Source: Ilia Yechimovich via Getty Images

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Faux meat startups continue to go head to head in the race to go to market. Israeli cultivated meat maker, Aleph Farms, has announced a $105 million Series B that will help it scale its manufacturing capabilities and expand its operations internationally. Meanwhile, Meati has raised a $50 million Series B to build a production plant for its fungi-based steaks. Beyond Meat has launched plant-based chicken tenders at 400 restaurants.

In other news, Chobani has quietly filed for an IPO that could value it at $10 billion. Siete Foods now wants to go global.

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Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Israel’s Aleph Farms to Expand Cell-Based Operations Globally after $105M Series B – Green Queen

The company will use capital to scale up its manufacturing capabilities and expand its operations internationally ahead of its initial market launch in 2022.

2. Expect Fungi-Based Steak on Your Plate by 2022: Meati Raises $50M – Forbes

Meati, a company commercializing vegan protein sourced from mycelium, secured a series B to build a production plant and get its cuts to restaurants around the US.

3. Yogurt Maker Chobani Confidentially Files for US IPO, Valuation May Exceed $10B – CNBC

The company, which has factories in New York, Idaho and Australia, has not yet determined the number of shares it plans to sell or the price range for its proposed offering.

4. A Decade Later, Beyond Meat Reveals Its Second Attempt At Faux Chicken Tenders – Forbes

Consumer demand for chicken has skyrocketed as the industrial poultry production industry has faced shortages and supply issues. Beyond is hoping those tailwinds will help convince buyers that its new tenders should go out to fast food chains, restaurants, cafeterias, hospitals and other locations.

5. Gluten-Free Is Mainstream Now. Just Look at Siete’s $1B Ambition – Bloomberg

Siete, a Mexican food brand, is in 16k locations and sees sales hitting $200m this year. Now it wants to go global.

6. India: Ant-Backed Food App Boosts India IPO Target to $1.3B – Bloomberg

Bernstein values Zomato at about $10b. The company vies with its main rival Swiggy as well as smaller contenders in a fast-growing Indian food services market that is estimated to balloon to $97b by 2025.

7. Satellite Imagery Company Planet Labs Is Going Public, Backed by Google, BlackRock and Marc Benioff – CNBC

The company’s imagery then feeds into a data index that Planet says makes the Earth “searchable” for its more than 600 customers. The deal is expected to raise $434m.

8. MaxAB, the Egyptian B2B Food and Grocery Delivery Startup, Raises $40M for Expansion – TechCrunch

The company will be expanding its physical footprint across the Middle East and North Africa. MaxAB’s platform manages procurement and grocery delivery to shops in Egypt.

9. C3 Raises $80M to Expand Its Virtual Food Hall Concept – The Spoon

The company operates more than 40 virtual restaurant brands, leveraging underutilized kitchen spaces around the country to cook and fulfill those orders.

10. Instawork Raises $60M to Connect Local Businesses with Hourly Workers – The Spoon

Instawork checks references and makes sure each worker is qualified, then connects them with open shifts available at different companies. Workers can get paid within hours of completion and rate their shift.

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The post Fungi-Based Steak Maker Raises $50M, Chobani’s IPO + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: Future Meat Technologies

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

The world’s largest food company, Nestle, has partnered with Future Meat Technologies to develop alternative meat products that combine plant-based and cell-cultured meat. Meanwhile, Israeli company MeaTech 3D is developing kosher lab-grown pork and the EU plans on phasing out factory farm cages by 2027.

In other news, Thrive Market is exploring a $2 billion IPO and Zomato’s IPO opened this week with a $1.2 billion offering.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Nestle Eyes Lab-Grown Meat Market to Tap Future Growth – Bloomberg

The Swiss giant has been working on alternative meat products that would blend cultivated meat with plant-based ingredients in partnership with Future Meat Technologies.

2. Thrive Market Is Considering an IPO at $2B+ Value – Bloomberg

The pipeline for direct-to-consumer listings is building as many of these companies benefited from increased demand during the pandemic.

3. EU to Phase Out Factory Farm Cages for 300M Animals by 2027 – Green Queen

The ban will be introduced by the end of 2023 in an effort to phase out all cages for animal species including hens, mother pigs, calves, rabbits, ducks, and geese by 2027.

4. Kosher Lab-Grown Pork from Israel’s Growing Cultured Meat Sector – The Jerusalem Post

There is a breadth of opinions in the Orthodox community over whether cell-cultured pork can be considered meat in the halachic sense.

5. Zomato IPO: India Food Delivery ‘Unicorn’ Opens $1.2B Offering – BBC

It raised $562.3m from institutional investors, as they bid for 35 times more shares than allotted to them ahead of the much-anticipated offering. Analysts are wary of the loss-making company’s high valuation.

6. Kurly, the Korean Grocery Startup, Raises $200M on a $2.2B Valuation After Shifting IPO Plans Away from the NYSE – TechCrunch

Kurly had been planning an IPO in the US later this year; instead it announced this week that it would instead seek to list in its home market instead.

7. Panda Express Adds Beyond Meat Orange Chicken to Its Menu in Select Restaurants – CNBC

Panda Express will be the first Asian concept restaurant to serve Beyond Meat on its menu.

8. England to Slash Meat Intake by 30% Under New Food Strategy – Green Queen

England’s latest National Food Strategy advises the public to reduce meat consumption by 30% within 10 years.

9. Instacart Taps Facebook Executive As CEO, Names Founder Apoorva Mehta to Executive Chairman – Forbes

Apoorva Mehta, the billionaire founder of grocery delivery app Instacart, is stepping into an executive chairman role while the head of the Facebook App, Fidji Simo, will become Instacart’s CEO.

10. Undocumented Farmworkers Push Congress for Protections Amid Historic Heat – ABC

Advocates say legal status is needed to fight for basic worker protections.

11. Biden Commits $655M and New Regulations to Strengthen Meat Industry Competition – Food Dive

The funds will be directed to support new and small businesses in the processing sector. USDA also will reinvigorate the Packers and Stockyards Act and crack down on false country-of-origin labeling.

12. Gopuff Is Hiring Over 100 Employees to Back Ghost Kitchens Operation – Grocery Dive

Job listings, which include line cooks, kitchen leads and district managers across at least six states, indicate the company is preparing to deliver fresh-made foods.

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The post Nestle Explores Lab-Grown Meat, Thrive Market Explores IPO + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: Rockefeller Foundation

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Spruce Point Capital has publicly denounced Oatly and Beyond Meat’s valuation, causing investors to wonder whether Oatly is on the precipice of a crash. In other news, some major investments closed this week, including Swiggy’s $1.25 billion raise, Nature’s Fynd’s $350 million and Pivot Bio’s $430 million.

Rockefeller Foundation released a new report that finds that the true cost of the U.S. food system is $3.2 trillion per year.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Why A Short-Seller Thinks $11B Oatly Is More Overvalued Than Beyond Meat – Forbes

Now that one short-seller, Spruce Point Capital, has gone public against Oatly, investors are left wondering if Oatly is on the precipice of a crash.

2. True Cost of Food: Measuring What Matters to Transform the US Food System – Rockefeller Foundation

The US food system rings up immense “hidden costs” from its impact on human health, the environment, and social and economic inequity to the tune of $3.2 trillion per year, finds a new report from Rockefeller Foundation.

3.Nature’s Fynd Closes $350M Investment Round – Food Dive

The funds will be directed to support new and small businesses in the processing sector. USDA also will reinvigorate the Packers and Stockyards Act and crack down on false country-of-origin labeling.

4. Pivot Bio Scores $430M in DCVC, Temasek-Led Series D Round – AFN

The startup’s technology ‘programs’ the DNA of microbes which naturally occur in the soil so that they produce more nitrogen. It mass-produces these microbes and sells them directly to farmers, who can apply them to their fields.

5. The Total Health and Climate Consequences of the American Food System Cost Three Times As Much As the Food Itself – Washington Post

A new report provides a roadmap to creating a post-pandemic food system with greater fairness, fewer adverse climate impacts and better health outcomes.

6. Indian Food Delivery Startup Swiggy Raises $1.25B Led by SoftBank and Prosus – TechCrunch

The startup said its recent bet to expand into grocery delivery, and pickup and drop-off service, has paid off. The value of orders it is processing now is 30% higher than those in the pre-Covid times.

7. Delivery Startup Jokr Gets $170M to Grow in Grocery Boom – Bloomberg

In the last four months, the company has built about 100 dark stores, and expects to double that number by the end of the year.

8. Germany: Choco Bites into $100M Series B, at a $600M Valuation, to Build a More Transparent, Sustainable Food Supply Chain – TechCrunch

The company’s core food procurement technology digitizes ordering workflow and communications for restaurants and suppliers.

9. Jeff Bezos Awards Jose Andres $100M for ‘Courage and Civility’ – Washington Post

Chef and humanitarian José Andrés plans to use the award to advance the work of his charity, World Central Kitchen.

10. This Startup Just Raised $75M to Make a More Cheesy Plant-Based Cheese – Fast Company

Nobell Foods has pioneered a new way to make dairy products from plants. The key lies in casein, a protein unique to milk, which the startup now grows in soybeans.

