• Launched 17 new products and added more than 2,700 retail facings
• Diversified and expanded product lines and bolstered leadership team through the acquisition of RightRice® product lines
• Added more than 40 new ecommerce listings on third-party online marketplaces

CHICAGO, IL and VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / February 28, 2022 / The Planting Hope Company Inc. (TSXV:MYLK) (FRA:J94) ("Planting Hope" or the "Company"), a plant-based food and beverage company focused on producing the world's most nutritious and planet-friendly products, is pleased to provide an operational update, demonstrating the progressive execution of its growth strategy through strong partnerships with distributors and suppliers, strategic acquisitions, and attracting customers who are aligned with the Company's values of nutrition, sustainability, and diversity. This operational update highlights achievements from the Company's initial public offering ("IPO") in November 2021 through today.

Growth Highlights

• Expanded Total Distribution Points ("TDP") by an additional 2,767 retail facings across Hope and Sesame® (1,287 facings), RightRice® (1,450 facings), and Mozaics™ (30 facings).
• Launched 17 new products across three brands:
  • Hope and Sesame® Non-GMO refrigerated sesamemilk, 48 oz bottles, three flavors.
  • Hope and Sesame® Non-GMO shelf-stable sesamemilk, shelf-stable 1L cartons, six flavors.
  • Hope and Sesame® Barista Blend.
  • Mozaics™ Real Veggie Chips Non-GMO in sustainable NEO Plastics packaging, in 0.75 oz single-serving and 3.5 oz retail share-size bags, three flavors in each format.
  • Veggicopia Greek Kalamata Snack Olives, 1 oz pouches.
• Added more than 40 new ecommerce listings on third-party online marketplaces.

"Since our IPO, we have continually developed and scaled our business through retail and ecommerce distribution networks, innovative product launches, and the strategic acquisition of the RightRice® product lines," said Julia Stamberger, CEO and Co-founder of Planting Hope. "We have set clear strategic priorities for 2022, including expanding product lines and production capacity to meet growing demand to position us for strong growth in 2022 and beyond."

"I am extremely proud of all the work that the Planting Hope team has executed over the past few months," continued Ms. Stamberger. "Their efforts, along with the support of our community and our partners, have validated Planting Hope's mission to build a sustainable, diverse, and profitable business poised to make its mark on the plant-based food and beverage industry. Our marketing, operational, and strategic priorities are aligned, and our values are compelling to the growing number of customers who are enjoying our products each day."

2022 Strategic Priorities

• Continue expansion of TDP through acquiring new grocery retail distribution for current products and launching new product line extensions into existing retail partners.
• Expand production capacity and mitigate supply chain risks across network of suppliers and production partners, proactively diminishing potential supply chain delays caused by disruptive events such as COVID-19, keeping Planting Hope ahead of growing product demand.
• Continue bolstering the Planting Hope management team by offering exceptional candidates with diverse backgrounds a great place to build and succeed.
• Expand marketing campaigns to build brand awareness and promote consumer adoption, building a community of consumers who believe in Planting Hope's mission of doing better, one meal, snack, or latte at a time.
• Innovate and expand product lines across all brands, with a focus on continually improving nutrition and sustainability in the products and supply chain.

RightRice® Integration

In January 2022, Planting Hope acquired certain operating assets from Betterer Foods, Inc., including the RightRice® product lines, inventory, key contracts, brands, and other intellectual property, all of which have been integrated into the Company.

Planting Hope has also bolstered its leadership team by adding three team members from RightRice®, all of whom will be working across the Planting Hope brands:

• Francey Grund, Vice President of Brand Marketing (experience includes Chameleon Cold-Brew Coffee, Nestle, and ZICO Coconut Water).
• Matt Moran, Director of Natural Sales (experience includes Justin's, Hormel, and Mary's Gone Crackers).
• Kim Iovinelli, Operations Manager (experience includes Wilton's).

RightRice® continues to expand in popularity with consumers and retailers, and has the following initiatives underway in Q1 2022:

• RightRice® Risotto was selected as a featured product for the Pop Up Grocer Miami event during the month of February 2022, offering a co-branded giveaway with fellow Pop Up Grocer brands Seemore Sausages, Occo Spices, Haven's Kitchen sauces, and Midday Squares.
• RightRice® will be featured in a co-branded "Year of the Tiger" bowl with Recess restaurant, launching today, February 28, 2022. Recess is in Atlanta's Krog Street Market food hall and has a second location opening in Buckhead in early Q2 2022.
• RightRice® will be receiving promotional endcaps at all 476 Whole Foods Market stores across the United States, from March 2^nd to 15^th, and at all 362 Sprouts Farmers Market stores from March 30^th to April 13^th. Promotional "off shelf" aisle endcaps can potentially increase sales by one-to-two times standard velocity during the display period and provide ongoing lift in consumer adoption through generating positive product trials.

