Proteins

PURIS Holdings and LIVEKINDLY Collective team up on sustainable, plant-based foods mission

10-Feb-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Plant-based based ingredient supplier PURIS Holdings and LIVEKINDLY Collective have entered two joint ventures to create a path towards affordable and accessible plant-based food products.

Knowde launches food & nutrition online marketplace: ‘This is a massive market that is ripe for change’

10-Feb-2021 By Elaine Watson

San Jose-based Knowde – a b2b online marketplace for chemicals, ingredients and polymers - is moving into the food and nutrition industry, enabling R&D and procurement professionals to research and compare products, connect with suppliers, request...

Investing in the Future of Food

Selling DTC online doesn’t mean flying solo, partnerships helped Get Maine Lobster lift sales 435%

10-Feb-2021 By Elizabeth Crawford

Selling direct-to-consumer (DTC) online has emerged as a favorite go-to-market strategy for emerging brands launching during the pandemic, and while it can offer better margins, a more intimate connection with shoppers and flexibility around pricing and...

Calling all wellness snack brands: Mondelēz SnackFutures launches CoLab startup program

09-Feb-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Mondelēz SnackFutures – the company's innovation and venture hub – has launched CoLab, a "startup engagement" program, targeting snack brands in the wellness space as the global snacking giant digs deeper into the startup community.

Unilever and Kellogg discuss innovation priorities for 2021: From gut health to next gen plant proteins

09-Feb-2021 By Oliver Morrison

Kellogg Company and Unilever are calling on start-ups to help tackle some of the most critical issues facing the food and industry.

Cerebelly receives The Clean Label Project Purity Award confirming its products are free from heavy metals

08-Feb-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Cerebelly has received The Clean Label Project Purity Award -- which independently test products for over 400 contaminants including heavy metals, chemicals, plastics, pesticides, and other toxins -- for its full line of shelf-stable pureed baby food...

Consumer perception of taste and nutrition of beef still ‘greatly exceeds that for plant-based proteins’ says new report

08-Feb-2021 By Elaine Watson

While consumers rate plant-based beef more favorably than its bovine counterpart on fiber, fat, saturated fat and cholesterol; they rate it less favorably on taste, protein, iron, and overall nutrition, according to survey data contained in a new report...

Brightfield Group: Reaching the COVID-concerned consumer with empathetic brand marketing

05-Feb-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Stressed by COVID-19 and its financial and emotional ripple effects, consumers have turned to functional food as a stress-reducing and health-boosting tool to get through the pandemic, recent consumer insights from market research firm Brightfield Group...

Animal-free dairy ice cream Brave Robot secures listings in 5,000 stores

04-Feb-2021 By Elaine Watson

‘Animal-free dairy’ ice cream brand Brave Robot – which launched in July 2020 - will be in 5,000 stores across the US by Earth Day 2021 (April 22), says brand owner The Urgent Company.

Tovala, the smart oven meal service with Peloton-like retention rates, raises $30m in Series C funding

04-Feb-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Tovala – a meal service paired with a multi-function smart oven – has closed a $30m in Series C funding led by New York-based investment group, Left Lane Capital, bringing the company’s funding total to over $50m.

Jellatech carves novel path in alt protein market with animal-free, cell-based collagen, gelatin

04-Feb-2021 By Elaine Watson

Right now, you can extract collagen proteins from animal skin, bones, and connective tissue, or you can produce them via microbial fermentation, without slaughtering animals (engineering bacteria to produce the target proteins). But there’s also a third...

Startup SNACK Brand strives to woo consumers back to spirulina with new clusters, powder

04-Feb-2021 By Elizabeth Crawford

Despite spirulina's “superfood” status, its popularity has been dampened by its dark green color, reputation for tasting like the sea and sometimes overwhelming bioavailability, but the co-founders of SNACK Brand Inc. hope to introduce to modern...