11. Beyond Meat Doubles Down on China with JD.com and Vegan Pork Launch – Green Queen

Beyond will begin selling its vegan meat to consumers in select cities including Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

12. They Risked Their Lives During Covid. They Still Don’t Earn Minimum Wage. – New York Times

Surveys of food deliverers and others who work for app-based services illustrate the hazards they have faced during the pandemic.

13. We’re Not Animals, We’re Human Beings’: US Farm Workers Labor in Deadly Heat with Few Protections – The Guardian

Advocates want Osha to issue federal heat standards, requiring water, shade and rest breaks.

14. Cory Booker Just Picked a Fight with Giant Meatpackers – Mother Jones

The Booker bill would shake the foundations of the handful of companies that slaughter and pack the bulk of the meat. Biden now has a chance to prove he’s serious about confronting market power.

15. More Than a Third of Earth’s Population Faces Malnutrition Due to Covid – Bloomberg

The economic crisis and food system disruptions from the Covid-19 pandemic will worsen the lack of nutrition in women and children, with the potential to cost the world almost $30b in future productivity losses.

16. Jury Awards $125M After Walmart Fires Woman with Down Syndrome – New York Times

Walmart said the verdict would be reduced to $300k, which is the maximum amount allowed under federal law for compensatory and punitive damages.

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The post $3.2T: The True Cost of U.S. Food System, Is Oatly Overvalued? + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: Misfits Market

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Online grocers and restaurant tech companies are still riding on the successes they gained from the pandemic. Misfits Market has doubled its value to $2 billion in 5 months, raising a whopping $225 million. Toast is seeking a $16 billion valuation at its IPO, up from the $5 billion valuation it earned before the pandemic.

In the alt protein space, Eat Just has just closed a $97 million round to construct its massive bioreactors and scale production. Beyond Meat has partnered with PepsiCo to launch plant-based products in 2022. The alt seafood sector has attracted more funding within the first 6 months of 2021 than over the entire year in 2020.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Misfits Market Nearly Doubles Value to $2B in Five Months – Bloomberg

The startup has raised $225m to add five more states to its distribution as well as prepare for its expansion into dairy, frozen and prepared foods. Unlike other online grocers, the company focuses on suburban and rural markets.

2. Eat Just Raises $97M More to Fund Cultured Meat Production – Bloomberg

Eat Just will use the investment to make the massive bioreactors it needs to scale up output.

3. Alternative Seafood Sector Raised Record $116M in First Half of 2021 – Green Queen

The alt seafood industry has attracted more funding within the first 6 months of 2021 than over the entire year in 2020.

4. PepsiCo Targets Early 2022 to Roll Out Products from Joint Venture with Beyond Meat – CNBC

The partnership gives Beyond a a chance to leverage Pepsi’s production and marketing expertise for new products, while Pepsi can deepen its investment in plant-based categories.

5. Global Food Giants Pour $80M Into Lever VC Alternative Protein Fund – Green Queen

The fund is dedicated to investing in food techs using novel plant-based, cell-based and fermentation technologies to develop sustainable alternatives to animal protein, and currently boasts a portfolio of 19 companies.

6. Amsterdam: Gates Foundation Leads $707M Investment in Dutch E-Grocer Picnic – AFN

Picnic has become a household name in its native Netherlands. It claims it’s able to keep prices on par with brick-and-mortar supermarkets thanks to the efficiencies gained through its vertically integrated ‘own the supply chain’ model.

7. GrubMarket Gobbles Up $120M at a $1B+ Pre-Money Valuation to Take on the Food Supply Chain – TechCrunch

The company is now at a $1b annualized run-rate, having grown revenues 300% over last year. It will now be looking into growing its territory and tech, moving ahead in a market that is largely absent from competitors.

8. Toast Seeks $16B Valuation at IPO After Restaurant Tech Company Helped Eateries Survive Pandemic – CNBC

Toast raised funding at a $5b valuation just before the pandemic and then cut about 50% of its staff as shutdowns forced restaurants to close their doors. Business bounced back quickly as restaurants leaned on tech to survive the crisis.

9. The Largest Meal Kit Company in America Could Be the First to Unionize – Eater

Workers at two HelloFresh factories in California and Colorado are organizing with UNITE HERE, a labor union representing workers in the hotel, food service, manufacturing and other industries.

10. Israel: MeaTech Is Now Churning Out 100% Pure Cultured Chicken Fat – Green Queen

MeaTech has revealed it is now producing 700 grams of cell-based chicken fat biomass in one single production run.

11. Coffee Cells Produced in a Bioreactor Through Cellular Agriculture – Phys

VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has successfully produced coffee cells in a bioreactor through cellular agriculture.

12. California’s Farms Face a Reckoning – New York Times

Trimming back on farming in California could be done without serious harm to the state’s economy. While irrigated agriculture used 51% of the state’s water in the drought year of 2015, farms make up just 0.8% of California’s economy.

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The post Misfits Market $2B+ Valuation, Cultured Chicken Fat, Coffee & Mozzarella + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: Ellen Macarthur Foundation

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

The alternative protein space continued to heat up with this week’s headlines. Impossible Foods is set to launch its plant-based pork product in the US, Hong Kong and Singapore restaurants this Thursday. Cultured meat firms Mosa Meat and Aleph Farms received funding from environmental activist Leonardo DiCaprio. Dutch scientists have made cell-based caviar a reality.

Last but not least, the Ellen Macarthur Foundation has released a study explaining how food brands and supermarkets can make nature-positive food in a circular economy the norm.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Impossible Foods to Launch Meatless Pork in US, Hong Kong and Singapore – CNBC

The ground pork product will first be available in restaurants in the US, Hong Kong and Singapore, with further plans for retail expansion in those markets in the coming months.

2. The Big Food Redesign – Ellen Macarthur Foundation

Food brands and supermarkets have the power to make nature-positive food the norm. The Foundation’s latest study, The big food redesign: Regenerating nature with the circular economy, explains how.

3. Ripple Foods Catches a $60M Funding Wave for New Dairy-Free Products, Global Expansion – Green Queen

Funding will allow Ripple to increase its offerings—vegan cheese and soft serve are in the works—as well as speed expansion plans. It’s currently sold in the US and Canada, but plans are to take it global.

4. Leonardo DiCaprio Invests in Cultivated Meat Firms Mosa Meat and Aleph Farms – Food Navigator

The scale of DiCaprio’s investment was not disclosed. The actor will also serve as an advisor to both companies.

5. Imperfect Foods’ CEO Is Out As the Company Sheds Half Its C-Suite and Faces Rounds of Layoffs – Business Insider

Imperfect Foods’ grocery sales skyrocketed during the pandemic. Now CEO Philip Behn has left as the company lays employees off.

6. Netherlands: Dutch Scientists Are Making Cell-Based Caviar A Reality – Green Queen

Researchers are developing what they will call Magiccaviar, a cell-cultured fish roe product made from in vitro grown oocytes.

7. Sunday Raises $100M for Its Fast Restaurant Checkout Flow – TechCrunch

The startup has developed a checkout system for physical restaurants using QR codes.

8. Robot-Powered Indoor Farming Startup Iron Ox Raises $53M, Gears Up to Open 535K-Sq-Ft Facility in Texas Later This Year – Food Navigator

The company worked on drone delivery at Google before exploring robot-powered greenhouses. Its new facility will become operational later this year.

9. Israel: Autonomous Farming Startup Blue White Robotics Raises $37M Series B Funding – AFN

Blue White Robotics’ platform combines robotic tractors with management software so that one human can control a fleet of autonomous vehicles to fulfill a number of different farming tasks.

10. HumanCo Gets $35M and Buys Gluten-Free Pizza Maker Against the Grain – Food Dive

The better-for-you holding company’s latest funding round is full of notable investors ranging from Indra Nooyi to Cindy Crawford.

11. UK: London’s Jiffy Scoops $28M for Speedy Grocery Delivery – TechCrunch

The grocery delivery startup operates a network of its own dark stores to do fulfillment, enabling it to offer groceries in 15 minutes. It currently has eight London stores–now with the funds to expand.

12. ‘Crowdfarming’ Platform Steward Raises $8.8M in Series A Round – AFN

The startup partners with sustainable farming enterprises and other food producers to help them access working capital for their businesses.

13. How Aqua Cultured Foods Plans to Own the Whole Cut Seafood Analog Space – Food Dive

The startup uses a combination of fermentation techniques to make products that have a look, texture and nutritional profile similar to those from animals.

14. White Striping Disease Hits 99% of US Supermarket Chicken – Bloomberg

The illness is driven by the extreme conditions of factory farming. Chickens with white striping have fat content that is 224% higher than those without the affliction, decreasing the meat’s protein content by 9%.

15. New York Passes Sweeping Bills to Improve Conditions for Delivery Workers – New York Times

A package of legislation from the City Council set minimum pay and working conditions, placing New York at the forefront of regulating a multibillion-dollar industry.

