Plant-based, high-protein Sustenance for busy urbanites

In an ideal world, eating well would be a cinch – everyone would have ample time to shop for healthy ingredients and meal prep accordingly. However, reality is such that many of us are juggling far too many balls to give much thought to our daily meals. 

That was what Mr Gautam Param discovered when he was pulling long hours in the management consulting line. Recognising the unsustainability of such eating habits, Mr Gautam, alongside fellow director Leon Chen, has since scaled Sustenance – a brand that focuses on convenient plant-based, high-protein food products for time-strapped individuals with a desire to eat well. 

The local start-up has grown to amass a strong loyal customer base in Singapore as well as in Hong Kong, Australia and Taiwan following its debut in 2017. 

EATING WELL SANS HASSLE

In Singapore, we are surrounded by convenient hawker food options, some of which may not be the most nutritious. According to Mr Gautam, many of us are actually cognisant of what is healthy and what is not, but we struggle with the “execution part” of eating well.

“If you give a person a simple and painless approach to eating better, they’re a lot more likely to do it consistently in the long run,” he said. “This is where Sustenance comes in. We want to provide people with ultra-convenient, nutritious, calorie-controlled food that is also delicious.”

Sustenance’s signature product is its wide range of meal replacement shakes that you can consume on the go. The brand has since gone on to develop other products, using the same nutrient-dense approach. Its latest offerings include low-calorie granola bars, savoury multigrain bars and protein crisps, all of which make for healthier snack alternatives when the mid-day munchies creep in. 

“Our products are 100 per cent natural and made with minimally processed, plant-based whole foods, said Mr Gautam, who explained that the ingredients do not go through harsh heat or chemical processes that may strip off important nutrients. 

For example, the fruits and vegetables in its shakes are freeze-dried instead of chemically dried or heat-dried. Freeze-drying, which involves bringing food temperatures down to as low as -40 degrees Celsius before light heating, removes the moisture but locks in the nutrients and extends the shelf life without the use of preservatives, according to the Sustenance director.

He added that Sustenance uses plant-based whole foods as ingredients because leading scientific bodies such as the American Heart Association have pointed to a predominantly plant-based, whole-food diet as the cornerstone of a healthful diet.

SNACK-FORM SUSTENANCE

Each serving of Sustenance’s snack item contains under 200 calories and is packed with nutrients. 

The granola bars, for example, serve as a low-calorie breakfast option, and are loaded with protein, vitamins and minerals. Each serving contains just 6g of total sugar. 

The savoury multigrain bar contains 7g of fibre and 10g protein, and helps to keep one full for a longer period.

Mr Gautam shared that Sustenance’s protein crisps are “cleanly made” with pea and an all-natural spice blend. Containing minimal added sugar and oil, each serving contains 25g of protein, and has just 150 calories. 

"The protein crisps come in a spicy Sichuan flavour and were sold out within a week of the pilot launch. We’re working on introducing more exciting new flavours and scaling production to meet demand,” he added.  

QUALITY, HEALTHFUL NUTRITION 

To ensure quality control, all of Sustenance’s research and development, as well as production, is done in Singapore.

“It’s expensive to manufacture food products in Singapore compared to Thailand or Malaysia. This is especially true if you’re not running at scale. Despite this, we’ve chosen to work with thinner margins as local production allows us to better control quality and also improve our products quickly based on customer feedback,” said Mr Gautam. 

A slew of other innovative healthy food products is in the Sustenance pipeline. Look out for a fermented yeast protein drink, an all-natural, plant-based multivitamin, and savoury versions of its popular shakes that can be consumed hot like soup.

In the meantime, Sustenance’s plant-based, high-protein snacks and signature meal shakes are available on its website – ready to support people from all walks on their journey to wellness. 

Eat and live better with Sustenance.