Moku mushroom jerky targets health-conscious meat eaters: 'We want to build a clean label meat alternative brand platform'

03-Feb-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Moku, an emerging mushroom jerky brand, is laying down the foundation to build a highly-scalable, clean label meat alternative platform under a strategic partnership with Siddhi Capital, say co-founders Matt Feldman and Melissa Facchina.

‘Highly disingenuous…’ Plant-based labeling battle heats up as more states challenge use of meat, dairy terms

03-Feb-2021 By Elaine Watson

Plant-based brands have blasted the latest wave of bills proposing restrictions on the use of terms such as ‘milk’ and ‘meat’ in states including New York and Texas as “a solution in search of a problem,” but say more work is needed to persuade legislators...

World first: Geltor gears up for mid-2021 launch of vegan collagen for food, beverage, nutrition markets

02-Feb-2021 By Elaine Watson

Geltor – which has developed a computational biology platform to create a range of ‘designer’ functional proteins via microbial fermentation - is gearing up for the commercial launch of the world’s first ingestible ‘animal-free’ vegan collagen for the...

Impossible Foods slashes prices to retailers: 'We intend to keep lowering prices until we undercut those of ground beef from cows'

02-Feb-2021 By Elaine Watson

Hot on the heels of price cuts to foodservice distributors, Impossible Foods is cutting prices to US grocery stores and supermarkets, taking suggested retail prices for two patty packs down 20% to $5.49, and 12oz bricks down to $6.99.

Post Holdings leads $12.5m Series B round at PeaTos: ‘We believe it has a bright future’

01-Feb-2021 By Elaine Watson

Post Holdings – which has just taken a minority stake in plant-based meat startup Hungry Planet - has led a $12.5m Series B round at legume-fueled snack brand PeaTos, which offers a higher protein, higher fiber slant on mainstream extruded snack brands...

Nutritional Growth Solutions expands kids nutrition shake portfolio with acquisition of KidzShake

01-Feb-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Nutritional Growth Solutions, Ltd. (NGS), parent company of Healthy Height kids protein shake mixes, has acquired nutritional shake brand KidzShake and has announced plans to enter the US medical market.

Eat Beyond Global Holdings gains US stock listing

01-Feb-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

US investors can now buy and trade stocks of Eat Beyond Global Holdings and its growing portfolio of alternative protein brands from plant-based ingredients firms to cell-based agriculture companies, under the ticker symbol EATBF.

Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: Cultivated meat inches closer to mass market with price drop, fundraises for new technology

01-Feb-2021 By Elizabeth Crawford

In the next 12 to 18 months, cultivated meat could become available to the masses, according to some industry players raising funds to scale production of technological and scientific advances that will allow for lower production costs and a lower consumer...

Mondelēz predicts solid growth in 2021 as it gradually revs up in-house product innovation

29-Jan-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

In a challenging environment for all of the food industry, Mondelēz International posted net revenue growth of 5.6% and increased gross profit by $113m for the full year ended Dec. 31, 2020.

Soylent first to test ‘Sustainably Grown US Soy’ mark: ‘Companies should not fear alignment with a GMO crop,’ says soybean board

28-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

Soylent and DuPont Nutrition and Biosciences are participating in a pilot program to highlight the sustainability credentials of US-grown soy by road-testing a new ‘Sustainably Grown U.S. Soy’ logo developed by the United Soybean Board (USB). So what’s...

SimplyProtein CEO: ‘We’re aspiring to be a $100m brand in the next five years’

28-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

SimplyProtein – a snacking brand acquired from The Simply Good Foods Company by Toronto-based Wellness Natural last September – is generating double digit growth in the US market and has the potential to grow from a $20m to a $100m brand within five years,...

PHA 'Veggies Early and Often' campaign galvanizes support for a veggie-forward baby food market

28-Jan-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Despite parents' best efforts and new products coming to the market promising critical nutrients from vegetables, the fact remains that the vast majority of children are simply not eating enough vegetables. This reality is the primary motivating...