16. Asia’s Food Spending Is Set to Double to More Than $8T by 2030 – CNBC

Food spending in the region will hit more than $8 trillion by the start of the next decade–up from $4t in 2019–becoming the world’s largest food and beverage market.

Our newsletter is the absolute easiest way to stay on top of the emerging sector, so sign up for it today and never miss the latest food tech and innovation news and trends, Already signed up? Share the love with your friends and colleagues!

The post Leonardo Dicaprio Invests in Cultured Meat, Big Food Redesign, Cultured Caviar + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: The Urgent Company

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Startups developing innovative food and ingredients, including alt-proteins, raised a total of $1.4 billion in the first half of this year. Animal-free dairy company Perfect Day raised $350 million to fuel its ingredient and product development as well as launch its dairy-free cream cheese under the brand Modern Kitchen.

Last but not least, Melibio has launched the world’s first bee-free honey.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Alt-Protein, Functional Foods Raise Record $1.4B in H1 2021 – AFN

Innovative Food includes cell-cultured meat, plant-based analogs, fermented and fungi-based proteins, functional foods and other novel ingredients.

2. Perfect Day Raises $350M and Announces Animal-Free Cream Cheese – Food Dive

Some of the funds will go towards The Urgent Company, which announced a new brand of animal-free dairy staples: Modern Kitchen.

3. Europe: Five Seasons Venture Pulls in €180M Fund to Tackle Human Health and Climate via Food Tech – TechCrunch

The fund will make Series A and B investments into European food tech companies, with an emphasis on fast-growing consumer-facing food with a quantifiable environmental or social impact.

4. Meat Startup Focused on Cutting Food Waste Plots Grocery Debut – Bloomberg

Do Good Foods, a meat producer that uses recycled food waste to make supplemental animal feed, is poised to roll out its first product after securing a $169m investment from asset-management giant Nuveen.

5. The Big Food Redesign – Ellen Macarthur Foundation

The new report details how food brands and supermarkets can make nature-positive food the norm. Alpha Food Labs, Food+Tech Connect’s sister company, is thrilled to have worked with Ellen Macarthur Foundation to design the concept products for the report. Check them out!

6. We Tasted the World’s First Real Honey Made Without Bees From MeliBio and We Couldn’t Taste the Difference – Green Queen

MeliBio has just unveiled its flagship product, the world’s first-ever real honey made without bees. It is now ready to take orders from foodservice businesses and ship out its bee-free honey by the end of the year.

7. Restaurants’ Fragile Recovery is Fizzling in the US – Bloomberg

Customers are back but the rebound is threatened by soaring food prices and labor shortages. A survey found that 51% of small restaurants in the country couldn’t pay their rent in September.

8. Restaurants Have More Jobs Than Jobseekers Right Now: OpenTable and Indeed Want to Close the Gap – Fast Company

Amid Covid-19 and the great resignation, labor shortages in the service industry abound.

9. Eleven Madison Park Explores the Plant Kingdom’s Uncanny Valley – New York Times

Now vegan, Daniel Humm’s acclaimed restaurant does strange things to vegetables. Almost none of the main ingredients taste quite like themselves in the 10-course, $335 menu.

10. US Farm Belt Revival Prompts Mad Dash for ‘Dirt and Iron’ – Wall Street Journal

As crop prices climb, American farmers are unleashing spending and investment that had been subdued for years—leading to escalating farmland and equipment prices that could leave them exposed in years ahead.

11. Did the First UN Food Systems Summit Give Corporations Too Much of a Voice? – Civil Eats

Critics say many of the solutions championed at the global gathering of food systems leaders were shaped by the same conglomerates behind the problems.

Our newsletter is the absolute easiest way to stay on top of the emerging sector, so sign up for it today and never miss the latest food tech and innovation news and trends, Already signed up? Share the love with your friends and colleagues!

The post Perfect Day Raises $350M, Bee-Free Honey + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: Beef + Lamb New Zealand

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Alpha Food Labs, our sister company, was commissioned by Beef + Lamb New Zealand and New Zealand Winegrowers to understand the current state and future market potential of regeneratively produced food and wine within the United States, Germany and the UK. The research reveals consumers may be willing to pay more for regeneratively-produced food, especially if science can show it tastes better, is better for people’s health and better for the environment.

Nestle has launched a vegan shrimp and egg product to some European markets in an effort to meet the growing demand of plant-based proteins. Meanwhile, supply chain strains and climate change have caused pea protein prices to soar 120% in Canada and North American oat harvests to shrink supplies.

Last but not least, Kellogg’s workers on strike in four states are pushing back on two-tiered wage systems and pension and benefits cuts. Errol Schweizer interviews union leaders Kevin Bradshaw and Dan Osborn for more insight into their calls for action.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Regenerative Agriculture Market Scan & Consumer Insights Report

2. Why Are Kellogg’s Workers on Strike? – Forbes

Kellogg’s workers on strike in four states are pushing back on two-tiered wage systems and pension and benefits cuts.

3. Denmark’s 1.25B Kroner Plan to Fight Climate Change with Food – Livekindly

Denmark’s newest climate plan includes the largest investment in plant-based research and development in the EU to date.

4. Amazon Is Working on a Smart Refrigerator That Can Monitor Your Buying Patterns and Suggest New Products or Recipes – Business Insider

An Amazon smart fridge would represent the company’s continued expansion into consumers’ homes with its own hardware.

5. Tiny North American Oat Crop Could Be Coming for Your Breakfast – Bloomberg

The smallest harvest ever in the US is expected to shrink supplies needed for everything from Cheerios to oat milk.

6. Europe: Plant-Based Egg and Shrimp on Nestle’s Menu As It Taps into Vegan Growth – Reuters

The egg substitute, Garden Gourmet VEGGie, and vegan shrimp, Vrimp, follows the launch of its tuna substitute last year. The products will initially have a limited launch in some European markets.

7. Methane from Agriculture Is a Big Problem. We Explain Why. – Civil Eats

Agriculture and waste are the largest sources of the greenhouse gas, which scientists say is one key to limiting catastrophic warming fast.

8. Europe: Atlantic Labs Spins-Out FoodLabs, a €100M Food Tech Fund Addressing Climate and Health – TechCrunch

FoodLabs will focus on intellectual property and scalable digital business models toward a more efficient and sustainable food industry from earth to earth, from agriculture, production, distribution, human health to zero waste.

9. Meat Prices Soar, But Pea Protein Costs Are Rising Too Amid Vegan Meat Demand Surge – Green Queen

Pea protein prices have increased 120% year-on-year in Canada, the world’s biggest pea protein producer. The country has struggled to keep up with demand in the midst of drought.

10. Spain: Eatable Adventures Spearheads €50M Fund for Food and Agriculture Tech Startups – Food Ingredients First

The financing vehicle is targeting early and growth-stage startups in agri-food tech across Europe and Latin America.

11. Hormel Partners with the Better Meat Co to Develop Meat Analog Products – Food Dive

The two companies will work together to create new products using Better Meat’s Rhiza mycelium-based meat analog.

12. Ashton Kutcher and Guy Oseary Partner with MeaTech to Scale Cultured Meat Production Tech – Food Ingredients First

Kutcher and Oseary are leading a collective to accelerate MeaTech’s growth in developing and commercializing the company’s proprietary cultured meat production technologies.

13. Denmark’s 1.25B Kroner Plan to Fight Climate Change with Food – Livekindly

Denmark’s newest climate plan includes the largest investment in plant-based research and development in the EU to date.

14. Clara Foods Becomes the Every Company and Launches Animal-Free Egg White Protein – Food Dive

ClearEgg, an odorless, tasteless and soluble substance naturally found in small quantities, is now available to amp up the nutrition in beverages and other products.

15. France Bans Plastic Packaging for Fruit and Vegetables – Reuters

It estimated that 37% of fruit and vegetables are sold with packaging and expects that the measure will prevent more than one billion useless plastic packaging items per year.

16. Walmart Heir Lukas Walton Is Launching a Platform to Reshape the Food System – Fast Company

Walton has been quietly and anonymously funding the future of food and agriculture companies for years, now he’s putting a face to the dollars.

17. Burger King Becomes the First Fast Food Chain to Test Impossible Foods’ Meatless Nuggets – CNBC

Burger King will test Impossible Foods’ meatless nuggets in several markets starting Monday, making it the first fast-food chain to offer the company’s new chicken alternative.

18. Newly Launched Do Good Foods Raises $169M to Turn Food Waste into Animal Feed – Grocery Dive

The company plans to begin selling early next year chicken fed with a diet that includes upcycled food collected from grocery stores.

Our newsletter is the absolute easiest way to stay on top of the emerging sector, so sign up for it today and never miss the latest food tech and innovation news and trends, Already signed up? Share the love with your friends and colleagues!

The post Regen Ag Consumer Insights, Denmark’s Plan to Fight Climate Change with Food, Amazon’s Smart Fridge + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: Forbes

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

The instant grocery delivery space continues to heats up with news of Berlin-based Gorillas’ nearly $1 billion raise led by Delivery Hero. AeroFarms was set to go public after merging with Spring Valley in a SPAC deal that would have valued the company at $1.2 billion, but investors seemed to second guess its potential. Several companies announced substantial investments that will fuel their expansion plans, including plant-based meal service Allplants, frozen coffee startup Cometeer, specialty mushroom supplier Smallhold, QSR chain Blank Street Coffee and cultured breastmilk producer Biomilq.

