Obour Foods
Obour Foods is a San Francisco-based artisan food producer making fresh, small-batch hummus, tahini, and pita chips from organic ingredients, sold through 20+ weekly farmers markets in the Bay Area and Los Angeles, the SF Ferry Building flagship, select grocery stores, and branded fridges at local breweries and taprooms.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Obour Foods does
Obour Foods is a privately held, San Francisco-based artisan food producer founded in late 2017 by Elliot Sharifi. The company manufactures fresh, small-batch hummus, tahini (in four flavors), and pita chips in a commercial kitchen located in the Bayview District, with production occurring weekly using organic, preservative-free inputs such as overnight-soaked chickpeas, locally fresh-pressed lemon juice, organic extra-virgin olive oil, and in-house toasted-and-ground tahini from organic sesame seeds. Products are packaged in reusable glass jars, with customers receiving a $1 per jar discount for returns, a program that has reduced packaging footprint by nearly 50% and currently achieves a 25-30% weekly return rate.
The company's go-to-market is primarily direct-to-consumer and event-driven, anchored by a presence at more than 20 weekly farmers markets across San Francisco, the Peninsula, North Bay, East Bay, and Los Angeles, supplemented by a flagship shop at the San Francisco Ferry Building Marketplace. Wholesale distribution is selectively extended through select grocery retailers (e.g., Otheravenues, Real Food Co.) stocking Obour hummus and tahini, and through branded-fridge placements at local breweries and taprooms for grab-and-go sales. Marketing is community-led, relying on Instagram engagement, farmers market interactions, and word-of-mouth around taste and sustainability.
Obour Foods operates as a bootstrapped LLC with a 35-person team and no disclosed institutional funding. Revenue is generated through one-time unit-priced product sales, with the jar return program providing a modest indirect loyalty mechanism. The operating model is intentionally low-scale and high-touch, positioning the brand in the premium/artisan segment of the Mediterranean spreads category rather than competing on price or volume against mass-market hummus brands.
Obour Foods firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Obour Foods
- Legal name
- Obour Foods, LLC
- Website
- https://obourfoods.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Obour Foods is a San Francisco-based artisan food producer making fresh, small-batch hummus, tahini, and pita chips from organic ingredients, sold through 20+ weekly farmers markets in the Bay Area and Los Angeles, the SF Ferry Building flagship, select grocery stores, and branded fridges at local breweries and taprooms.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Obour Foods industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Artisan Mediterranean Foods
- NAICS
- Food Manufacturing (311)
- SIC
- Miscellaneous Food Preparations & Kindred Products (2090)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Refrigerated Dips & Spreads (Cream Cheese, Hummus, Salsa, Guacamole) (CRADACAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Chips & Savory Snacks (Potato, Tortilla, Extruded) (CRADABAE), Pesto, Cooking Pastes & Concentrated Flavor Bases Manufacturing (AFAKADAN)
Keywords
Where Obour Foods is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Obour Foods business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Food Product Sales: One-time transaction sales of hummus, tahini, pita chips and other food products through farmers markets, retail stores, and flagship location. Products sold in reusable glass jars.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Standard product pricing with jar return discount |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels3 records
Obour Foods product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Obour Foods produces and sells fresh, small-batch hummus, tahini, and pita chips made weekly from organic ingredients at its commercial kitchen in San Francisco's Bayview District. Products are distributed directly to consumers through over 20 weekly farmers markets across the Bay Area and Los Angeles, select grocery stores, branded fridges at local breweries and taprooms, and a flagship shop at the San Francisco Ferry Building Marketplace. The company uses reusable glass jars with a jar return program that reduces packaging footprint by nearly 50%.
Product overview
Obour Foods is a single-brand food products company offering a unified portfolio of Mediterranean spreads and condiments. The core products—Hummus, Tahini, and Pita Chips—are produced fresh weekly in small batches at a commercial kitchen in San Francisco's Bayview District. The company complements its product offerings with a Jar Return Program that provides customers a $1 discount per returned jar, supporting environmental sustainability. All products are sold through the same sales channels including over 20 weekly farmers markets across the Bay Area and Los Angeles, select grocery stores, breweries and taprooms featuring branded fridges, and the flagship San Francisco Ferry Building Marketplace location.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Hummus Fresh, small-batch hummus made from organic chickpeas soaked overnight (never canned), organic fresh-pressed local lemon juice, organic extra-virgin cold-pressed olive oil, and fresh spices; prepared weekly in San Francisco's Bayview District for sale through farmers markets, select grocery stores, breweries, taprooms, and the Ferry Building flagship shop.