Researchers create new form of cultivated meat

28-Jan-2021 By Oliver Morrison

Biomedics claim to have developed a new form of cultivated meat using a method that promises more natural flavour and texture than other alternatives.

Kerry launches online tool addressing plant-based formulation challenges

27-Jan-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Ingredient supplier Kerry has introduced a web-based tool designed to help food and beverage manufacturers with their plant-based product formulation challenges.

Post Holdings enters strategic collaboration with plant-based meat startup Hungry Planet

26-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

Post Holdings has dipped its toes into the fast-growing plant-based meat category with an investment in St Louis-based startup Hungry Planet, which makes soy- and wheat-based beef, port, chicken, crab and chorizo for foodservice and retail markets.

PepsiCo and Beyond Meat launch JV for plant-based beverages and snacks

26-Jan-2021 By Rachel Arthur

PepsiCo and Beyond Meat will form The PLANeT Partnership to develop, produce and market beverages and snacks made from plant-based protein. PepsiCo says plant-based protein offers ‘a new frontier’ in its efforts to build a more sustainable food system,...

Roquette and BRAIN Group to scale-up protein sweetener production

26-Jan-2021 By Jim Cornall

Roquette, a producer of plant-based ingredients for food, nutrition and health markets, biotech company BRAIN AG, and BRAIN Group company AnalytiCon Discovery have completed the R&D phase for the development of protein sweetener brazzein.

‘World’s biggest’ piece of cell-based whole cut analogue developed: ‘Meatballs, burgers and nuggets have already been done’

25-Jan-2021 By Flora Southey

Spanish start-up Novameat has developed what it claims to be the biggest cell-based meat prototype in the world. FoodNavigator catches up with founder and CEO Giuseppe Scionti to talk R&D, investment, and collaborating with Michelin-starred Disfrutar.

JUST Egg launches sous vide egg bites: 'We want JUST Egg to shine in all applications'

25-Jan-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

JUST Egg, in partnership with sous vide foods manufacturer and distributor Cuisine Solutions, has expanded its plant-based egg portfolio with the launch of frozen sous vide egg bites rolling out to select grocery stores in March.

Quevos egg white chips attracts Shark Tank investment from KIND Snacks founder

25-Jan-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

After appearing on ABC's Shark Tank last week, Quevos – an emerging brand making egg white-based chips – received an investment from Equilibra Partners Management, the family office of KIND Snacks founder, Daniel Lubetzky, to fuel its next phase...

Third wave of plant-based will move beyond highly processed meat analogs, says Crafty Counter: 'Why aren’t we eating more plants as plants?'

22-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

If high-tech reverse engineering has enabled a second generation of meat analogs that precisely mimic their animal-based counterparts, a third wave of plant-based innovation will meet demand for less processed, more culinary-inspired products featuring...

Eat Beyond adds Above Food to growing portfolio of alternative protein brands

21-Jan-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Vancouver, Canada-based Eat Beyond Global Holdings has completed an investment in Above Food Inc.– a distributor of plant-based ingredients and finished products – adding the company to its publicly-traded portfolio of emerging alternative protein companies.

PE firm acquires majority stake in Dr. Praeger’s: 'We have some of the most loyal customers in the industry'

21-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

Private equity firm Vestar Capital Partners has made a majority growth investment into Dr. Praeger's Sensible Foods, which makes a range of frozen and refrigerated vegan and vegetarian burgers, sausages and nuggets, appetizers, and snacks.

Blind tasting 3D printed alternative meat: ‘It tastes and feels like meat’

21-Jan-2021 By Katy Askew

Israeli start-up Redefine Meat has pulled off the ‘world’s largest’ blind taste test for its 3D printed meat alternative. The taste test targeted meat-eaters and the results are in. The company secured over a 90% acceptance rate.

FrieslandCampina: Convenient, personalized, and active nutrition top 2021 consumer health trends

20-Jan-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Sparked by the health crisis of COVID-19, personalized and active nutrition will be at the forefront of consumers' daily and long-term health goals in 2021, according to a new report from FrieslandCampina Ingredients.