For over six weeks, 420 workers at the parent company of Deep Eddy Vodka, Elijah Craig, and Evan Williams Bourbon have been on strike over healthcare cost hikes, schedule changes and overtime cuts. The food industry is at risk of another ransomware attack – BlackMatter ransom demands have ranged from $80k to $15m in cryptocurrency.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Regenerative Agriculture Market Scan & Consumer Insights Report

2. Germany: Gorillas Grabs ‘Close to’ $1B, Series C Values the On-Demand Grocery Delivery Biz at $2.1B – TechCrunch

Since its founding in June 2020, Gorillas has scaled to operate more than 180 warehouses across its nine international markets.

3. AeroFarms Calls Off SPAC Deal After Funding Dries Up – Food Dive

The vertical farming company was set to go public after merging with Spring Valley in a deal that would have valued the entity at $1.2b, but investors appeared to second-guess its potential.

4. CISA, NSA, FBI Say BlackMatter Ransomware Group Is Targeting the US Food Industry – TechCrunch

An Iowa-based farm service provider and Minnesota-based farm supply and grain marketing cooperative were both hit with ransomware attacks within the past month. BlackMatter ransom demands have ranged from $80k to $15m in cryptocurrency.

5. Why Are Heaven Hill Distillery Workers on Strike? – Forbes

For over six weeks, 420 workers at the parent company of Deep Eddy Vodka, Elijah Craig, and Evan Williams Bourbon have been on strike over healthcare cost hikes, schedule changes and overtime cuts.

6. Eat Just Gets European Safety Approval for Key Ingredient in JUST Egg, Plans European Launch – Green Queen

The milestone sets the groundwork for an initial launch of the vegan JUST Egg in Europe after safety review approval.

7. UK: Allplants Scoops $52M to Deliver More Plant-Based Microwave Meals – TechCrunch

Alplants credits its growth to a rapidly growing flexitarian consumer market — which it says is now worth £10b in the UK alone.

8. Frozen Coffee Startup Cometeer Raises $35M in Latest Funding Round – Food Dive

The coffee market has seen a variety of innovations in recent years, but Cometeer’s use of frozen capsules and its promise of sustainability from its sourcing and packaging could help it stand out as it hopes to expand on a wider scale.

9. Mushroom Boom Leads Brooklyn Grower to Plant Its Organic Farms in the West – Forbes

A $25m series A will help specialty mushroom producer Smallhold go beyond New York and Texas to build a farm in California. Since January, the company has increased production by more than 500%.

10. Blank Street Coffee’s $25M Raise Shows What Big Institutions Want From Food Service: Quality and Convenience – Forbes

The chain currently operates 15 tech-enabled locations throughout New York City, with a goal of expanding to 100 by the end of 2022.

11. Bill Gates Backs Lab-Grown Breastmilk Startup Biomilq Again in $21M Series A – Green Queen

The round will help Biomilq accelerate its plan to launch cell-cultured human breastmilk and disrupt the multibillion dollar infant milk formula industry within the next four years.

12. Instacart Acquires Caper AI, a Smart Cart and Instant Checkout Startup, for $350M, As It Moves Deeper into Physical Retail Tech – TechCrunch

Instacart is paying around $350m for the startup, as part of its expanding B2B2C retail tech strategy. It follows just weeks after the company acquired FoodStorm.

13. Vita Coco Cracks Open a Lukewarm IPO on the Nasdaq – Fast Company

The coconut water maker is battling a deepening field of healthy beverage competitors.

14. Portillo’s Stock Hits the Nasdaq in the Latest High-Profile Restaurant IPO – Fast Company

The fast casual restaurant chain headquartered in Chicago has its sights on Wall Street today. Here’s what to know.

15. McDonald’s Beyond Meat Test Could Be a Game Changer for the Plant-Based Category – Forbes

The test will take place in eight restaurants across the US beginning November 3. The fast food chain has gained a significant amount of momentum with younger customers in the past year thanks to its “famous orders” promotion.

Our newsletter is the absolute easiest way to stay on top of the emerging sector, so sign up for it today and never miss the latest food tech and innovation news and trends, Already signed up? Share the love with your friends and colleagues!

The post The Cost of Poor Pay and Working Conditions, Ransomware Attacks Target US Food Industry + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

This is a sponsored post from Food Foundry.

Food Foundry is recruiting for its fourth cohort, and it’s thrilled to announce a new focus area: food & beverage startups headed towards foodservice.

Food Foundry is a Chicago-based accelerator program by Relish Works built in partnership with Gordon Food Service and 1871. Food Foundry Cohort 4 will support, connect, and propel innovative food & beverage startups that are headed towards foodservice, and are creating products that are good for people and the planet. Our mission is to bring innovative purpose-driven products to tables across North America.

Pre-seed – Pre-Series A-stage startups are encouraged to apply. Areas of interest include but are not limited to: alternative proteins (and ingredients), vegan dairy, raw ingredients, spices… if your products have the potential to grow into foodservice, Food Foundry wants to hear from you.

Applications are due October 31, 2021, and the program begins January 24, 2022.

Chosen Startups Will Receive:

$75K in venture capital funding
4 Weeks of programming over the course of 4 months dedicated to workshops and mentorship connections customized to help startups reach their goals.
Expert advice from category and product teams at Gordon Food Service
Connection to Relish Works and Gordon Food Service partner companies for additional opportunities
1:1 Mentorship with our venture capital team to help you set and reach your milestones.
Access to Chicago’s 1871 network including over 300 mentors, and 350 fellow startups.
Enrollment in 1871’s PYROS programming.
Participation and opportunities within its alumni network

Applications are due Sunday, October 31st. Apply today!

The post Food Foundry Accelerator Applications Close Sunday, Apply Today! [Sponsored] appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: Impossible Foods

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Sweetgreen announced that it plans to go public by year-end. Despite repeatedly telling reporters it was profitable, the IPO filing reveals that the company lost $142 million on revenue of $220m in 2020 – double the $67m it reported for 2019.

In other news, Impossible Foods is raising a $500 million round, aiming for a whopping $7 billion valuation. Better-for-you ice cream Nick’s has raised $100 million, while plant-based chicken brand Daring Foods has raised $65 million.

Last but not least, a new house report has revealed that coronavirus infections at meatpacking plants were three times as worse as previously believed. An estimated 59,000 workers were infected, and 250 died.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Regenerative Agriculture Market Scan & Consumer Insights Report

2. The Food IPO Boom Is Already Looking a Bit Spoiled. Is Sweetgreen Next? – Forbes

Sweetgreen plans to go public by year-end, and there is little to suggest it will outperform. Last year, it lost $142m on revenue of $220m in 2020 – double the $67m it reported for 2019.

3. Impossible Foods Eyes $7B Valuation in Fundraising – Bloomberg

The company is in talks to raise about $500m following its expansion into grocery stores including Walmart, Kroger, Albertsons and Trader Joe’s, as well as restaurants such as Jack in the Box and Burger King.

4. Sweden: Nick’s Closes $100M Funding Round – Food Dive

The Swedish company known for its better-for-you ice cream and snack bars plans to accelerate its US expansion and invest in more R&D.

5. Daring Foods’ Latest Funding Round Brings Its 12-Month Total to $120M for Vegan Chicken Expansion – Green Queen

The funding comes as the brand announced placement in 3k Walmart locations across the US. The brand’s product uses five ingredients compared to competing vegan chicken products on the market.

6. Food Companies Could See $3B in Monthly Sales Vanish, As Low-Income Households Get Squeezed – CNBC

Shoppers who are part of the SNAP program are feeling new pressure to stretch their dollars because of rising food prices and dwindling bank accounts.

7. Covid Cases and Deaths Grossly Underestimated Among Meatpackers – Washington Post

The coronavirus infected 59k workers at the country’s top meatpacking companies and killed more than 250 – three times as many cases as previously believed.

8. $8T Nature-Based Solutions Market Rises Up the Global Agenda with Launch of Policy and Investment Tracker – Forbes

Nature4Climate and Metabolic have launched the world’s largest nature policy tracker ahead of COP26, in order help governments and investors target billions of dollars towards natural climate solutions.

9. Kurly, the Korean Online Grocery Startup, Plans June IPO at Estimated $5.9B Valuation – TechCrunch

The company, which will continue to focus on its business in the home market, does not have an overseas expansion plan.

10. Some Fast Food Items Contain Plastics Linked to Serious Health Problems – Washington Post

Chemicals used to make things like rubber gloves, industrial tubing or food conveyor belts find their way into fast food menu items.

11. Farmer Marketplace DeHaat Scores $115M in India’s Biggest-Ever Agtech Round – AFN

DeHaat provides 650k smallholders with a variety of agribusiness-related services, and employs 3k rural micro-entrepreneurs to handle logistics.

