Two Drexel University graduates behind a new beverage made from avocado seeds are partnering with goPuff, the food delivery startup likewise led by a pair of former Drexel students, to roll out the antioxidant-dense drink in Philadelphia on Friday.
Avocado-seed brew brand Reveal is the brainchild of Sheetal Bahirat and Zuri Masud, who graduated last year with master's degrees in culinary arts and science and food science, respectively. The beverage is made from upcycled avocado seeds collected from local restaurants, including Hungry Pigeon and High Street on Market, that would otherwise dispose of them.
Reveal freezes the seeds, extracts their antioxidants in a process for which it has a provisional patent, and uses that as a base for the drink. The remaining pits are then composted.
The blend, which also contains apple cider vinegar, is available in three flavors: rose mint, mango ginger, and grapefruit lavender. It will be available in 12-ounce bottles exclusively through goPuff for $3.79.
The Reveal startup was created in the Drexel Food Lab, incubated at Drexel’s Baiada Institute for Entrepreneurship and was part of the 10th cohort for Food-X, a global food innovation accelerator. Bahirat and Masud officially founded Reveal in October 2019.
The avocado blend is manufactured at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University. The brew is marketed as containing three times the amount of antioxidants in Kombucha, zero sugar and fewer than 15 calories. The Reveal founders define it as a healthier, more sustainable alternative to Kombucha, which they view as their main competition.
Bahirat and Masud came up with the idea for Reveal after making guacamole and realizing they were left with more seeds and pulp than anything else. Bahirat learned that 57% of an avocado’s antioxidants are in its seed and 38% are in the peel, prompting her to write her master’s thesis on how to extract them from the food’s pit. An advisor at Drexel then connected Reveal with goPuff co-founders and co-CEOs Rafael Ilishayev and Yakir Gola.
Reveal’s mission and commitment to reducing food waste caught goPuff’s attention, the founders told the Philadelphia Business Journal in an email.
“GoPuff is committed to working with and supporting local businesses in each community in which we operate, and this is especially true in our hometown of Philadelphia,” they said. “We’re thrilled to partner with another Drexel-founded business to bring their products to customers across the city.”
The food delivery startup has seen an increase in orders for healthier items over the past few months and believes Reveal can offer a local option that fits in with the demand, a goPuff spokeswoman added.
An exclusive brand debut with goPuff is a noteworthy feat for the local avocado beverage startup. GoPuff has become a household name in Philadelphia since its 2013 launch. Last year, it received a $750 million investment from the Japanese-run Softbank Vision Fund. The company also raised $3.25 million in 2015 and had an $8.25 million Series A round the following year that helped it expand to new markets.
Near the peak of Philadelphia’s Covid-19 outbreak in April, goPuff was experiencing increased demand and moved to hire thousands of new driver partners and field employees across its more than 200 locations nationwide. The company also opened a new local facility in Port Richmond that month.
GoPuff ordered 36 12-bottle cases from Reveal to start. The beverage company plans to complete its next production round in early September.
Reveal’s initial funding stemmed from the Food-X accelerator program, the founders said. The company is now in the middle of a fundraising round.
Reveal aims to launch a direct-to-consumer sales option this fall. Long-term, Bahirat and Masud are considering expanding product offerings to include other product variations, such as carbonated or fermented drinks, beers, vinegars or avocado-seed sugars.
