Sobofoods
2 known investors
Sobo Foods is a San Francisco frozen food brand making high-protein, better-for-you Asian American dumplings.
Also known as Sobo · Sobo Foods Inc.
Investors · 2
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Sobo Foods Inc. is a San Francisco-based frozen food company selling Asian American comfort food, beginning with frozen dumplings. Its products are positioned around nutrition and ingredient sourcing: up to 30 grams of protein and 12 grams of fiber per unit, avocado oil in place of canola oil, bone broth, non-GMO vegetables, and no preservatives or artificial ingredients. The dumplings cook in about five minutes.
The original line was 100% plant-based; in January 2026 the company added its first meat-based items, General Tso's Chicken Dumplings using American Humane Certified chicken and Korean BBQ Pork Dumplings using Global Animal Partnership Animal Welfare Certified pork, both raised with no antibiotics ever. Recipes are described by the founder as interpretations of Asian American food memories rather than direct family recipes, developed in response to what he characterized as limited better-for-you innovation in the Asian frozen aisle.
Founding story
Founder and CEO Eric Ji Sun Wu, a Georgetown University graduate (SFS'17) who grew up in Southern California, traces the company to a course on the future of food that led him to write a senior thesis on food systems and plant-based meat companies. Observing that frozen categories such as burgers, pizza and yogurt were being reformulated while the Asian aisle was not, and drawing on the vegetable-heavy home cooking of his mother, he started Sobo Foods to make Asian American comfort food with what he describes as thoughtfully sourced ingredients.
Business model
Sobo Foods manufactures branded frozen dumplings and sells them through grocery retail as well as direct online ordering and delivery via its website. Products are made in California, and the company is a Certified Minority Owned Business.
Revenue comes from sales of packaged frozen dumplings through grocery retail distribution and direct-to-consumer online orders and delivery.
Traction
Products are distributed in retailers across five states — California, Hawaii, Texas, Oregon and Washington — and the company expanded its assortment with two new dumpling flavors in January 2026.
Latest developments
In January 2026 Sobo Foods launched General Tso's Chicken and Korean BBQ Pork dumplings, its first products outside the plant-based range, at a suggested retail price of $9.99 across West Coast retailers, and moved its packaging from pouches to boxes to improve sustainability and retail merchandising.
▸Full profile — market position, go-to-market, geography, history
Market position
Sobo Foods competes in the frozen Asian food aisle as a better-for-you challenger brand, positioning itself against incumbent frozen dumpling products that it characterizes as reliant on inexpensive factory-farmed meat and high in sugar and sodium.
The company positions its dumplings on protein and fiber content, plant-based or humane-certified protein sourcing, avocado oil instead of canola oil, and the absence of preservatives and artificial ingredients, contrasted with conventional frozen Asian foods. The founder describes the original line as the first and only frozen dumpling combining high protein, vegetables and fiber in a fully vegan format, and frames the brand as an authentic Asian American perspective rather than stereotyped packaging cues.
Go-to-market
The brand sells through premium natural grocery retailers on the West Coast and in Texas and Hawaii, supported by a store locator and online ordering on its website, press releases distributed via the Startup CPG newswire, and social media channels on Instagram and TikTok.
Consumers shopping the frozen aisle at premium natural grocery stores, particularly Asian American shoppers seeking nostalgic flavors, and households looking for high-protein, vegetable-forward convenience meals.
Geography
Headquartered in San Francisco, California, with products manufactured in California and sold at retailers across California, Hawaii, Texas, Oregon and Washington, plus online ordering and delivery.
History
The company was founded by Eric Ji Sun Wu, who previously co-founded the personalized sports nutrition brand Gainful while a senior at Georgetown University; Gainful raised over $20 million from venture capitalists and celebrity athletes and is now run by his co-founder. Sobo Foods launched with 100% plant-based frozen dumplings, and in January 2026 expanded beyond plant-based for the first time with General Tso's Chicken and Korean BBQ Pork dumplings made with humane-certified, no-antibiotics-ever meat, alongside a packaging change from pouches to boxes.
Compiled by commissioned research from 8 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Timeline · 1
launches, deals, and filingsSobo Foods introduced two meat-based frozen dumpling flavors — General Tso's Chicken (American Humane Certified, no-antibiotics-ever chicken) and Korean BBQ Pork (Global Animal Partnership Animal Welfare Certified, no-antibiotics-ever pork) — its first products outside the plant-based line. Each delivers 30 grams of protein and is made with avocado oil and bone broth. The launch was accompanied by a switch from pouch to box packaging, and the products carry a suggested retail price of $9.99 and are available at West Coast retailers.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
▸Research sources · 8
primary sources listed
- Sobofoodssobofoods.com · web
8 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Sobofoods do?
- Sobo Foods is a San Francisco frozen food brand making high-protein, better-for-you Asian American dumplings.
- Who are Sobofoods's investors?
- Sobofoods's investors include Sustainable Food Ventures, Montage Ventures.