12. UAE Indoor Farmer Pure Harvest Nets $65M to Fund Asia Expansion – AFN

Pure Harvest will add over 100 crops to its portfolio, as well as new CEA technologies, through its collaboration with PlanTFarm.

Our newsletter is the absolute easiest way to stay on top of the emerging sector, so sign up for it today and never miss the latest food tech and innovation news and trends, Already signed up? Share the love with your friends and colleagues!

The post Sweetgreen’s IPO, Impossible Aims for $7B Valuation + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: Upside Foods

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

The world’s largest cultivated meat facility is now a reality, thanks to Upside Foods, formerly known as Memphis Meats. The 53,000-square-foot facility is capable of producing up to 400,000 pounds of meat annually. In other news, the New York Times’ dubbed “Starbucks of the Right,” Black Rifle Coffee is going public through a $1.7 billion SPAC deal.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Regenerative Agriculture Market Scan & Consumer Insights Report

2. Cell-Cultured Meat in the Spotlight As Upside Foods Opens ‘Most Advanced Cultivated Meat Production Facility in the World’ – Food Navigator

The 53k-sq-ft facility and innovation center can produce 50k pounds of finished product a year, with a future capacity of over 400k pounds – a significant milestone for an industry that didn’t exist six years ago.

3. Veteran-Focused Black Rifle Coffee Going Public Through $1.7B SPAC Deal – Wall Street Journal

Known for its pricier coffee and firearms-themed products such as its AK-47 Espresso Blend, Black Rifle is combining with the SPAC SilverBox Engaged Merger Corp I.

4. Brazil’s Future Farm Rakes in $48M to Sell More Plant-Based Meat and Dairy – TechCrunch

In addition to expanding into more retail outlets in the US and Europe, the company plans to add plant-based milks and dairy to its range.

5. Kellogg Is Importing Cereal Into US During Strike – Bloomberg

The company is bringing in cereal from Mexico, Canada, the UK and even as far away as Australia to help supply the US market as workers at its four cereal plants in the country strike.

6. Autonomous Delivery Startup Nuro Lands Investment from Google, Tiger Global in New $600M Round – TechCrunch

The funding has pushed Nuro’s valuation to about $8.6b. New capital will go towards funding its third gen vehicle.

7. Kenya’s Twiga Raises $50M to Scale Food Solutions Across Africa – TechCrunch

The company uses technology to connect FMCGs, manufacturers and smallholder farmers with retails in Kenya. Funding will allow it too scale its efforts in the Eastern African nation and other neighboring countries.

8. UK: IGS Banks $58M to Cement Its Place As the John Deere of Vertical Farming – AFN

IGS designs and builds vertical farms for third-party operators, and provides them with the technology to get their farms up and running. It claims that its technology is used by customers across four continents.

Our newsletter is the absolute easiest way to stay on top of the emerging sector, so sign up for it today and never miss the latest food tech and innovation news and trends, Already signed up? Share the love with your friends and colleagues!

The post Black Rifle Coffee Is Going Public, Upside Foods’ Cultivated Meat Facility + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: Michigan Technological University

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Two US-based researchers have created a bio-based process that turns plastic waste into edible protein powder, bringing together the worlds of microorganism-based plastic recycling and food industry precision fermentation. Daily Harvest has raised $77 million, reaching unicorn status with a $1.1 billion valuation.

Last but not least, a crisis is unfolding for American farm exports. Backlogs and cancellations are hitting growers as costs rise, profits slump and overseas customers shop elsewhere.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Regenerative Agriculture Market Scan & Consumer Insights Report

2. Startup Daily Harvest Reaches Unicorn Status with $1.1B Valuation – Bloomberg

The company will put a portion of its $77m funding round into new distribution channels and its first brick-and-mortar location in Chicago.

3. Ireland: Nuritas Raises $45M to Scale Its Plant-Based Peptides Discovery Platform – AFN

Nuritas will use the funds to scale up its platform, which aims to unlock additional health benefits for food and beverage products.

4. Researchers Use Bacteria to Transform Plastic Into Edible Protein – The Spoon

Lu and Techtmann’s process brings together the worlds of microorganism-based plastic recycling and precision fermentation. The question is how the protein powder compares to the products on the shelf today.

5. Crunch at Ports May Mean Crisis for American Farms – New York Times

Backlogs and cancellations are hitting growers as costs rise, profits slump and overseas customers shop elsewhere.

6. Chinese VC Bits x Bites Hits $100M Final Close with Capital from Syngenta, Wilbur-Ellis – AFN

The fund will mainly target Chinese startups from seed to Series B stage with ticket sizes of between $1m and $3m.

7. New Emails Shed Light on Meat Company CEO’s Pandemic Lobbying – The Counter

The leaders of pork company Smithfield Foods and chicken producer Perdue Farms were in regular contact with government officials as the coronavirus began sweeping through their plants.

8. The Naked Market Flashes Some New Capital to Create Better-for-You Food Brands – TechCrunch

The startup has raised $27.5m to scale its existing brands, create new products and pursue M&A opportunities. It uses data and a “fast fail” method to bring products from idea to market in three months.

9. Vietnam’s Tiki Raises $258M in AIA-Led Round After E-Grocery Business Grows 2000% – AFN

Tiki — which is reportedly exploring an IPO in the US in 2022 or 2023 — said it recently reached 20 million registered users on its platform.

10. After 90K Restaurants Closed During the Pandemic, One Investment Fund Is Doubling Down on the Industry – Fortune

Mercado Partners’ Savory Fund raised two $100m funds that aggressively invested in seven new restaurant brands and opened 55 new restaurants.

Our newsletter is the absolute easiest way to stay on top of the emerging sector, so sign up for it today and never miss the latest food tech and innovation news and trends, Already signed up? Share the love with your friends and colleagues!

The post Protein Made From Plastic, Supply Chain Disruptions Spell Crisis for American Farms + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: Jokr

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Despite an industry-wide slowdown in plant-based sales, Impossible Foods continues to grow and has global expansion in its sights. The company just closed a $500 million round, bringing its lifetime funding to more than $2 billion.

Delivery giants are hopping on the instant grocery trend. DoorDash plans to hire full-time couriers in hopes of eventually offering the service to retailers; Swiggy plans to invest $700 million in instant grocery; and Jokr just raised $260 million to fuel its ongoing expansion.

Last but not least, farmland has piqued the interest of corporate buyers as a means to generate carbon credits and offset their greenhouse gas emissions.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Manifesto for Regenerative Agriculture Adopted at Climate Farming Congress – Arc

Over 70 regenerative agriculture practitioners from over 16 European countries gathered to create a manifesto for unifying the voice of regenerative agriculture in Europe.

2. Regenerative Agriculture Market Scan & Consumer Insights Report

3. The Latest Farm Product: Carbon Credits – New York Times

Global cropland has the potential to sequester as much as 570m metric tons of carbon per year. New projects that pay farmers to adopt climate-friendly practices could help.

4. Instant Delivery Firm Jokr Raises $260M, Launches Service in Boston – Grocery Dive

The startup is now valued at $1.2b as investors continue to pour money into the nascent industry.

5. DoorDash Is Piling onto the 15-Minute Grocery Delivery Trend – Fast Company

Competing with the likes of Buyk, Jokr and GoPuff, the company has opened a ghost store in New York and will use real employees to operate it.

6. Food Delivery and Ride Hailing Apps Will Have to Shell Out Billions Under an EU Plan – Time

As many as 4.1m people working through food delivery and ride-hailing apps could be reclassified as employees under a forthcoming EU plan. The bill could cost the sector up to $5.1b more a year. Deliveroo, Just Eat and Delivery Hero shares plunged in the wake of the news.

7. New Active ETF ‘YUMY’ Will Target the Future of Food – Bloomberg

The VanEck Future of Food ETF will be the firm’s first to employ bottom-up, fundamental research and will focus on companies engaged in agricultural and food technology and innovation. VanEck is launching the actively-managed exchange-traded fund under the ticker “YUMY” on Thursday.

8. Amazon Warehouse Workers in Amazon Will Get Another Chance to Vote to Unionize – CNBC

The union argued Amazon illegally interfered in the election, kicking off a protracted legal battle, which resulted in the NLRB ruling in the RWDSU’s favor.

9. Could Kellogg’s Tentative Deal with Union Become a Measuring Stick for Future Labor Negotiations? – Food Navigator

Kellogg offered protesting union workers at four of its US cereal facilities higher wages, enhanced benefits and a path forward for transitional employees.

10. Amazon Warehouse Workers in Amazon Will Get Another Chance to Vote to Unionize – CNBC

The union argued Amazon illegally interfered in the election, kicking off a protracted legal battle, which resulted in the NLRB ruling in the RWDSU’s favor.

11. Singapore: Food Delivery App Grab Raises $4.5B Following Record-Breaking SPAC Deal – AFN

Grab CEO Anthony Tan said that mapping technology would be the number one area of internal investment for Grab as it deploys the proceeds from its listing over the next few years.

