Every great idea starts somewhere. 

Ours began with a spoon. 

Back in 2006, Edinburgh researcher Joe Frankel was on secondment in Berkeley, California, when his wife brought home a curious little thing from a farmers’ market. It was a yoghurt sampling spoon made from corn and potato starch. To most people, it was just another bit of packaging. But Joe saw something else entirely. 

 “I thought it was the most wonderful thing I had ever seen,” he said. “It sparked a whole train of ideas within me, and the Vegware concept was born.” 

Back then there were no other UK companies making plant-based, compostable foodservice packaging. Joe spotted the gap, and the opportunity to do something better. He invested the family savings in bioplastic resin and had the first few hundred cases of Vegware cutlery made. 

A few years later, in 2008, Vegware officially became a limited company. What began with a single spoon in Joe’s garage has grown into the UK’s leading brand of plant-based, compostable packaging.

Growing with purpose 

The early days were scrappy, passionate, and full of belief. 

By 2010, Vegware had outgrown Joe’s garage and moved into Canalside House. A team of four with a clear mission: to help the foodservice industry do better with less waste. 

Purpose was baked in from day one. In 2011, Vegware launched the Community Fund, supporting grassroots projects doing brilliant things for people and the planet. It set the tone for everything that followed: we were never just here to sell packaging; we were here to make a positive difference. 

By 2013, the team had grown to 26, expanding next door to Canalside East and collecting a cabinet of awards including our first Queen’s Award for Enterprise. Vegware Australia followed soon after, proving that sustainability wasn’t a niche idea, it was the future.  

From there, momentum snowballed. 

2014 saw Vegware become the third fastest-growing business in Scotland, and by 2016, we’d earned a second Queen’s Award. Operations in New Zealand and Hong Kong were established. 

Crossing the Atlantic 

In 2017, Vegware went back to California where the story had begun a decade before. 

Vegware USA opened in Huntington Beach, just a short drive from the market where that first compostable spoon had caught Joe’s eye. A full-circle moment. 

By 2019, we had 83 employees across the UK, a warehouses in the UK and Netherlands,  and offices buzzing with energy and ideas. The plant-based packaging revolution was well underway. 

Then came 2020. The pandemic hit, and everything changed.

Overnight, customers pivoted to takeaway and delivery and so did we. Those months tested every part of the business, but the values that shaped Vegware – resilience, adaptability, and care for our customers – held strong. 

By 2021, Vegware joined the Novolex family. It was the start of a new chapter, built on shared goals and even greater potential. 

A new era 

Joining Novolex has helped us do even more of what we do best. 

With new manufacturing capabilities and shared expertise, Vegware has gained the scale to make a bigger impact while staying true to our roots. 

In 2022, Joe passed the baton to Managing Director Helen Mathieson, who continues to lead with the same belief that’s guided Vegware from the start: values first, always. 

Values that lead the way 

Every team at Vegware has helped define what truly matters to us. The result? A shared understanding that how we do things is just as important as what we achieve. 

In 2023, we became a certified B Corp, joining a global community of businesses that meet the highest standards of social and environmental impact. It was a proud moment! Formal recognition of what’s always been true about Vegware. 

  

Innovation by design 

Two decades in, and we’re still driven by the same spark of innovation that started it all. 

Product design: From that first spoon to a full range of compostable cups, plates, cutlery, and containers, every Vegware product is made with purpose and performance in mind.  

Education: We don’t just sell packaging. We help the industry understand compostables, from bin to compost. 

Infrastructure: Through initiatives like Close the Loop, we’ve supported composting collections and waste partnerships across the UK. 

Quality: Because choosing plant-based should never mean compromising on quality or practicality. 

Looking ahead 

As Vegware celebrates 20 years, the journey from that single spoon to market leadership reflects more than business success. It represents a fundamental shift in how we think about packaging and waste. 

That moment of inspiration in 2006 has become a movement, proving that businesses built on strong values, innovative thinking, and genuine commitment to sustainability can not only survive but thrive. With the backing of Novolex, an expanding product portfolio, and a team dedicated to making a difference, Vegware’s next chapter promises to be just as transformative as its first two decades. 

The spoon that started it all wasn’t just made from plants. It planted an idea that has taken root and flourished, changing an industry and inspiring a more sustainable future for foodservice packaging. 

Explore what’s next 

Learn more about our products, our story and how we can help customers close the loop.