Vejii Holdings, an online retailer of plant-based products, has acquired VeganEssentials.com and announced a C$10m capital raise, becoming the largest online marketplace in the US that exclusively sells vegan products, says Vejii CEO Kory Zelickson.
SunOpta has acquired shelf-stable plant-based beverage brands Dream and Westsoy from Hain Celestial in a $33m deal as it ramps up its presence in the dairy alternative segment.
The US House of Representatives has voted on and passed a piece of legislation -- the FASTER Act -- that would make sesame the ninth ingredient subject to mandatory allergen labeling in the US. The bill now heads to President Biden to be signed into law....
PepsiCo sales during the first three months of the year sailed passed the high bar set last year when the pandemic inspired pantry loading, despite challenges during the quarter, including temporary business disruptions due to the severe winter storms...
Meati Foods and Atlast Food Co - two fungi-fueled startups blazing a trail in the alternative meat market with ‘whole cut’ products made from mycelium, the fibrous root structure of mushrooms – have both announced significant funding this week as they...
FDA is not worried about the safety of specific lots of canola seed and “a small number of canola fields” for human and animal consumption that inadvertently were contaminated with low levels of two new genetically modified varieties of canola seed currently...
With this week’s appointment of industry veteran Paul Nardone as the new CEO of HIPPEAS, the organic chickpea snack brand is building an all-star executive team with a strong track record of high-profile exits to help it leverage pandemic-inspired shifts...
Canadian chickpea pasta brand Chickapea has closed a CAD$9.3m Series C funding round co-led by District Ventures Capital, InvestEco Capital, and Export Development Canada (EDC) to support new product innovation and the brand's distribution growth...
While a downturn in sales for snack bars in the past year suggest consumer demand has softened, snacking behavior has hit a fever pitch and innovation in this set is hotter than ever as brands evolve to meet shifting consumer demands.
Buyers on online discovery platform RangeMe - which is used by retailers from Whole Foods to Walmart to identify new products and suppliers - are increasingly using it as a tool to identify brands that align with corporate social responsibility goals,...
With the consolidation of eight businesses under one simplified corporate structure and a strong track record of driving growth despite pandemic-related challenges, specialty lender eCapital Corp. is poised to offer upwards of 25% more financing this...
Territory Foods, a fresh-prepared direct-to-consumer (DTC) meal delivery service that partners with local chefs to create flavorful nutritionist-designed dishes, has closed a $22m funding round led by US Venture Partners.
This year promises to be a “blockbuster year” for snacking innovation after 2020 saw drastically fewer new products hit stores than previous years, but of those that did launch the best sellers catered to Americans’ pandemic-influenced demands – portending...
Steve Turner, the former global executive creative director for Apple's Media Arts Labs (where he worked with Steve Jobs to launch a number of iconic Apple products), has been appointed as chief experience officer at Impossible Foods, where he will...
Still benefiting from a sustained consumer shift to at-home eating over a year past the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic, Conagra has registered a nearly 10% increase in organic net sales for Q3 2021 compared to the same period last year.
Ireland’s AnaBio Technologies has launched a range of encapsulated probiotic strains including well-established Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus species that can survive temperature stresses associated with UHT processing.
Apeel Sciences – the Santa Barbara-based firm behind an invisible plant-based edible skin proven to dramatically extend the shelf-life of fresh produce - has announced an expanded partnership network made up of 20+ avocado industry leaders in the US,...
Applications are now open for Rabobank’s FoodBytes! Pitch 2021 program, which is seeking emerging CPG, food tech, and ag tech brands to pitch their innovations and network (virtually) with corporate leaders and investors.
Raisin snack brand Sun-Maid - which has just acquired baby food brand Plum Organics - has recruited six kids from across the US to be part of its first "Board of Imagination", a new feedback and decision-making group.
In the aftermath of a Congressional report investigating heavy metals found in baby food, brands that follow stringent protocols for heavy metals and other contaminants set by The Clean Label Project are experiencing ignited consumer interest, says founder...
Impossible Foods is exploring going public through an IPO (initial public offering) or a merger with a SPAC* (special purpose acquisition company) in the next 12 months, according to Reuters, which quotes sources familiar with the matter.
With VC-backed food tech startups deploying molecular biologists and astrophysicists now competing for shelf space in the red-hot meat and dairy alternatives market with equally deep-pocketed multinational meat and CPG companies, where do independent...
Kentucky-based agtech and vertical farming company AppHarvest has acquired artificial intelligence firm Root AI and its robotic universal harvester Virgo to maximize its sustainable harvesting methods.
Public health advocates are calling on FDA to require all children’s beverages to clearly label on the front of pack the amount of added sugar, non-nutritive sweeteners and juice in each product after research published today in Pediatric Obesity revealed...
Beyond Meat has opened its first end-to-end manufacturing facility outside the US in the Jiaxing Economic & Technological Development Zone (JXEDZ) near Shanghai.