12. Swiggy to Invest $700M in Instant Grocery Delivery Service – TechCrunch

The startup is hoping to make its deliveries in 15 minutes by January 2022 by setting up the network of dark stores close to the majority of its customers.

13. Boxed Moves into On-Demand, Fresh Grocery Delivery with Acquisition – Grocery Dive

By acquiring New York’s MaxDelivery, the online retailer said it will be able to scale same-day, dark-store-powered service to additional markets in the months ahead.

14. US House Reps Introduce Bill to Regulate CBD in Food and Beverage – BevNet

Members of the US House of Representatives have introduced a new bipartisan bill aimed at establishing federal standards for CBD food and beverage.

Our newsletter is the absolute easiest way to stay on top of the emerging sector, so sign up for it today and never miss the latest food tech and innovation news and trends, Already signed up? Share the love with your friends and colleagues!

The post Farming For Carbon Credits, On-Demand Grocery Heats Up + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Source: The EVERY Co.

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Major breakthroughs were made in the plant-based and cultivated meat and dairy sector this week. Upside Foods and CellMEAT both announced the development of animal-free scaffolding for cultivated meat production. Gelatex has developed a scaffolding that is said to be 90% more cost effective. Fooditive has developed vegan casein for alternative dairy products, and Yemoja has developed a plant-based substitute for heme from red microalgae. Meanwhile, the EVERY Co. has raised $175 million for its animal-free protein products, and Perfect Day is acquiring Coolhaus for an undisclosed sum.

Last but not least, Starbucks workers in Buffalo have successfully voted to unionize – a symbolic win in labor organizers across the country.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Manifesto for Regenerative Agriculture Adopted at Climate Farming Congress – Arc

Over 70 regenerative agriculture practitioners from over 16 European countries gathered to create a manifesto for unifying the voice of regenerative agriculture in Europe.

2. Regenerative Agriculture Market Scan & Consumer Insights Report

3. The EVERY Co Grabs $175M As It Cracks Code on Animal-Free Protein Products – TechCrunch

Formerly known as Clara Foods, the startup will be bringing its egg protein to market, commercialize further products in its pipeline and expand into new food applications for its technology.

4. Starbucks Workers at a Buffalo Store Unionize in a Big Symbolic Win for Labor. – New York Times

The coffee chain’s executives sought to persuade workers to reject the union in an election campaign that began in late August. Workers at a second store voted not to unionize and the result at a third outlet was not clear.

5. Coolhaus Ice Cream to Be Fully Animal-Free After Acquisition by Perfect Day’s CPG Subsidiary the Urgent Company – Forbes

Coolhaus has been acquired by The Urgent Company for an undisclosed sum, and will transition to become a fully animal-free brand over the next few months.

6. Upside Foods Develops Animals-Free Growth Medium for Cell-Based Meat – Food Dive

Without relying on pricey substances from animals, the company says it can create chicken that is at parity with some upscale traditional options.

7. South Korea’s CellMEAT Makes Fetal Bovine Serum-Free Cell Culture Media For 100% Ethical Cultivated Meat – Green Queen

The product will help drive down production costs and circumnavigate ethical concerns within the cultivated meat industry.

8. Estonia: Cost-Efficient Scaffolding Tech Developed for Cultivated Meat at Scale – Food Navigator

Gelatex claims its scaffolds are 90% cheaper than electrospun and hydrogel alternatives on the market. The company recently closed a €1.2m seed round.

9. Netherlands: Fooditive Announces First Vegan Casein That Can Replace Cow’s Milk Across All Dairy Applications – Green Queen

Suitable for all conventional dairy products, the product is scheduled for market debut in 2022.

10. Israel’s Yemoja Develops Red Microalgae to Make Meat-Free Burgers ‘Bleed’ – Green Queen

The marine ingredient startup will move from cosmetics into the plant-based sector to introduce Ounje, a plant-based substitute for heme.

11. Isreal: Aleph Farms Announces Groundbreaking Partnership to Scale Cultivated Meat – Green Queen

The move will see Wacker offering food-grade growth medium proteins to all Aleph’s cultivated meat operations.

12. The World’s Largest Kombucha Company Is Entering the Cannabis Space – Forbes

GT’s Living Foods is launching a cannabis-infused brew, Cannabliss, in California.

13. AI Agriculture Startups Take in Record Amount of VC Funding – Wall Street Journal

Venture-capital firms have put a record $1.54b into artificial-intelligence agricultural startups this year, as farmers turn to the technology to control pests, eradicate weeds and increase crop yields.

14. Jet.com’s Founder Launches Wonder, a Logistics-Driven Bet on the Future of Restaurants – The Spoon

The ghost kitchen-driven delivery brand is powered by high profile chef recipes and cook-en-route delivery vans. It is currently delivering food to four cities in New Jersey and plans to expand to New York and beyond in 2022.

Our newsletter is the absolute easiest way to stay on top of the emerging sector, so sign up for it today and never miss the latest food tech and innovation news and trends, Already signed up? Share the love with your friends and colleagues!

The post Animal-Free Growth Medium For Cultured Meat, Starbucks Workers Unionize + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Dear Community,

Happy New Year! We wish you a 2022 filled with health, joy, and success. Here’s to building a better, more equitable food system!

With Gratitude,

Danielle + Phoebe

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Trend forecasters and industry experts have spoken and the outlook for 2022 is projected to bring about everything from a new interest in mushrooms and snacking innovation to hyper localization and pricing strategies amid inflation.

In other news, the Biden administration is taking on meatpacking giants with a $1 billion plan to provide aid to independent processors and a portal to report unfair trade practices in the industry.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Manifesto for Regenerative Agriculture Adopted at Climate Farming Congress – Arc

Over 70 regenerative agriculture practitioners from over 16 European countries gathered to create a manifesto for unifying the voice of regenerative agriculture in Europe.

2. Regenerative Agriculture Market Scan & Consumer Insights Report

3. How Will Americans Eat in 2022? The Food Forecasters Speak. – New York Times

They see a new interest in mushrooms, a rethinking of chicken and coffee, a resurgence of 1980s cocktails — and a return to civility.

4. Plant-Based Trends 2022: Cleaning up the Label, Snacking Innovation, Egg Replacements and Alternative Proteins – Food Ingredients First

Experts from CP Kelco, ADM, Almond Board of California, Puratos, Kalsec and GNT discuss the plant-based trends shaping 2022.

5. Biden to Launch Plan to Fight Meatpacker Giants on Inflation – Bloomberg

The Biden administration will meet virtually with ranchers and farmers to hear complaints about consolidation and unfair trade practices in the industry. The White House will offer $1b in federal aid to assist expansion of independent processors.

6. Celebrating 10 Years with 10 Trends That Will Impact Grocery Retail in 2022 – Brick Meets Click

Digitization, hyper localization and pricing strategy amid inflation are among some trends and shifts that will be important to retailers and brands in 2022.

7. 2022 Innovation Outlook: Grocery Gets a Tech Upgrade – Progressive Grocer

Eight broad areas where innovation is occurring on multiple dimensions, from AI to supply chain.

8. From Fresh to Funky: A By-the-Numbers Look at the Food Listing Boom That Wasn’t – Forbes

During the biggest year for food industry public listings in a decade, deal after deal wilted on the trading floor. Heading into 2022, all bets are off on what gets served up next.

9. Recap of the Most Important Food and Beverage M&A Deals in 2021 – Forbes

M&A activity in the food and beverage space remained robust during 2021 amid surging Covid cases with emerging brands capitalizing on the traditional categories snapped up by large CPG and institutions in historic deal values.

10. The Top 20 Agrifoodtech Funding Deals of 2021 – AFN

The top three funding deals involved companies from China, India and the US – and were focused on grocery, food retail and logistics.

11. India: Grocery Startup Founded by Teens Doubles Value to $570M – Bloomberg

Zepto, founded by two 19-year-old Stanford dropouts, promises to deliver grocery and daily essentials in 10 minutes. It has raised $100m, taking its valuation to $570m within five months of starting services in India.

12. Israel: Cleantech Company Tipa Raises $70M for Compostable Flexible Packaging – CTech

The company’s packaging is able to emulate the properties of plastic in protecting food and other goods, but at its end-of-life the products decompose and return to nature through composting.

13. The USDA’s New Labeling for Genetically Modified Foods Goes into Effect January 1. Here’s What You Need to Know. – Washington Post

The agency has done away with familiar terms like ‘GMOs’ and has built in loopholes for tiny producers, and foods made with meat and eggs.

14. The Collective Future of American Agriculture – The Fern

Pandemic-driven shortages gave fresh relevance to coops, hubs and other forms of collective agriculture. Now, with a trust-buster in the White House and a current of defiance coursing through the workforce, this patchwork has a shot at becoming a viable alternative to Big Ag.

Our newsletter is the absolute easiest way to stay on top of the emerging sector, so sign up for it today and never miss the latest food tech and innovation news and trends, Already signed up? Share the love with your friends and colleagues!

The post 2022 Food Innovation Trends, Biden Takes on Big Meat + More appeared first on Food+Tech Connect.