Sales & Marketing Drivers

Distribution:

• Hungryroot has added both Veggicopia® Greek Green and Kalamata Snacking Olives to its SKUs at Hungryroot.com.
• Rainbow Acres, a prominent natural store in Los Angeles, has added six new RightRice® SKUs (including all four Risottos), expanding their RightRice® shelf set from two to eight total SKUs.
• Mozaics™ and RightRice® met performance targets on two QVC airings in Q1 2021, and Mozaics™ has been invited back for two future March air dates, an important step in developing the QVC customer.
• Following the "Death Before Decaf: The Breakup Tour", 10 independent coffee shops have adopted the Hope and Sesame® Barista Blend onto their permanent menus, including: Werewolf Coffee (Chicago), Enroute Coffee (Vancouver), Chinatown Soup (New York City), Kindness & Mischief (Los Angeles), Café Ca Phe (Kansas City), and Spiller Park (Atlanta).

Sales Management:

• Engaged a leading Canadian retail brokerage, LeBeau Excel, to represent all Planting Hope brands to grocery retail, natural food retailers, and natural foodservice accounts.
• Engaged a leading Costco brokerage, DWS, to represent all Planting Hope brands to Costco club stores.
• Expanded agreement with Uphill Marketing for QVC representation, adding all Planting Hope brands, including RightRice®.

Operational Highlights

• Successfully completed first commercial runs of Hope and Sesame® Non-GMO refrigerated, shelf-stable, and barista sesamemilk lines.
• Imported and launched the new line of Veggicopia® Greek Kalamata Snacking Olives, expanding on the consumer success of Veggicopia® Greek Green Snacking Olives, consistently one of the Company's best-selling items on Amazon and on direct-to-consumer snacking channels like SnackMagic.
• Completed successful trial for the Company's new Hope and Sesame® Sesamilk™ creamers, which will be previewed at the upcoming Natural Products Expo West trade show in Anaheim, California from March 9^th to 12^th.
• Completed development of two new Mozaics™ flavors, to be previewed at the Natural Products Expo West.
• Onboarded a new popped chip production partner, who will proactively help develop new flavors and formats for new Mozaics™ product line extensions.

About The Planting Hope Company Inc.
Planting Hope develops, launches, and scales uniquely innovative plant-based and planet-friendly food and beverage brands. Planting Hope's award-winning and cutting-edge products fill key unmet needs in the skyrocketing plant-based food and beverage space. The Planting Hope brand family includes Hope and Sesame® Sesamemilk, RightRice® Veggie Rice, Mozaics™ Real Veggie Chips, and Veggicopia® Veggie Snacks. Founded by experienced food industry entrepreneurs, Planting Hope is a women-managed and woman-led company with a focus on nutrition, sustainability, and diversity. For more information visit: www.plantinghopecompany.com.

Contacts

Company Contact:
Julia Stamberger
CEO and Co-founder
(773) 492-2243
julia@plantinghopecompany.com

Media Contact:
Rachel Kay Public Relations
Becca Stonebraker
(818) 383-3929
becca@rkpr.net

Investor Relations Contact:
Caroline Sawamoto
Investor Relations
(773) 492-2243
ir@plantinghopecompany.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statement
This news release contains "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" (collectively referred to hereafter as "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements that address activities, events, or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will, or may, occur in the future, including statements about the Company's ability to execute on its goals, the timing pertaining to these goals the potential demand for the Company's products, the timing and success of anticipated product launches and distribution of the Company's products, and the Company's business prospects, future trends, plans and strategies. In some cases, forward looking statements are preceded by, followed by, or include words such as "may", "will," "would", "could", "should", "believes", "estimates", "projects", "potential", "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "continues", or the negative of those words or other similar or comparable words. In preparing the forward-looking statements in this news release, the Company has applied several material assumptions, including, but not limited to, the assumption that demand for the Company's product will be sustained or increase in accordance with management's projections, that the Company's current business objectives can be achieved and that its other corporate activities will proceed as expected, and that general business and economic conditions will not change in a materially adverse manner. Although the management of the Company believes that the assumptions made and the expectations represented by such statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that any forward-looking statement herein will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Although management of the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, or intended. Risks and uncertainties applicable to the Company, as well as trends identified by the Company affecting its industry can be found in the Company's annual information form dated January 6, 2022 and the Company's continuous disclosure record available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Such cautionary statements qualify all forward-looking statements made in this news release. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

SOURCE: The Planting Hope Company Inc.