BlueNalu raises $60m, gears up for commercial launch of cell-based seafood this year

20-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

Cell-based seafood startup BlueNalu – which is building a pilot plant, demo kitchen and new HQ at a 40,000 sq ft facility in San Diego – hopes to get its first product (mahi mahi) into a small number of US restaurants by the end of the year, assuming...

NEW PRODUCTS GALLERY: Plant-based and immune health trends dominate product launches in the New Year

18-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

Plant-based meat and dairy products dominate our gallery of new launches, coupled with a wave of products highlighting immunity and digestive health, and a high-profile CBD beverage launch from Molson Coors.

Beyond Meat to open new global HQ in the fall

15-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

Beyond Meat will move into a new global HQ at 888 N. Douglas Street in its home town El Segundo, California this fall.

Aker seeks ‘important protein player’ status with new ingredient derived from krill

15-Jan-2021 By Hank Schultz

Krill oil specialist Aker BioMarine is taking the next step in deriving value from its raw material by launching a soluble protein that the company says has the complete amino acid profile and formulation flexibility to make it an important player in...

From high-tech fats to ‘non-animal’ dairy: Swedish foodtech brand Nick’s raises $30m, hires ex-siggi’s exec to drive US expansion

15-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

Swedish brand Nick’s – which entered the US in late 2019 with a range of light ice creams and generated revenues of $10m in its first full year on the market (2020) – has hired dairy industry veteran Carlos Altschul to head up its US business after raising...

EFSA says mealworms safe for human consumption: ‘An important milestone towards commercialisation’

14-Jan-2021 By Katy Askew

The European Food Safety Authority has published its first scientific opinion on an insect-derived food. The conclusion? Mealworms are safe for human consumption.

FreshDirect shares top 2021 food trends fueled by the pandemic

12-Jan-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

The trend of home cooking and kitchen creativity, which scores of households exhibited last year will stick around in 2021 solidifying the dining table as the centerpiece of family eating, says New York-based online grocery retailer FreshDirect which...

Outstanding Foods raises $10m Series A round, rolls out new plant-protein puffs

11-Jan-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Outstanding Foods, maker of PigOut Pigless Pork Rinds, has raised $10m in a recent Series A financing round led by existing investor SternAegis Ventures to fuel rapid retail expansion and new production innovation.

Maple Leaf Foods acquires Indianapolis plant protein facility to fast-track tempeh production

11-Jan-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Maple Leaf Foods and its wholly-owned subsidiary of plant protein products, Greenleaf Foods, has acquired a 118,000-square-foot facility in Indianapolis, Indiana, which will increase the production of Lightlife tempeh products to meet rising consumer...

eggXYt strategy: Israeli startup launches bid to disrupt the egg industry

08-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

Industrialized animal slaughter is something the meat & poultry industry has perfected over the years. Most consumers, however, are blissfully unaware that the egg industry also slaughters billions of animals every year, but not to put meat on the...

Reimagined ramen? immi creates 'better-for-you' version of instant noodles

07-Jan-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

New brand immi is aiming to bring instant ramen into a new 'better-for-you' era with the launch of its high-protein, low-carb, noodles to shake up the stagnant instant ramen category.

Barley protein emerging as attractive new option in plant protein toolbox, says AB InBev-backed upcycling startup EverGrain

07-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

Barley proteins and fibers could make an attractive new addition to the food formulator’s toolbox in everything from bread and pasta to plant-based milks, says EverGrain, a new company backed by Anheuser Busch InBev dedicated to upcycling brewer’s spent...

Air Protein raises $32m to create sustainable 'meat' from microbes... and thin air

07-Jan-2021 By Elaine Watson

Air Protein – one of a new wave of startups producing proteins via microbes rather than plants or animals – has raised $32m in a Series A as it gears up to commercialize meat alternatives made from a complete protein it argues will blow rivals out of...