Thrive Freeze Dry

What Thrive Freeze Dry does

Thrive Freeze Dry (legal entity Thrive Foods) is a B2B contract manufacturer and supplier of freeze-dried (lyophilized) food ingredients, meals, and pet products, serving consumer packaged goods companies, retail brands, pet food manufacturers, and probiotic/enzymes producers. The company's core technology is vacuum freeze-drying, which preserves structure, color, flavor, and nutritional content of fruits, vegetables, proteins, prepared meals, candy/dessert confections, and pet proteins; secondary capabilities include milling, screening, and wet processing. Operations are supported by in-house food scientists and chefs, offering product development from concept to commercialization, and a portfolio of certifications (Organic, Vegan, Non-GMO, Gluten Free, Kosher, Halal, FDA, USDA).

The company monetizes through four streams: (1) Toll Drying / contract manufacturing, where customers supply or commission ingredient sourcing and Thrive processes on its driers; (2) Private Label / co-manufacturing, producing retail-ready pouches, pillow packs, bag-in-box, or totes under the customer's brand; (3) Bulk Ingredients sales of freeze-dried fruits, vegetables, proteins, and prepared meals; and (4) Milling services for particle size control and powder format. GTM is direct enterprise sales via a website inquiry form structured by demand tier (0–1,500 lbs to 10,000+ lbs) and service type, supplemented by industry events and news-driven brand credibility. Pricing is quote-based.

Founded in 2004 by Steve Palmer and Jason Budge and combined with Mercer Foods (founded 1980) under the sponsorship of Entrepreneurial Equity Partners (e2p) and Mubadala Capital in 2022, Thrive now operates 14+ manufacturing facilities across the United States, Canada, Peru, Germany, China, Thailand, and Vietnam, supported by 501–1,000 employees. Since 2022, the company has executed a roll-up strategy, acquiring Freeze-Dry Foods (Albion, NY, August 2022) and agreeing to acquire Groneweg Group (Germany/Peru, June 2023), while simultaneously commissioning a 341,000 sq ft greenfield plant in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, to serve the pet treats and probiotics end markets.

Name

Thrive Freeze Dry

Legal name

Thrive Foods

Website

https://thrivefreezedry.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Thrive Freeze Dry is a B2B contract manufacturer and supplier of freeze-dried fruits, vegetables, proteins, pet treats, and prepared meals, serving CPG companies, retail brands, pet food manufacturers, and probiotics/enzymes producers globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Freeze-dried food manufacturing

NAICS

Frozen Specialty Food Manufacturing (311412), Dried and Dehydrated Food Manufacturing (311423), Frozen Fruit, Juice, and Vegetable Manufacturing (311411), Packaged Frozen Food Merchant Wholesalers (424420)

SIC

Canned, Frozen & Preservd Fruit, Veg & Food Specialties (2030)

akta.pro primary industry

Frozen Fruits & Vegetables Manufacturing (AFAKACAF)

Keywords

• Freeze-dried foods
• Contract manufacturing
• Private label
• Freeze-drying services
• Food ingredients

Headquarters

HQ city

Modesto

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices14 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Toll Manufacturing/Drying: Fee-based freeze-drying services where customers provide ingredients or have Thrive source them. Facilities handle trial runs to full-scale production with wet or dry ingredients, standard or deep vacuum requirements.
2. Private Label Manufacturing: Production of retail-ready freeze-dried products under customer brands. Capabilities include stand-up pouches, pillow packs, bag in box, or totes. Certified for Organic, Vegan, Non-GMO, Gluten Free, Kosher, and Halal.
3. Bulk Ingredients Sales: Sale of freeze-dried bulk ingredients including fruits, vegetables, proteins, and prepared meals to food manufacturers and CPG companies.
4. Milling Services: Dry processing, screening and milling services for grading, sizing, particle control, and grinding materials into powder format for secondary use.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Thrive Freeze Dry is a global manufacturer and co-manufacturer of freeze-dried fruits, vegetables, proteins, pet treats, prepared meals, and candy/dessert confections. The company also offers toll drying (contract freeze-drying), milling, product development/R&D, and private label packaging services for consumer packaged goods companies, retail brands, and food manufacturers worldwide.

