OUR STORY
In 2008, MOYO’s founder, Will Laughlin, was asked to work on a project to improve access to life-saving therapeutic peanut butter for severely malnourished children. An elite ultra-distance runner, Will wondered, “if fortified peanut butter is so good for malnourished kids, I wonder if it would be good for me too?” So he gathered a team of sports physicians, nutritionists, and world-class athletes to find out.
MOYO IS BORN
The result is MOYO, a delicious, portable, nutrient-dense super food for anyone needing easy access to great nutrition. During prototype testing, Will
set two new endurance records using MOYO as his principal fuel—a 261-mile, 81-hour run across Central America and the fastest off-trail, summertime
crossing of Death Valley National Park. “The stuff works!” he says.
In the process of developing a great consumer product, MOYO has also created a model for providing malnourished children with sustainable access to
nutrition. Our ounce for ounce approach turns consumers into heroes —super-fueling their bodies while giving them a powerful, quantifiable connection
to a life they’re helping save through the simple act of grocery shopping.
OUR BRILLIANT, BIG-HEARTED, LIKE-MINDED TEAM
Leadership
Will Laughlin began his career as a teacher, but found his niche running and troubleshooting education and mental health organizations, serving as the senior executive for companies in the US, Japan, and Latin America. In 2008 he left mental health to start a non-profit — impossible2Possible — and to make his living as a branding and communications consultant. An elite ultra-marathoner, he founded MOYO as a way to combine his passions for sports nutrition, business, and philanthropy. Will has degrees from UC Berkeley and Stanford University.
David Green is the recipient of numerous awards for his work to “humanize capitalism” by making healthcare sustainable, accessible, and affordable for all. These awards include the Award for humanitarian efforts in blindness prevention, the University of Michigan Humanitarian Service Award, and the MacArthur genius grant. David is a MacArthur Fellow and Ashoka Fellow, and is recognized by Schwab Foundation as a leading social entrepreneur. He has co-founded several highly successful social enterprises, including Aurolab, Conversion Sound, and Quantum Catch.
Lindsay Beckman leads innovative digital media campaigns for a wide range of notable clients--from hip new startups to multinationals with household names. She was an interactive developer for advertising powerhouse, Goodby, Silverstein, & Partners, before joining Pereira and O'Dell as their creative technologist. She now runs her own digital marketing agency, Stoke Interactive, and lives in Phoenix, Arizona, with her husband Craig. Lindsay is MOYO's creative director and has been a core partner at MOYO since the beginning.
A pygmy elephant from East Africa, MOYO has over fifty years of experience in the natural food and nutraceutical industry, having developed several revolutionary peanut-based nutritional products. MOYO's life work has been to provide access to nutrition for everyone, everywhere, all the time. His products are designed to benefit anyone in need of a food-based solution--from elite athletes to the malnourished to the obese. He is a beloved hero throughout the savannah where, for many years, he has personally delivered his nutritional products to those who need it most.
Partners
MANA Nutrition is a leading provider of therapeutic peanut butter (RUTF) to UNICEF, World Food Programme, World Vision, and other major aid organizations. MANA will be our contract manufacturing partner and our one-for-one aid recipient. This arrangement will give MOYO favorable manufacturing costs and high production quality while helping MANA provide children with better access to RUTF. It will also mutually strengthen our brands and our collective reach.
Stoke Interactive is a boutique marketing, design + development firm based in San Francisco and Phoenix. Their mission is to work with socially responsible companies that are working to better the world we live in. Stoke Interactive is helping to bring MOYO to life through technology on and off the web.
Advisors
Mark Arnoldy was so moved during a college visit to Nepal that he founded Nepal NUTrition, a non-profit dedicated to providing therapeutic peanut butter and healthcare to malnourished Nepalese children. A Fulbright Scholar, regular TED speaker, and graduate of Harvard's global health training program, Mark was personally honored by President Bill Clinton at the 2009 Clinton Global Initiative for his international philanthropic work. Mark is currently the executive director for Nyaya Health and directs MOYO's philanthropic efforts.
Dr. Shannon Sovndal is a Stanford-educated emergency and sports physician and is the team doctor for the Garmin Tour de France team, where he manages athlete safety, training, and diet. Shannon has written popular books on athletic training and is MOYO’s principal nutrition and performance consultant.
Jonathan Pope is an experienced private-equity partner, turnaround manager, and CFO who has worked on national brands and startups independently and as part of the Steven’s Group and Republic Financial. Jonathan is leading MOYO’s financial strategy.
