 2026 with a growing base of recurring retail and ingredient business as it looks to translate recent customer wins into higher production volumes and improved profitability. Read the story.

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Functionality is everywhere – but are consumers buying the benefit or seeing right through it? This week, we dig into the rise of protein- and fiber-enhanced snacks from Khloud, Doritos and Smartfood, the growing buzz around colostrum, and a troubling new study on avocado oil authenticity. Plus, we explore the enduring appeal of pickle flavor and Grillo’s winning collaboration strategy.

Listen to the episode now.

Also available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

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