Product overview

Thrive Freeze Dry is a world leader in freeze-dry food manufacturing offering a comprehensive portfolio of freeze-dried products across six main categories: Fruits (pineapple, strawberries, berries, tropical fruits), Vegetables (leafy greens, root vegetables, peppers, corn, peas), Proteins & Dairy (poultry, seafood, meat), Pet Products (beef, poultry, fish with 19 protein options), Candy & Dessert Confections (40+ customized flavors), and prepared Meals (breakfast, dinner, sauces, desserts). The company operates as both a product supplier and service provider, offering four core manufacturing services: Toll Dry (contract freeze-drying), Milling (particle size control and powder processing), Product Development (food science and R&D), and Private Label packaging (stand-up pouches, pillow packs, bag in box, totes). The company serves customers globally through multiple facilities across North America, South America, Europe, and Asia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Thrive Life: Proprietary brand offering freeze-dried food products
• PEAK Refuel

Products and services

• Freeze-Dried Fruits

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 25 year shelf life
• +4 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Groneweg Group (Freeze-Dry Foods Germany)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 June 2023Global manufacturer and supplier of freeze and air-dried ingredients based in Greven, Germany. Founded in 1978, with operations in Germany and Peru. Thrive signed definitive agreement to acquire Groneweg Group to expand freeze-dried offerings and add experienced management team. Transaction expected to close in 2023.
• Freeze-Dry Foods (FDF)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 August 2022Contract manufacturer of freeze-dried products founded in 1968, headquartered in Albion, New York with 240,000 sq ft facility. Acquired from Cumming Capital to add specialized formulation and wet processing capabilities and expand Midwest and east coast service.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Döhler Group: Döhler is a German global producer of natural ingredients, ingredient systems and frozen/freeze-dried fruit and vegetable preparations for the food and beverage industry. It overlaps directly with Thrive's freeze-dried ingredient and fruit-preparation offerings and serves the same multinational CPG customer base.
• Van Drunen Farms: Van Drunen Farms is a US-based, family-owned contract manufacturer specializing in freeze-dried and air-dried fruits, vegetables, herbs and specialty ingredients for food, beverage and supplement customers. It directly competes with Thrive in freeze-dried fruits and vegetables and toll drying services.
• iTi Tropicals: iTi Tropicals is a US-based supplier of tropical fruit ingredients including freeze-dried and IQF fruits to food and beverage manufacturers. It is a direct peer in the freeze-dried fruit ingredient category Thrive serves.
• SunOpta: SunOpta is a North American plant-based and specialty ingredients company whose fruit-based foods and ingredients segment sources and processes fruits (including freeze-dried products) for CPG customers. It is a competing toll/private-label supplier with comparable ingredient portfolios.
• European Freeze Dry (EFD): European Freeze Dry is a UK-headquartered freeze-dried ingredient manufacturer serving food, beverage and nutrition brands globally. It offers the same toll and private-label freeze-drying capabilities that Thrive provides to multinational CPG customers.
• Chaucer Foods: Chaucer Foods, owned by Kerry Group, is a global manufacturer of freeze-dried fruit, vegetable, and bakery inclusions serving CPG brands. It competes head-to-head with Thrive in freeze-dried fruit pieces, particulates and inclusions for cereal/snack applications.

Broad incumbents

• Cargill: Cargill is one of the largest global food and agricultural ingredient companies, providing dried, freeze-dried and processed ingredients across food, beverage and pet-food customers. It represents a broad incumbent that competes with Thrive for large-scale ingredient and private-label contracts.
• Sensient Technologies: Sensient Technologies is a global supplier of flavors, colors, fragrances and specialty food and nutraceutical ingredients. Its flavors and ingredients segment overlaps with Thrive's specialty ingredient/co-manufacturing role for nutrition, supplement and CPG customers.
• Archer Daniels Midland (ADM): ADM is a global food and nutrition ingredient powerhouse covering flavors, specialty ingredients and Nutrition (including savory/probiotic-related categories). It is a broad incumbent alternative for CPG and pet-food brand owners evaluating ingredient and co-manufacturing partnerships.
• Kerry Group: Kerry Group is a global taste and nutrition company with broad CPG ingredient, meal solutions and freeze-dried inclusion capabilities (via Chaucer Foods). It is a broad incumbent competing against Thrive for multinational CPG co-manufacturing and ingredient contracts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/thrivefreezedry

Compliance8 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Thrive Freeze Dry