JOI Labs · Co-Development Services
Plant-Based R&D for QSR Operators & Manufacturers
We partner with QSR operators, CPG brands, and distributors to co-develop custom plant-based concentrates — from formulation through compliance, production, and delivered finished goods. The plant-based development partner that enterprise ingredient suppliers can’t be.
The JOI Method™
From Concept to Delivered Product
Every project follows The JOI Method™ — a structured six-stage co-development process. You stay in the loop at each milestone. We handle the complexity.
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01
Recipe Development
Custom formulations built around your menu vision, dietary targets, and operational constraints. We design for what your concept actually needs to run efficiently at scale.
Formulation Engine -
02
Nutritional Analysis
Full macro and micro profiling on every blend, aligned to your concept's health positioning and consumer-facing claims. Numbers you can put on a menu.
Nutritional Profiling -
03
Label & Regulatory Compliance
FDA-ready labeling, allergen declarations, and claim substantiation built into the process from day one — not appended at the end as an afterthought.
Compliance Dashboard -
04
Ingredient Sourcing & Production
Leveraging JOI's fully vetted supply chain partners, we handle all ingredient sourcing and production coordination — delivering your finished blend ready to deploy across your system, with no supply chain headaches on your end.
JOI-Managed Sourcing -
05
Prototype Delivery & Refinement
Physical samples delivered to your team for in-house testing. We work alongside you to refine the formulation until it's ready for system-wide deployment.
Sample Delivery -
06
Your Dedicated Supplier
The pipeline doesn't end with a sample. Once your formula is locked, JOI becomes your single-source supplier — handling all production and fulfillment of your custom blend going forward. Finished goods delivered on your schedule, your volume, your specs. No handoffs. No new vendors. One relationship from first formula to ongoing supply.
Ongoing Supply Partner
The Food Development App
Every Stage. Every Formula. Fully Managed.
Our proprietary Food Development App manages every stage of your co-development project — formulation, nutrition, compliance, sourcing, and supplier coordination — with an intelligence layer that informs every formula we build together.
Formulation Engine
Build, version, and compare recipe iterations. Every change is logged with rationale, keeping your development history clean and traceable.
Nutritional Profiling
Real-time nutritional calculations as formulations evolve. Instantly see how ingredient swaps affect macros, micros, and label claims.
Compliance Dashboard
FDA labeling, allergen flags, and claim documentation tracked alongside formulation. Your regulatory record, always current and audit-ready.
Project Timeline
Clear milestones and stage gates so you always know where your product sits in the development pipeline and what's coming next.
Supply Chain Management
JOI handles all ingredient sourcing and supply chain coordination on your behalf — our vetted manufacturing partner network ensures quality, consistency, and cost efficiency in every finished blend we deliver.
Collaboration Layer
Your team and ours in one shared workspace. Comments, approvals, and sign-offs all tied to the development record — no version confusion.
The Intelligence Layer
Formulations Built on Real Intelligence
Beyond managing your project, our platform actively informs it. Every concentrate JOI develops is backed by real-time category data, IP screening, and seasonal market intelligence built into our development workflow.
Category Trend Intelligence
Your formulations are developed with real-time plant-based demand data behind them. We track category trends, emerging ingredients, and consumption patterns internally — so every concentrate we develop is positioned ahead of the market, not catching up to it.
IP & Patent Screening
Before any formulation moves to production, it’s screened against active patents in the plant-based ingredient and application space. Your custom formula arrives IP-clean — with no conflict risk discovered after you’ve committed to production.
Seasonal Menu Planning
Your JOI team uses real-time seasonal demand patterns to help time new concentrate introductions to consumer demand windows — so you’re launching when momentum is building, not lagging behind it.
Our Sweet Spot
One Concentrate. Endless Plant-Based Menu Applications.
Our sweet spot is shelf-stable paste and powdered concentrates — highly cross-functional delivery systems engineered to power plant-based menus from a single formulation. Non-dairy by design, clean-label from the start, and built for BOH simplicity. One custom concentrate can unlock plant milks, sauces, soft serves, smoothie bases, dressings, and frozen desserts — all within your existing operations.
Why Concentrates
The Case Against Ready-to-Pour
RTU looks simple until you run the numbers. Concentrates give QSR operators more control at every level — from cost and complexity to shelf life and consistency.
You're paying to ship water.
RTU pricing reflects weight, refrigeration, and packaging overhead. Concentrates cut all three — and deliver more value per order.
Ship less. Waste less.
Higher concentration means less freight volume, less packaging, and less spoilage. Better for your margins and better for the planet.
Months on the shelf. Not weeks.
No cold chain. No spoilage panic. No emergency reorders. Concentrates stay stable and perform consistently across your full inventory cycle.
Exact yield. Every location. Every time.
Defined dilution ratios mean every cup is built the same way across your system — no guesswork, no inconsistency, no waste.
Your spec. Full stop.
Custom formulations built to your exact profile. No filler ingredients, no manufacturer defaults to work around, no compromises baked in.
One product. A dozen applications.
Plant milks, sauces, soft serves, smoothie bases, dressings — all powered by a single concentrate. One formula unlocks your entire better-for-you menu.
Fewer SKUs. Fewer vendors. Less complexity.
One concentrate anchors multiple menu items — consolidating your ordering, reducing supplier relationships, and simplifying BOH operations system-wide.
Concentrate Economics
See What You’re Spending to Ship Water
Estimate your annual savings switching from RTU to a JOI plant-based concentrate. Adjust the inputs to match your operation.
Your Operation
Annual Estimate
Your Estimated Annual Savings
$51,246
32% vs. RTU annually
RTU Annual Spend
$159,250
JOI Annual Cost
$108,004
45,625 RTU containers eliminated per year
Start a Project
Tell Us About Your Concept
We work with growing food concepts — 300 locations or less — focused on better-for-you, plant-based ingredients.
- Discovery call within 48 hours
- Custom scope — no off-the-shelf packages
- Full transparency via the Food Development App
- Physical samples before any volume commitment
Request a Discovery Call
Takes 2 minutes. Our team responds within 48 hours to schedule a focused intro call around what you're building.
Mention “sample request” in the form message field.
What happens next
- 01 2-minute Typeform — name, brand, concept type, what you're building
- 02 We respond within 48 hours with a proposed time
- 03 30-minute intro call — no pressure, just a real conversation