Idealism met reality as we launched our meal-in-a-bottle, Njamito. After 100.000 bottles sold, here’s what we learned about organic food and market adaptation.
The food industry has always been a battlefield between what we want and what the market allows. After over a year on the market and nearly 100,000 bottles sold, this gap has become very clear with Njamito, our first consumer product, and Slovenia’s first meal-in-a-bottle.
Along the way, we fine-tuned the recipe, increasing fiber content, enhancing flavor and texture, making it even healthier.
Introducing Njamito 2.0 “Healthy meals come in different shapes. More fiber. More protein”
Unlike conventional, market-driven products, Njamito was designed as an ideal. It’s certified organic, vegan, clean-label, HPP treated, made from pea proteins, fresh vegetables, freeze-dried fruits and sourced from traceable oats. While checking all of these boxes, Njamito still manages to keep the retail price below five euros, despite production costs exceeding 50% of that.
For context, in most food production, costs make up one-quarter to one-third of the retail price.
This placed Njamito in a tough position: a product crafted with integrity and innovation but at a cost that challenges its long-term viability in the mainstream market, shaped by cost efficiency and long shelf lives.
But before we dive into what we’ve learned in year one, let’s first take a look at the state of the organic market we stepped into.
The Organic Market Landscape in 2025: Where Does the Meal-in-a-Bottle Fit?
The organic market is a slow-moving giant, growing, but cautiously. Post-pandemic, the market is bouncing back with stronger consumer demand. According to FiBL’s latest report, the global organic market has shown record growth, surpassing 135 billion EUR in 2023. More organic brands are emerging, but so is the competition for end-consumer products.
Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL). (2024). Organic market back on track. FiBL. https://www.fibl.org/en/info-centre/news/organic-market-back-on-track
At Biofach 2025, the world’s largest organic trade fair, we spotted three key trends shaping the future of organic food:
A rise in freeze-dried fruits, functional powders, and high-nutrition supplements.
A continued reliance on long-shelf-life products.
A still-dominant category of sweet raw bars, organic cereals, and functional spice blends.
This paints a clear picture: the organic market evolves cautiously, favoring small, gradual improvements over bold innovation. Njamito, however, challenges this status quo by prioritizing freshness over shelf life.
The contrast between the market’s comfort zone and our vision for organic convenience was a key challenge in year one.
Bringing the Meal-in-a-Bottle to the Market
We took an unconventional route to market, selling primarily through one national retail chain with test sales in select markets and limited online marketing. Despite this lean approach, selling nearly 100,000 bottles was a significant success.
However, we quickly realized that introducing the meal-in-a-bottle category to consumers was no small task.
Many shoppers struggled to understand how Njamito differs from yoghurts, smoothies, or protein shakes. Educating them required breaking down the science behind HPP (High Pressure Processing)—a method that preserves freshness without high temperatures, extending shelf life to two months (if kept cold).
How does HPP work
Originally studied in the 19th century and commercially adopted in the 1990s, HPP uses 300 to 600 MPa of hydrostatic pressure to eliminate harmful microorganisms while retaining the flavor, texture, and vitamins found in fresh ingredients. Unlike traditional thermal treatments, which can degrade essential nutrients, HPP allows for longer shelf life while maintaining a clean-label, minimally processed product. This method is widely used in cold-pressed juices, plant-based dairy, and ready-to-eat meals.
The challenge? Fresh, organic, and short shelf life don’t always align with an international food market that prioritizes distribution efficiency.
A product that requires strict refrigeration from production to sale is a tough sell in a market where long shelf life and easy distribution are the norm. Most competitors use high-temperature processing, allowing their products to last for months unrefrigerated. This makes their business models more scalable and cost-effective, while Njamito, in contrast, requires a strict cold chain—a major logistical hurdle for wider adoption.
Simply put, our vision met the reality of food distribution.
Evolving the Meal-in-a-Bottle: Where Does Njamito Go From Here?
Even when met with reality, we don’t want to cut corners. We don’t want to compromise, but rather evolve.
Starting summer 2025, we’re launching the development of a UHT (Ultra-High Temperature) version of Njamito. A solution that will maintain our core values:
Vegan
Fully traceable
Clean-label
100% organic
How does UHT work?
Developed in the 1960s and widely adopted in the 1970s, ultra-high temperature processing revolutionized the food industry by allowing products to stayfresh for 6–12 months without refrigeration.
It’s commonly used in extending the shelf life of dairy products, plant-based drinks, beverages and soups without refrigeration or preservatives. By rapidly heating liquids to 135–150°C for just a few seconds, UHT effectively eliminates harmful microorganisms while preserving taste, proteins, essential vitamins, and minerals better than traditional sterilization methods.
While it requires specialized aseptic packaging and equipment, its benefits such as extended freshness, reduced food waste, and improved food safety make it an essential technology for modern food production.
Testing and perfecting our UHT meal-in-a-bottle prototype.
This shift is crucial for global expansion.
The ready-to-go drink meal segment is highly competitive, with giants like Huel and YFood dominating.
To carve out our space, we must emphasize what makes Njamito stand out.
What Makes Our Meal-in-a-Bottle Different?
1. A truly farm originated product Unlike most competitors, we start from the land itself. Our oats are grown on our own farm, ensuring full quality control, sustainability, and organic certification.
This farm-to-bottle approach is rare in the industry and a key advantage.
2. The only fully organic option Despite rising demand for organic meal replacements, there is currently no certified organic UHT meal-in-a-bottle available on the market. We aim to be the first.
3. A focus on superior taste Most functional meals prioritize nutrition over flavor. We don’t think you should have to sacrifice taste for health. That’s why we go beyond just using organic, high quality ingredients by actively testing and refining our flavors with real people. Every new formulation undergoes sensory tests with our Njamito community.
Our new formulation will benchmark against the best-tasting competitors while staying 100% organic.
The Next Chapter for Njamito
Our first year was a lesson in bridging the gap between idealism and market practicality. The introduction of a UHT version signals the next step in our journey, making Njamito more accessible to a global audience while maintaining our commitment to organic, plant-based, and transparent nutrition.
However, our HPP version of Njamito isn’t going anywhere, it’s evolving. Alongside the UHT product, we’re reformulating HPP Njamito to enhance detoxifying properties, boost vegetable content, and focus on functional health benefits.
As we refine, adapt, and grow, one thing remains unchanged: food should be convenient, honest, and uncompromising in quality. And that is what Njamito will continue to deliver.
We’re seeking UHT production partners!
If you’re a food producer with UHT expertise, let’s collaborate to scale our meal-in-a-bottle and bring it to more people!
Idealism met reality as we launched our meal-in-a-bottle, Njamito. After 100.000 bottles sold, here’s what we learned about organic food and market adaptation.
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