Miyoko Schinner is aiming to put together a bid to buy back the plant-based dairy brand (Miyoko’s) she created, three years after being removed from the board as CEO, AgFunderNews has learned.
Other interested parties including animal welfare donor and investor Satish Karandikar are also understood to be putting together bids this week although Karandikar has not responded to a request for comment.
According to documents seen by AgFunderNews, California-based Miyoko’s determined that it was “unable to pay its debts in full” and entered an Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors (ABC) process handled by Resolution Financial Advisors on October 6.
The ABC process is a means of concluding the affairs of an insolvent company as an alternative to the Chapter 7 bankruptcy procedure. In an ABC, the insolvent company transfers its assets (in this case, the brand, trademarks, formulas etc) to an assignee (“Miyoko Liquidation”) in trust who handles their sale in the best interests of creditors.
James Joaquin, cofounder of Obvious Ventures, a key investor in Miyoko’s and a director at the company, signed the ABC agreement on behalf of Miyoko’s. He did not respond to a request for comment.
Resolution Financial Advisors did not respond to a request for comment about the assets for sale or the timetable for submitting bids, although AgFunderNews understands that the deadline is this Friday (Nov 7).
A turbulent few years
The insolvency follows a turbulent few years at Miyoko’s, which was founded by chef, author, and animal rights activist Miyoko Schinner in 2014. It launched with artisanal cheese wheels made from cultured cashews and later expanded into plant-based butter, mozzarella, cream cheese, spreads, shreds and slices.
The firm, which has raised more than $70 million to date from backers including GroundForce Capital and Obvious Ventures, hit the headlines in early 2023 after it emerged Schinner had been removed as CEO by the board the previous year. Schinner claimed she’d had disagreements with the board over strategy, while Joaquin told reporters he was looking for a CEO with “proven P&L experience who has scaled a larger business.”
The company followed up with a lawsuit accusing Schinner of “hatching a plot” to steal its IP , while Schinner responded with a countersuit alleging she was forced out of her own company after complaining to HR about male executives who “openly denigrated women.”
The parties subsequently resolved their differences after going through a court-mandated mediation process. In August 2023, ex-Coca-Cola exec Stuart Kronauge was brought in as CEO, telling us she saw ” significant untapped potential.” As part of a plan to drive efficiency, the firm later announced plans to close its production facility in Petaluma, California, and work exclusively with co-manufacturers.
Kronauge has not responded to requests for comment from AgFunderNews.
Building plant-based: ‘We have to speak to the early adopters’
Speaking to AgFunderNews on Wednesday (Nov 5), Schinner said: “I’m putting together a team of people to make a bid as I believe I am the best person to be the face of the brand. I’ve got some values aligned people with whom I am talking right now, and we’re hoping to put something together very, very quickly.”
She added: “I’m talking to some manufacturing partners but I don’t want to be CEO or run operations anymore. I have somebody in mind [as CEO] that’s very values-aligned. I do want to be impactful in terms of product development, adhering to core principles in terms of quality and nutrition.
“We’re also talking about a structure for a company that is not reliant on what investors say, that is not top down, but more lateral, with mutual support. I want to do things differently.”
Asked about her vision for plant-based cheese and butter, she said: “This is a new category and it’s a case of how do you capture the right audience? I’ve been thinking about this very deeply for the last three years as there’s less than 1% market penetration right now and low repeat purchase rates.”
She added: “The entire category is slipping, and so we have to speak to the early adopters. You can’t go straight to the total addressable market and try to launch with cheeses that are speaking to the mass consumer because the mass consumer is not interested. You’ve got to target the people that are, and they are looking for premium products that are clean label, that are nutritious.
“And that’s what I would launch with. I would try to get cottage cheese out there that’s equivalent to dairy in terms of nutrition. I’ve got some completely new technology that I would try to lead with that is concentrating plant proteins without adding plant protein. I don’t believe in adding isolated protein. I want to see, how do you concentrate those plant proteins in a natural state?”
‘People are not interested in whitewashed, middle of the road, me too brands’
Asked about her vision for the brand in general, she said: “Look what just happened in New York with [successful mayoral candidate Zohran] Mamdani. People want a point of view. People are not interested in whitewashed, middle-of-the road, me-too brands. People want brands that have an opinion, a point of view, that stand for something, and that is what I would try to revive: a brand that stands for truth, equity, and sustainability.”
She added: “It doesn’t have to be a brand for everybody, it just has to be a brand for people that really care, and I believe that I have the best shot at breathing life into this brand again, not as an ambassador on the side like a dancing monkey, but somebody who is leading with principles.
“That’s the way to win the industry. I believe I am the best chance for reviving the brand and really putting it back on the map.”
Plant-based cheese and butter by numbers
According to SPINS data shared with AgFunderNews, US retail sales of refrigerated plant-based cheese are going backwards (52 weeks to Sept 7, 2025):
- Total refrigerated plant-based cheese: -8.5% to $220.3 million
- Shredded and grated cheese: -4.1% to $107.8 million
- Sliced and snacks: -13% to $78.9 million
- Spreads: -1.7% to $9.7 million
- Other (blocks, etc): -14.5% to $24 million
Meanwhile, US retail sales of [products marketed as] plant-based butter were down 14.9% to $157 million in the 52 weeks to October 5.
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