Our favorite Black-owned food and beverage brands
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Abisola Abidemi, owner of Abisola Whiskey, told us that when customers meet or see a picture of her for the first time, they’re often surprised that she owns a whiskey company. “Many people expect an older, white man to be behind an alcohol company, not a young, Black woman,” she said. Like Abidemi, many Black business owners we spoke to said they started their companies to ensure that stories about Black Americans are included in conversations around what we eat and drink. But it’s an uphill climb: “The gap in capital is tremendous,” Abidemi said about the willingness of financial providers to back Black-owned versus white-owned businesses. That’s why shoppers play a key role. When you buy from Black-owned companies, you’re economically supporting them and expanding their customer base.
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Below, we rounded up over 60 Black-owned food and beverage companies that offer items like teas, chocolate, prepared food, spices and more. We also talked to business owners to learn more about why they founded their companies and how impactful it is when shoppers stock their pantries and refrigerators with their products.
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Best products from Black-owned food and beverage brands in 2023
Below, we compiled food and beverage products from Black-owned brands we think you should know about. We also talked to the companies’ founders to learn more about the people behind each brand.
A Dozen Cousins Seasoned Pinto Beans
Ibraheem Basir, founder and CEO of A Dozen Cousins, grew up in Brooklyn and said food was always at the center of big family gatherings. In addition to her “native Southern dishes,” Basir said his mother also picked up Latin American and Caribbean recipes from neighbors. As he got older and sought to recreate these dishes himself, he found it challenging: “I either had to cook them all from scratch or use processed options with ingredients that I was trying to avoid,” Basir said. This inspired him to start A Dozen Cousins, which offers rice, beans and sauces inspired by traditional Creole, Caribbean and Latin American flavors.
A Dozen Cousins’ Seasoned Pinto Beans are made with tomato, green chili and spices. The beans come in a bag you can pop in the microwave to warm, or you can pour the beans into a pot to heat over the stovetop. The brand says the beans have a 12 month shelf life, so you can buy them in bulk and store them in your panty.
A Dozen Cousins Seasoned Pinto Beans
A Dozen Cousins Seasoned Pinto Beans $ at Amazon
A Dozen Cousins Seasoned Pinto Beans $ at Walmart
A Dozen Cousins Seasoned Pinto Beans $ at A Dozen Cousins
Sorel Liqueur
Jackie Summers, CEO of Sorel Liqueur, left his 25-year corporate career in 2010 after surviving a cancer scare. He then decided to dedicate his life to preserving Caribbean culture by creating an alcoholic, shelf-stable version of a traditional hibiscus-based beverage.He launched a micro-distillery in 2012, which is also when Summers says he became the first Black person in the U.S. to hold a distiller's license post-Prohibition. Summers said Black History Month is “incredibly personal to me because I’m living it. I want to be sure that in 150 years, when people look back, there is irrefutable evidence of the road we’re paving today for everyone who comes after.”
Sorel Liqueur is made with Moroccan hibiscus and blended with Brazilian clove, Indonesian cassia and nutmeg and Nigerian ginger. It’s a bright red liqueur that the brand says pairs with any base spirit to make cocktails.
Sorel Liqueur
Sorel Liqueur $ at Sorel Liqueur
McBride Sisters Wine Company Black Girl Magic California Sparkling Brut
While starting their business, “one of the biggest challenges we faced was not being taken seriously as winemakers in a white, male-dominated space,” said Andréa McBride John andRobin McBride, co-founders of McBride Sisters Wine Company. The success of their businesses has helped to break the status quo around what winemakers look like, the sisters said. One of their goals? To use their platform to empower women of color. In 2019, the sisters launched the McBride Sisters SHE CAN Fund to provide professional development scholarships and grants to emerging female leaders.
The McBride Sisters Wine Company offers bottles of reds, whites and rosés, as well as canned wines. Its Black Girl Magic Wines Sparkling Brut is a bubbly blend of Chenin Blanc and Chardonnay. The brand says you’ll taste notes of pear, crisp apple and white peach.
McBride Sisters Wine Company Black Girl Magic California Sparkling Brut
McBride Sisters Wine Company Black Girl Magic California Sparkling Brut $ at McBride Sisters Wine Company
Iya Foods Pancake and Waffle Mix
Toyin Kolawole, founder and CEO of Iya Foods, grew up in Nigeria as the first daughter of five children, and often helped her mother in the kitchen. She studied businesses in school, and ultimately blended her entrepreneurship education and family recipes to start Iya Foods. Through her company, Kolawole says she shares her African heritage with families while nourishing them with quality, non-processed foods.
Iya Foods’ Pancake and Waffle Mix contains cassava, tapioca, brown rice, rice and fonio flour, as well as sugar, vanilla, baking soda and salt. There are directions on the packaging to make the mix into pancake and waffle batter. The mix is gluten free, kosher and non-GMO, according to the brand.
Iya Foods Pancake and Waffle Mix
The Black Leaf Tea & Culture Shop CoCo Bae Tea
When Amber Jackson founded The Black Leaf Tea & Culture Shop in 2019, she used her background in food science to create tea blends for customers to order online and enjoy at home. But it was also important to Jakcson to dedicate part of her business to engaging with and celebrating the Black community. She hosts monthly events for young Black professionals to connect with one another, as well as Tea Talks, which Jackson says is a “space where [Black individuals can] talk about things that matter to us in a space that’s just for us.” The Black Leaf Tea & Culture Shop is currently undergoing a brand refresh, through which Jackson is launching a quarterly digital magazine that will highlight stories from guest writers.
The Black Leaf Tea & Culture Shop’s caffeinated Coco Bae Tea blend contains keemun snail black tea, cocoa nibs and coconut flakes. To make the beverage, the brand says to steep two teaspoons of tea for every 8 to 12 ounces of water or milk for three to four minutes before drinking.
The Black Leaf Tea & Culture Shop CoCo Bae Tea
The Black Leaf Tea & Culture Shop CoCo Bae Tea $ at The Black Leaf Tea & Culture Shop
Abisola Whiskey
Abidemi’s original goal for 2020 was to buy a house. Instead, she pursued a different dream: Starting her own whiskey company. “I realized that there's no real representation or celebration for the modern day whiskey drinkers,” she said, noting that many people think of whiskey as harsh and smelling bad. So, Abidemi created Abisola Whiskey, which she said is a non-traditional, smooth tasting liquor that appeals to a wide audience.
Abisola Whiskey is a blend of 1-year-old Bourbon and 6-month-old malt. There’s notes of vanilla and waffle cone, plus caramel and spices, the brand says. The beverage gives off an aroma of apricot and almond cream with a malted chocolate finish.
Abisola Whiskey
Abisola Whiskey $ at ReserveBar
Abisola Whiskey $ at Caskers
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Black-owned food and beverage brands to shop
We reached out to over 60 food and beverage brands to compile a list of Black-owned companies that we think are worth checking out. We also confirmed with each brand below that they’re at least 51% Black-owned, which is in-line with the Census Bureau's definition of a Black-owned business. In addition to the list below, check out our guide dedicated to Black-owned coffee companies.
Black-owned food companies
Black-owned beverage companies
Black-owned wine and spirit companies
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