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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 recent ruling by the World Health Organization (WHO) labeling aspartame as a “possible carcinogen” has sparked a heated reaction from the industry. While global health standards have raised concerns about the popular sweetener, domestic experts argue that it is not sufficient cause for immediate reformulation. In a separate development, an investor group managing or advising on a staggering $15.2 trillion of assets is now demanding changes from fast-food companies regarding their use of antibiotics, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. The push for change comes as concerns mount over the misuse of antibiotics in the food industry.

In other news, we’ve wrapped the first season of our podcast in partnership with AgFunder: New Food Order, a nuanced investigation into the business of tackling our climate and social crises through food and agriculture. Read all about why we launched the podcast, and be sure to subscribe and share!

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1. “Misleading, Inaccurate and Fear-Mongering:” The Industry Reacts to WHO’s Aspartame Ruling – Nosh

Popular sweetener aspartame has been dubbed a “possible carcinogen” by global health standards, but domestic experts don’t believe it’s cause enough to begin reformulating just yet.

2. Investor Group Takes Aim at Antibiotics, Demanding Changes from Fast-Food Companies – WSJ

Firms managing or advising on $15.2t of assets are pushing fast-food companies to make changes.

3. Restaurants Face Tech Backlash As QR Code Fatigue, Technology Costs and Complexity Increase – Forbes

Post-pandemic restaurants grapple with tech: QR codes decline, automation rises, and balancing high-touch service with high-tech tools is key.

4. Infant Formula Company Bobbie Takes in $70M to Acquire Nature’s One – TechCrunch

Bobbie was founded to provide a European style of infant formula. The company previously raised $50m in early 2022 and has since grown to serve over 5% of the non-WIC market.

5. Coca-Cola, 8 Bottlers Form $137.7M Venture Capital Fund Focusing on Sustainability Investments – Food Dive

Each of the nine entities, including the beverage giant, contributed about $15m to the initiative. It will focus on five areas, including packaging, distribution and supply chain.

6. Perfect Day Lays Off 15% of Workforce, Shutters Consumer Biz & Coolhaus – Nosh

Perfect Day has laid off roughly 15% of its workforce as it moves to exit its consumer-facing business, The Urgent Company, in order to focus solely on its B2B ingredient sales and nth bio “consulting” precision fermentation business.

7. Agriculture Dept to Invest $300M to Measure Greenhouse Emissions – New York Times

The agency is seeking to better monitor greenhouse gases released through farming, which is responsible for about 10% of national emissions.

8. Biden-Harris Administration Announces $60M to Create a Climate Resilience Accelerator Program and Support Small Businesses Through Investing in America Agenda – NOAA

The Department of Commerce and NOAA are launching the Ocean-Based Climate Resilience Accelerators program, a $60m investment in coastal resilience and American small businesses through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda.

9. Silo Bags $132M, Partners with First Citizens Bank to Advance Its ‘Supply Chain in a Box’ Concept – AFN

Silo will use the Series C funding and new bank partnership to advance its workflow automation and fintech platform for the produce industry.

10. Chipotle’s New Robot Chef Autocado Will Cut Guacamole Prep Time in Half – Fast Company

The collaborative robot prototype is being tested at the Chipotle Cultivate Center in Irvine, California.

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