Earth911 Podcast: Shameek Upadhya of Omvits on Vegan Vitamins and Sustainable Packaging

Omvits is a four-year-old British nutritional supplements company with a deep commitment to sustainability. Earth911 talks with Shameek Upadhya, a cofounder of the company about why they focused on making vegan vitamins, including an algae-produced Omega-3 oil supplement and vegan Vitamin D, and delivering it in the most sustainable packaging possible. Omega-3 oils are difficult to get in a vegan diet. Upadhya shares how he and his team learned that global fish supplies could collapse by 2048 and decided to make Omega-3 oil, which is usually harvested from salmon, using an algae. The company currently delivers its products in plastic bottles with refills available in low-plastic pouches. Later this year Omvits will introduce plastic-free refill pouches that biodegrade in household compost piles.

We also explore how Omvit's vegan Vitamin D is made using lichen to eliminate lanolin collected from sheep's wool. The company has provided free annual supplies of vitamins to more than 25,000 children and is building charitable support for climate action into its business model. Omvits vitamins will reach the U.S. in early 2022; sign up at the https://omvits.com/ to receive alerts about U.S. availability.