Immunity claims on new product launches have surged during the pandemic as companies sprinkle in everything from vitamin C and D to zinc, probiotics, postbiotics, elderberry and Cordyceps to their wares to tap into the trend. But what else is in the immune...
Gathered Foods, parent company of plant-based seafood brand Good Catch, has secured $26.35m in a B-2 Bridge Funding Round to ramp up product innovation and dramatically increase its retail footprint.
Fresh snacking brand Clio Snacks – known for its chocolate covered Greek yogurt bars – had a breakout year in 2020, says VP of marketing Rachel Moore. This year, the company is ramping brand awareness and customer trial with its newest product innovation:...
Ag-food tech company Moolec Science is expanding its alternative protein platform to cater to plant-based bakery and beverage categories. “Moving into egg and dairy alternatives was a natural next step for our roadmap,” explained CEO and co-founder Gastón...
Nestlé Waters North America has now begun operating under a new corporate name – ‘BlueTriton Brands’ – following the completion of its acquisition by One Rock Capital Partners in partnership with Metropoulos & Co.
A warning letter sent to a Connecticut wholesaler about the sale of pure powdered caffeine points to the difficulty of keeping problematic products off the market in an environment in which hundreds of thousands of tons of cargo arrives in domestic ports...
Sales of plant-based foods that directly replace animal products - including meat, seafood, eggs, dairy, condiments and meals containing plant-based alternatives - grew by 27% to $7bn in measured channels in the year to December 27, 2020, according to...
Impossible Foods has launched its first national advertising campaign targeting meat eaters who haven’t yet tried Impossible products, specifically its flagship product, the plant-based Impossible Burger.
As more consumers adopt a “research-online-buy-offline” approach, providing accurate, consistent product information across channels and on packaging is essential for driving discovery, initial trial and repeat purchases – and yet, most manufacturers...
The pandemic’s negative impact on sleep, anxiety and mental health is creating a unique marketing opportunity for low caffeine coffee, which can deliver an energy boost without the jitters or negative impact on circadian rhythms, but which previously...
According to researchers, the study is the most comprehensive yet to focus on vitamin D and respiratory infections and could have significant implications for healthcare providers.
With traditional fishing methods in decline, aquaculture – the industrial farming of fish, shellfish, and other aquatic species – is on the rise, but with little knowledge of the impact it’s had on animal welfare, says a team of researchers at New York...
Kemin Industries has acquired privately-owned ingredient technology firm, Proteus Industries, Inc., expanding its portfolio of sustainable clean label solutions for meat manufacturing.
ZenWTR – an alkaline water brand seeking to stand out in the premium bottled water segment with 100% recycled PET bottles made with certified ‘ocean bound’ plastic – has attracted a star-studded line of investors from Jessica Chastain to Khloé Kardashian.
Years before the coronavirus pandemic shined a harsh light on the fragility of long, global supply chains dominated by a handful of multinational companies, Kim Bryden founded Cureate to connect local food and beverage manufactures with large institutional...
The CBD beverages space is not for the faint-hearted given the regulatory minefield brands have to navigate, but Isca is hoping to bring a more culinary twist to the nascent category with the assistance of British Michelin-starred Chef Michael Caines.
As concerns about cultural appropriation and misrepresentation bubble up alongside the push for social equity, food and beverage industry stakeholders are delicately navigating consumers’ sometimes-conflicting demands for authenticity and innovation.
Recognizing “time is not on our side when it comes to climate change” and that “what is good for the planet is good for our brand,” Horizon Organic is bringing consumers along on its ambitious five-year journey to become the first carbon positive dairy...
After selling to Campbell’s in 2013 for $249m, organic baby food maker Plum Organics has been acquired by Sun-Maid Growers of California, which is expanding its portfolio to provide more options for its target audience: "the balancer mom," says...
Ingredion has acquired KaTech - a privately held company headquartered in Lübeck, Germany that provides advanced texture and stabilization solutions to the food and beverage industry - for an undisclosed sum.
Unilever has some ambitious goals on food waste. The multinational wants to halve waste from its direct operations by 2025 and is working with suppliers and customers to reduce waste across the food chain. It also hopes to tackle one of the trickiest...
Despite a double-digit increase in retail sales during the pandemic, most grocery retailers continue to grapple with tight profit margins which could be squeezed further as restaurants and the foodservice industry reopen but many coronavirus-related expenses...
Valued at $6.8bn in the US alone (according to Research&Markets), the market for hydroponically-grown produce is no longer niche and poised for strong growth over the next several years, predicts BrightFarms, a company growing a variety of leafy greens...
Oatmilk has taken off like a rocket ship over the past couple of years. However, US retail sales of almondmilk - which accounts for two thirds of category sales – grew a solid 16.9%* last year in measured channels, with market leader Almond Breeze posting...