Image source: Remilk

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

In grocery news, Foxtrot has closed a $100 million funding round that will allow it to expand to 50 new locations and grow its private label lineup. Meanwhile, grocery workers across the US are again facing the dire consequences of working on the front lines amid another Covid outbreak. Over 8,000 Kroger workers are on strike, accusing the corporation of making big profits during pandemic while not paying employees enough.

In other news, Israeli startup Remilk has raised $120 million for its cow-free milk. Mycoprotein has raised $125 million to begin mass production of its vegan leather.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. Israeli Food Tech Startup Remilk Raises $120M Investment for Cow-Free Milk – The Times of Israel

The company produces milk proteins via a fermentation process that renders them “chemically identical” to those present in cow-produced milk and dairy products.

2. What 25 Leading FoodTech Investors Are Watching In 2022? – FoodHack

From side stream valorization to democratized nutrition, 25 foodtech VC’s, angels and corporates on what they’re excited by in 2022.

3. Flush with New Capital, Foxtrot’s ‘Convenience Store of the Future’ Is Coming to a Location Near You – TechCrunch

The company just picked up $100m to expand its footprint to 50 new retail locations in the next two years. It also expects 200 new private label products to be launched over the next year.

4. We Have People Living Out of Their Cars’: 8K Kroger Workers Strike Over Wages – The Guardian

Workers at nearly 80 grocery stores accuse the corporation of making big profits during pandemic while not paying employees enough.

5. Starfield Scoops $100M in China’s Biggest Ever Vegan Protein Funding Round – Green Queen

To boost production, a new large-scale manufacturing plant is being constructed to produce hundreds of vegan meat variations and bring everything in-house. The company currently supplies 14k outlets.

6. Grocery Stores Cut Hours, Services as Omicron Infects Workers – Wall Street Journal

Across the country, supermarket employees are calling out sick after contracting Covid-19 or getting exposed to the virus, prompting retailers to manage operations with fewer staffers, while shopper demand for groceries remains high.

7. A Quandary for New York Restaurants and Workers: What to Do About Omicron? – New York Times

Without hard rules about employees who test positive, owners and workers are weighing safety against finances, and not always agreeing on the answer.

8. Omicron Is Threatening the Survival of US Restaurants – Bloomberg

US restaurants stayed afloat during the pandemic thanks to outdoor heaters, elaborate patio spaces, and to-go drinks. But the creative workarounds weren’t enough to stem the losses from the recent omicron-fueled surge of Covid cases.

9. MycoWorks, Making Leather from Fungi, Closes $125M to Scale Production – TechCrunch

Funding will help the company move beyond major global luxury brands and into mass scale production. The company touts its Fine Mycelium process as the only mycelium engineered to be made-to-order and made-to-specification.

10. Ireland: Online Ordering Company Flipdish Raises $100M – Restaurant Business

The company offers branded mobile apps and websites, QR code ordering and payment, and marketing tools. It works with thousands of restaurants in 25 countries including the US.

11. US Online Grocery Sales Hit Nearly $100B in 2021 Becoming a ‘Pickup-Dominant Market’ – Food Navigator

Total US online grocery sales for 2021 reached $97.7b as more than 70% of households shopped online at least once during the year, heavily preferring pickup services to delivery.

12. Indonesia’s eFishery Raises $90M from Temasek, SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and Sequoia Capital India – TechCrunch

The company provides feeding devices, software and financing for fish and shrimp farmers. Funds will be used to scale up and expand into the top 10 countries for aquaculture, including China and India.

13. Upward Plans to Open a 250K-Sq-Ft Vertical Farm in PA Early Next Year – TechCrunch

The farm will specifically focus on aquaponically-farmed microgreens and bass. Upward aims to begin sales from the farm in early 2023.

14. Israel: Plantish Unveils Whole Cut, Plant-Based Salmon Prototype – Food Navigator

Out of stealth mode, Plantish has unveiled a fully-structured, boneless vegan salmon prototype that it says rivals the taste, nutrition and complex structure of conventional salmon.

15. Israel’s Biggest Food Maker Enters JV to Put ‘Affordable Cultured Food on the Table’ – Food Navigator

Tnuva has partnered with cell production firm Pluristem to bring cultured food, starting with a raw meat product, to the masses.

16. Netherlands: Fooditive Unveils Vegan Casein Derived from Precision Fermentation – Food Ingredients First

The ingredient is the first vegan casein made available for applications in the food industry. Several food developers and companies have subscribed to test the component in their products.

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Image source: MeaTech

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Green Queen editor in chief and alt protein industry veteran Sonalie Figueiras shares alt protein trends for 2022, from Big Food brands getting behind private label plant-based products to regulatory approval. Meanwhile, a blind taste test held by SuperMeat has proven that its cultivated chicken was mistaken for the real thing.

A new report provides startling context about the poverty and food insecurity that grocery workers face. Grocery workers across the country are striking in response, and the time has come for the food industry to reckon with the widespread issue.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. 12 Alt Protein Trends To Watch: Green Queen’s 2022 Industry Predictions – Green Queen

Green Queen editor in chief and alt protein industry veteran Sonalie Figueiras lists her much-anticipated 2022 food trend predictions.

2. Why Is Food Insecurity So Widespread In the Grocery Industry? – Forbes

The food industry has yet to reckon with the food insecurity, poverty and precarity that are so widespread among grocery workers.

3. Beyond Meat and PepsiCo Team Up to Make Plant-Based Jerky – Bloomberg

The joint venture, Planet Partnership, will bring together Beyond Meat’s product innovations with PepsiCo’s distribution and marketing.

4. Jerky Company Chomps Receives $80M in Private Equity Cash – Bloomberg

High-end jerky maker Chomps now has a valuation between $200m and 300m. Its products use pasture-raised meats and include certifications for the Keto, Paleo and Whole30 diets, as well as animal welfare.

5. Israel: Cultivated Meat Passes Blind Taste Test With Flying Colors – Green Queen

SuperMeat held a blind taste test at its Tel Aviv restaurant. Master Chef judge Michal Ansky mistook the cultivated chicken for the real thing–and delightedly so.

6. Why Are Denver Kroger Workers on Strike? – Forbes

Grocery workers in Denver and Colorado Springs are on strike. A new report provides startling context about the poverty and food insecurity that such essential workers face.

7. Many Restaurants Pay Tipped Workers Next to Nothing. Does that Violate their Civil Rights? – Civil Eats

Advocates have advanced a lawsuit against Darden, the nation’s largest full-service restaurant company, for racial and sexual discrimination as a result of paying tipped workers below the minimum wage.

8. Indian Food Delivery Giant Swiggy Raises $700M at $10.7B Valuation – TechCrunch

The new funding follows a strong year of growth for Swiggy in which the startup nearly doubled its food delivery business’ gross order value. Swiggy has surpassed the valuation of its 13-year-old chief rival Zomato.

9. Most Independent Restaurants Experienced a Sales Decrease of More Than 50% in December – Forbes

Significantly less-capitalized independents have had to navigate dining room shutdowns, shift their operating models, manage patchwork regulations and angry customers and a smaller labor pool.

10. South Korea’s Agtech Startup Green Labs Raises $140M Series C to Accelerate Global Expansion – TechCrunch

The startup offers services including an app that aggregates data using AI, giving more than 500k farmers insight into crop lifecycle, as well as a B2B fresh produce marketplace for over 10k enterprise buyers.

11. Why These 15 Funds Could Transform Agriculture – Koen van Seijen

Billions of investment capital will try to enter the regenerative agriculture space in the next 10 years. Koen van Seijen has compiled a database of soil building funds.

12. US Food Supply Is Under Pressure, From Plants to Store Shelves – Wall Street Journal

Weeks of workers calling in sick have added to continuing supply and transportation disruptions, making grocery store shelves harder to fill.

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Image source: Green Queen

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has published its eagerly awaited national plan. Acting as a blueprint for future developments, innovations and national economic strength, it has specifically included cultivated meat and ‘future foods’ as sectors to actively participate in, paving the way for much-needed funding increases for the sector.

Vertical farming startup Plenty has raised a whopping $400 million dollars. Walmart, who invested in the latest round, will begin to carry its leafy greens in all California stores this year.

A new study has found that plant-based alternatives have the potential to represent 6% of meat consumption by 2030. The sector would need $27 billion investments in infrastructure in order to supply the demand.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. China’s 5-Year Agricultural Plan to Include Cultivated Meat and ‘Future Foods’ for the First Time – Green Queen

China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has published its eagerly awaited national plan. Acting as a blueprint for future developments, innovations and national economic strength, the plan has specifically included cultivated meat and ‘future foods’ as sectors to actively participate in.

2. Walmart Makes an Investment in Vertical Farming Startup Plenty – CNBC

The investment is part of a $400m round of funding. Walmart plans to carry its leafy greens in all California stores this year.

3. Plant-Based Ingredients Need $27B in Infrastructure Investments to Meet 2030 Demand – Food Dive

The Good Food Institute found that if the segment keeps growing at current rates, these alternatives will represent 6% of meat consumption in eight years.

