Ancient Crunch, the parent company of premium snack brands MASA and Vandy, has reported surging retail performance following a strategic rollout at Sprouts Farmers Market. The company’s rapid growth highlights the increasing commercial viability of the "seed oil-free" snacking segment, a trend rapidly migrating from ultra-premium natural channels to national grocers.
The brand announced strong sell-through metrics following the introduction of two retailer-exclusive flavours across 460 Sprouts locations, pushing its overall volume to more than 400,000 bags sold per month.
Sprouts Retailer Exclusives
To drive footfall and differentiate the Sprouts snack aisle, Ancient Crunch developed two channel-specific SKUs that cater to complex, culinary-inspired flavour profiles:
MASA Hatch Chile: A smoky, spicy nod to the Southwest, available exclusively under the MASA tortilla chip banner.
Vandy French Onion: A savoury potato chip flavour engineered to deliver the "sophisticated depth of an Alpine onion soup," launched under the Vandy brand.
Utilising retailer exclusives is an increasingly popular tactic for emerging CPG brands to secure premium shelf placement and build collaborative, high-value relationships with national buyers.
Market Penetration and Velocity
The success at Sprouts mirrors the brand's established dominance in the ultra-premium tier. At Erewhon, the Los Angeles-based luxury grocer often viewed as an incubator for functional food trends, MASA currently holds four of the top-performing spots in the entire Chips & Salty Snacks category.
This velocity validates Ancient Crunch's core formulation thesis: consumers are willing to pay a premium for snacks manufactured using traditional cooking methods and fats, strictly avoiding industrial seed oils, fillers, and artificial ingredients.
Breaking the Binary
Seth Goldstein, co-founder of Ancient Crunch, framed the Sprouts expansion as a tipping point for clean-label snacking.
"Sprouts has become a proving ground for what happens when shoppers are offered real food made the right way," Goldstein stated. "Consumers are no longer choosing between 'healthy' and 'great tasting' — MASA breaks that binary. This launch shows just how hungry people are for snacks made from simple, nutrient-dense ingredients and zero seed oils."
Distribution Outlook for 2026
The Sprouts rollout pushes Ancient Crunch's physical retail footprint past the 1,500-door milestone. The current distribution network spans a mix of national natural grocers and high-end regional players, including Bristol Farms, Citarella, Happier Grocery, SunLife Organics, and Pavilions.
Looking ahead, the company confirmed that additional national retail partnerships are already slated for early 2026, positioning the "no seed oil" platform for mainstream grocery penetration.
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