- Tahini Lightly toasted and ground fresh in-house each week from organic sesame seeds, available in four distinct flavors. Sold in reusable glass jars through farmers markets, select grocery retailers (including Real Food Co.), breweries and taprooms, and the Ferry Building flagship shop.
- Pita Chips Pita chips complementing the hummus and tahini product line, sold alongside the company's spreads at farmers markets and select retailers.
Quantifiable outcome
- Nearly 50% reduction in packaging footprint through jar return program
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Obour Foods
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Obour Foods technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Obour Foods partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Obour Foods competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Sabra Dipping Company: Sabra is the category-defining hummus incumbent with national grocery distribution, jointly owned by PepsiCo and Strauss Group. Highly relevant as the dominant broad incumbent Obour must differentiate against on freshness and clean-label credentials.
- Cedar's Mediterranean Foods: Cedar's is a long-established manufacturer of hummus, dips, and Mediterranean spreads with broad retail distribution. Comparable as a larger incumbent in the same refrigerated dip category.
- Stacy's Pita Chips: Stacy's is the leading mass-market baked pita chip brand under Frito-Lay/PepsiCo, offering a complementary snack to hummus and dips. Comparable as a direct competitor in Obour's pita chips product line.
Direct peers
- Hope Foods: Hope Foods produces organic, non-GMO hummus and dips with a similar fresh, clean-label ethos and natural foods distribution focus. Directly comparable on product philosophy, ingredient quality, and refrigerated dip category.
- Ithaca Hummus: Ithaca Hummus is a premium refrigerated hummus brand that competes head-to-head with Obour in grocery and foodservice, using clean ingredients and chef-inspired flavors to position above mass-market incumbents. Highly comparable on category, channel mix, and premium positioning.
- Soom Foods: Soom Foods is a premium tahini brand emphasizing high-quality sourcing and artisanal production, sharing Obour's flavor-forward, premium-ingredient positioning in Mediterranean staples. Directly comparable on tahini product and clean-label ethos.
- Tribe Mediterranean Foods: Tribe makes Mediterranean-inspired hummus and dips with broad grocery distribution in the US. Comparable as a premium-positioned direct competitor in the refrigerated hummus category, though with significantly wider distribution.
Emerging players
- Baba Foods: Baba Foods is a smaller, premium refrigerated hummus brand with a clean-ingredient approach similar to Obour. Comparable as an emerging direct competitor in the artisan hummus niche.
Market position
Strengths2 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Obour Foods social profiles
Digital presenceObour Foods financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Obour Foods leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Obour Foods funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Obour Foods M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Obour Foods
What does Obour Foods do?
Obour Foods produces and sells fresh, small-batch hummus, tahini, and pita chips made weekly from organic ingredients at its commercial kitchen in San Francisco's Bayview District. Products are distributed directly to consumers through over 20 weekly farmers markets across the Bay Area and Los Angeles, select grocery stores, branded fridges at local breweries and taprooms, and a flagship shop at the San Francisco Ferry Building Marketplace. The company uses reusable glass jars with a jar return program that reduces packaging footprint by nearly 50%.
Is Obour Foods a public or private company?
Obour Foods is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Obour Foods founded?
Obour Foods was founded in 2017. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Obour Foods based?
Obour Foods is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Obour Foods make money?
One revenue line is on record: food Product Sales.
Who are Obour Foods's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Sabra Dipping Company, Cedar's Mediterranean Foods and Stacy's Pita Chips. Direct peers are Hope Foods, Ithaca Hummus, Soom Foods and Tribe Mediterranean Foods. Baba Foods is listed as an emerging player.
Does Obour Foods have an API?
No public API is recorded for Obour Foods.
What industry is Obour Foods in?
Obour Foods's product category is Artisan Mediterranean Foods. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRADACAG, Refrigerated Dips & Spreads (Cream Cheese, Hummus, Salsa, Guacamole), with a secondary code of CRADABAE, Chips & Savory Snacks (Potato, Tortilla, Extruded). Its NAICS code is 311 and its SIC code is 2090.