4. Unovis Asset Management Closes $166M Fund, Warns Alt Protein Investors Should Avoid Ego Driven Valuations – Forbes

Alternative protein-focused VC, Unovis Asset Management, has closed an oversubscribed $166m fund II, but warns ego-driven valuations and the mentality of rushing to exits in the sector could damage founders’ well-intentioned impacts.

5. UK: Zapp Snaps Up $200M to Supersize Its Instant Grocery Play – TechCrunch

China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has published its eagerly awaited national plan. Acting as a blueprint for future developments, innovations and national economic strength, the plan has specifically included cultivated meat and ‘future foods’ as sectors to actively participate in.

6. 3D-Printed Plant Steak Startup Raises Funds to Chase Carnivores – Bloomberg

Israeli startup Redefine Meat has raised $135m in new funding for its roll out of 3D-printed plant-based steaks across Europe. New funds will help build out a factory in the Netherlands.

7. Belgium: Deliverect Raises $150M at a $1.4B+ Valuation to Streamline Online and Offline Food Orders – TechCrunch

The company works with independent and large chains to streamline ordering and delivery. It plans to expand beyond Europe and into the US soon. It has recently begun to offer its services to CPG companies as well.

8. Purely Elizabeth Raises $50M for Expansion – Food Dive

The company said it plans to expand its existing SKUs in nutrient-dense breakfast food categories, as well as launch into a yet-to-be-announced category.

9. Starship Technologies Picks Up €50M from the EU’s Investment Arm to Expand Its Fleet of Autonomous Delivery Robots – TechCrunch

Campus deployments make up a majority of Starship’s business, but signs are pointing to a shift towards grocery.

10. Kula Bio Closes $50M Series A to Further Develop Its Low Emission Biofertilizer – AFN

The startup says its alternative to traditional nitrogen fertilizer is crop-agnostic, non-GMO and cost-effective for farmers.

11. As Regulations Gets Closer, Upside Foods Acquires Cultivated Seafood Company Cultured Decadence – Green Queen

Cultured Decadence has developed cell lines and feed for the creation of high-end crustaceans. It will now adopt Upside’s brand name and bring seafood products to its portfolio.

12. Aavishkaar Capital to Launch $250M ESG Fund to Invest in Asia, Africa – Deal Street Asia

The firm has already made the first close at $55m and plans to raise the targeted capital over the next 2 years.

13. Investigators Probe Alleged Fraud Involving Over $240M in Federal Child Nutrition Dollars – The Counter

A Minnesota non-profit was paid to feed thousands of hungry children every day during the pandemic. Federal investigators allege that the meals never materialized.

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Image source: Wall Street Journal

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

The FDA is developing a rule that would require companies to maintain records of their supply chains and thereby facilitate the adoption of blockchain technology in the food industry.

New York City school cafeterias will switch to an entirely vegan menu on Fridays amid new efforts by city officials and the Biden administration to help provide critical nutrition for millions of kids.

A new study assessing the potential impacts that climate change could have on coffee production has revealed that Brazil, the world’s largest coffee producer, will see its most suitable coffee-growing land decline by 79%.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. FDA Official Says New Rule Could Boost Blockchain-Based Food Tracking – Wall Street Journal

The proposed rule could spur adoption of a farm-to-fork food traceability program used by companies including Walmart and Nestlé.

2. Vertical Farming Operator Kalera Pursues SPAC Listing at $375M Valuation – AFN

Kalera, a vertical farming operator, expects its deal with Nasdaq-listed SPAC Agrico Acquisition Corp to close in the second quarter of 2022.

3. Austria: ‘Microdrink’ Maker Waterdrop Raises $70M – Food Dive

Waterdrop seeks to simultaneously increase the amount of water people drink while lowering the amount of plastic bottles used for consumption.

4. Kula Bio Closes $50M Series A to Further Develop Its Low Emission Biofertilizer – AFN

The startup says its alternative to traditional nitrogen fertilizer is crop-agnostic, non-GMO and cost-effective for farmers.

5. Lunchbox Raises $50M with Contributions from Sweetgreen, Doordash Execs – Restaurant Business

With the new funding, the online ordering company will go after big chains and make more acquisitions. It’s also changing its tone on third-party delivery.

6. NYC Launches Vegan Fridays at Schools As USDA Announces New Nutrition Standards – Abc

7. Climate Change Will Make Coffee More Expensive – Fast Company

The world could lose half of its best coffee-growing land under a moderate climate change scenario. Brazil, currently the world’s largest coffee producer, will see its most suitable coffee-growing land decline by 79%.

8. UK Makes First Tentative Step to Join The Global Sustainable Protein Race with Post-Brexit Report – Green Queen

The 100-page report has included one six-line paragraph alluding to potential novel food regulation updates. Sustainable protein was named as the key focal area though the term is not explicitly defined.

9. The Restaurant Dive Outlook on 2022 – Restaurant Dive

Restaurants are investing in labor-saving technology, wage hikes and new delivery strategies to prepare for a year that may still be squeezed by labor, supply chain and inflation pressure.

10. The Grocery Dive Outlook for 2022 – Grocery Dive

Food retailers continue to benefit from at-home eating, but they also face a slew of challenges that promise to make this a dynamic year for the industry.

11. E-Grocer Good Eggs Sees West Coast Opportunity – Grocery Dive

The company kicked off same-day service in Los Angeles on Tuesday, with plans to expand to additional markets and launch one-hour service.

12. Starbucks Union Organizing Reaches 60 Stores in 19 States – Restaurant Dive

The union drive is small compared to the coffee behemoth’s roughly 9k US corporate stores, but the movement may still mark a milestone for organized labor.

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Image source: New York Times

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Food is becoming a growing presence in the world of NFTs and the metaverse. The Sims has evolved into a world where players can farm, forage, cook and learn about the many ways people experience food.

Chicago’s Back of the Yard Algae Sciences has developed a cell-cultivated alternative to psychedelics made from toad venom, whose popularity has exploded and had devastating impacts on toad populations and their habitats.

Last but not least, business has boomed during the pandemic for Kroger, but that success has not trickled down to its vast work force of nearly 500,000 employees – a number of whom have reported being homeless, receiving government food stamps or relying on food banks to feed their families.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

1. How The Sims Became the Internet’s Most Exciting Place to Eat – New York Times

The 22-year-old life simulation video game has evolved into a world where players can farm, forage, cook and learn about the many ways people experience food.

2. Are Psychedelics the Next Big Trend in Cellular Agriculture? – Green Queen

Chicago’s Back of the Yard Algae Sciences has developed a cellular agriculture alternative to psychedelics made from toad venom from algae heme.

3. The Hidden Ways Companies Raise Prices – Wall Street Journal

Businesses are passing their rising costs on to consumers with new fees, truncated services and reduced contents in packaged goods, which don’t always show up in inflation data.

4. USDA Invests $1B in Climate-Smart Agriculture – Foodtank

The initiative includes cover crops, low-till or no-till farming, agroforestry, rotational grazing and reforestation, among others, as examples of possible climate-smart conservation practices.

5. Business Booms at Kroger-Owned Grocery Stores, but Workers Are Left Behind – New York Times

A number of the stores’ nearly 500k employees have reported being homeless, receiving government food stamps or relying on food banks.

6. Why Famous People Are Joining Food Tech Advisory Boards – Food Dive

Hollywood A-listers including Leonardo DiCaprio and Ashton Kutcher, former government officials and other household names are working with companies, lending their expertise and cachet.

7. 7Shifts Raises $80M in Funding Round – Fast Casual

The platform helps restaurant operators connect all aspects of their HR processes. Investment comes on the heels of a significant year of growth in 2021, adding over 10k locations and over 400k workers to its platform.

8. Endless West Raises $60M to Expand Its Molecular Spirits Technology – Forbes

The company is looking to work with spirits brands of all sizes, to help them cut back on production costs while boosting sustainability. Its investment will double its production capabilities.

9. Empty Shelves Sapped Food Retailers of $82B in CPG Sales Last Year – Food Dive

Lost revenue opportunities peaked during the fall, when surging Covid-19 infections depressed on-shelf availability and pushed unrealized sales to $1.7b per week.

10. It’s Time to Hold Agrifood Corporates Accountable for Their Climate Commitments. This List May Help – AFN

AFN has compiled an extensive list of agrifood corporate climate commitments and pledges such as net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and regenerative ag.

11. Insect Ingredient Producer Raises $57M in Investments – Pet Food Processing

The company develops its sustainable ingredients from the larvae of the black solider fly, which are fed organic waste from the food industry. It plans to use investment to expand internationally and further its R&D into insect-based ingredients.

12. Cooks Venture Announces $50M Investment from PIUS – Meat + Poultry

The investment will help underwrite its proprietary broiler breed, which will expand the genetics program and build out infrastructure.

13. Korea: Envisioning Partners Closes on $64M Fund for Climate Tech Startups – TechCrunch

The firm now has $140m in investments in companies including Novoloop, Circ, Green Li-ion, Reco and Mission Barns.

Our newsletter is the absolute easiest way to stay on top of the emerging sector, so sign up for it today and never miss the latest food tech and innovation news and trends, Already signed up? Share the love with your friends and colleagues!

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