鈥淧lay ball!鈥� echoed across the country鈥檚 ballparks during the past few days as baseball season began.
And, particularly in minor league parks, the cries of 鈥減ass the peanut butter鈥� may also have reached the clubhouse. Peanut butter is a staple at where players don鈥檛 quite earn the six-figure incomes of their Major League counterparts.
鈥淢inor league players say it鈥檚 almost the ramen noodle of minor leagues,鈥� said Joseph DeWoody, CEO of Fort Worth-based .
HomePlate Peanut Butter was founded in 2015 by a team of former professional baseball players and entrepreneurs in Austin. Last year, Fort Worth-based , a business management, process outsourcing and advisory firm and a subsidiary of , began to manage the product and its brand. DeWoody is CEO of Valor as well.
鈥淲e鈥檙e in the process of really trying to put roots down here and bring it to town,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e getting involved with some local companies here in Fort Worth and advertising in the Little Leagues around here and working to build the brand here.鈥�
Among that area outreach is a partnership with which created a donut combining HomePlate Peanut Butter, chocolate and M&Ms for baseball season. Customers who buy the HomePlate donut also get a sticker touting the HomePlate Peanut Butter brand.
鈥淭hey made a great HomePlate donut,鈥� said Hannah Jones, chief marketing officer for HomePlate. 鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to find ways that we can work with other brands that have established themselves and also seen great success like FunkyTown.鈥�
Peanuts and baseball have a long association. According to the National Peanut Board, peanuts have been sold as a at ballparks since 1895.
, an entrepreneur in Aledo, was in minor league baseball for several years and said peanut butter was a part of his life during his time in the minors.
鈥淭he pre-game meal was always a snack, and peanut butter was always there,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou kind of feel like a little kid.鈥�
Eventually, the players figure out their favorite peanut butter recipe, he said.
鈥淢ine was creamy , on bread with some honey and, if you have a knife, with the crust cut off,鈥� he said.
HomePlate Peanut Butter is in a growing market. Sales of peanut butter increased during the pandemic, according to . Total peanut consumption grew to 7.6 pounds per capita in 2019-2020 with peanut butter growing 5.1% to 56% of total peanut consumption.
HomePlate Peanut Butter comes in three varieties: smooth, crunchy and honey. The product is made in Georgia and is priced about $5.99 per 16-ounce jar and is considered to be on the premium end of the peanut butter market.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not competing with Jif and Skippy,鈥� said DeWoody.
The product is also touted as healthier than most traditional peanut butters.
鈥淲e use palm fruit oil instead of hydrogenated oils, and we don鈥檛 use emulsifiers and GMO ingredients like you see in some cheaper brands,鈥� said Liz Jang, president.
The product is sold in stores such as , , and , as well as online.
鈥淲e even have a subscription service,鈥� said Jones. 鈥淧eople love the honey version. I think we just got the perfect blend of salty and a little sweet, and we use real honey, whereas a lot of other brands will use a powdered honey.鈥�
The product also does well overseas, Jang said, particularly in Japan where baseball has a large fan base.
Chris Reale, owner/operator at , the longtime westside store that was refurbished in 2021, said he is a big supporter of local products like HomePlate.
鈥淐ustomers are looking for special items like that and the fact that it鈥檚 a company based in Fort Worth is something our customers really look for,鈥� he said.
For DeWoody, who has long been involved with Valor Mineral Management which provides oil and gas accounting, mineral management and consulting services, the move into consumer retail products is a little different. But if a client needs those services, Valor will provide them, he said.
鈥淲e create functional teams to come in and help out as needed. So we have accounting and logistics and operations and then marketing services,鈥� DeWoody said.
But he and the other managers are excited about the opportunities provided by HomePlate Peanut Butter.
鈥淚t is a first-class product that has an outstanding brand foundation. Our goal is to continue its brand growth and presence in the peanut butter spread space,鈥� said DeWoody.
Bob Francis is business editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at bob.francis@fortworthreport.org.
