The plant-based chicken category is heating up with Impossible Foods unveiling plans to enter the market in the fall with soy-based nuggets, going head to head with rival Beyond Meat, which has just launched pea-, and faba bean-based tenders.
Canadian startup Noblegen has opened a CAD$500m Series C capital raise as it seeks to commercialize a suite of products from the ‘ancient microorganism’ euglena gracilis, which can produce everything from proteins that behave like animal proteins, to...
Wicked Kitchen – a plant-based brand developed by chefs and mushroom enthusiasts Derek and Chad Sarno that has been a hit in the UK – is hoping to make a bigger splash this side of the Atlantic after securing $14m in a Series A round co-led by Unovis...
As grocery buying settles into a new, less-frenzied norm, many major food companies including Conagra Brands are dealing with the rising costs of doing business in an inflationary environment by raising the prices of their finished products.
From Air Protein - a startup manufacturing protein out of thin air*; to Meati Foods and Atlast Foods - fungi-fueled firms making whole cut ‘meats’ from mycelium; to a flurry of cell-cultured meat players including BlueNalu, GOOD Meat, and Wildtype; 28...
The world’s largest food company has confirmed it is eyeing the cultured meat sector after a leaked report revealed a tie-up with Israeli cell-based start-up Future Meat Technologies.
In FoodNavigator-USA's latest roundup of new product launches, we include Clif Bar's first foray into boxed cereals, PeaTos' fiber- and protein-fueled take on Doritos, RXBARS's new plant-based bars, and a wave of products focusing...
As legislators continue to negotiate an infrastructure deal, the Consumer Brands Association urges democratic leaders to include the creation of a federal Office of Supply Chain Resiliency to address ongoing challenges exposed and magnified by the pandemic...
Citing “abusive actions by monopolies,” including “big ag,” that “lead to mass layoffs, higher prices, [and] fewer options for workers and consumers,” President Joe Biden Friday signed a sweeping executive order that tasks more than a dozen agencies with...
New data from Placer.ai tracking foot traffic at America’s leading food retailers shows that traffic at Whole Foods – while rebounding - remains lower than it was in 2019, while many rival grocers have staged a stronger recovery.
With Aleph Farm’s 2022 initial market launch just on the horizon, the trailblazing food-tech company responsible for series of firsts in the nascent cell-cultured meat category, has secured $105m in series B funding to scale-up manufacturing and expand...
By Abby Meyer, Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP; and Dr. Sara Dastgheib-Vinarov, Tate & Lyle
In the food industry, a special recipe or product formulation can distinguish a company from competitors and form the basis of a brand. Companies may spend significant R&D dollars to get the recipe just right, so how can they protect this investment...
Meati Foods – which is carving out new territory in the meat-alternative space with a fungi-based platform capable of producing ‘steaks’ and other whole cuts – has raised $50m in a Series B round co-led by new investor BOND and long-time Meati investor...
Oatmilk or oat drink? Plant-based cheese or cultured nut product? A report from the House Committee on Appropriations “encourages the FDA to provide clarity around the labeling of plant-based foods that use traditional meat, dairy, and egg terminology,”...
The Federal Trade Commission has issued its final ‘Made in the USA’ rule about how companies can make this claim on their packaging and in advertising.
The meat alternatives company has given its latest innovation challenge award to a French start-up with new technology that differs from conventional extrusion.
Brazilian plant-based meat brand Future Farm (Fazenda Futuro) is gearing up to enter the burgeoning plant-based meat category in the US after a successful debut in Brazil and several other markets including Chile, Mexico, the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands.
The FDA is aiming to release long-awaited voluntary sodium reduction goals and draft guidance on the labeling of plant-based milk alternatives in the next 12 months.
While most consumers are cautiously optimistic that life will return to ‘normal’ this year after the coronavirus outbreak uprooted most aspects of everyday life last year, many remain concerned about the long-term economic impact of the pandemic and are...
Global food giants Nestle and Tyson Foods have joined supermarkets and food and environmental scientists to form a new non-profit organisation that will issue front-of-pack environmental scores on food products throughout Europe.
China looks likely to be the world’s largest consumer market of cultivated meat due its population size and government support, but a long, arduous journey lies ahead before this becomes a reality, according to an industry expert.
Cell-cultured meat pioneer UPSIDE Foods (formerly Memphis Meats) has brought in high-flying PepsiCo exec Amy Chen as its chief operating officer as it prepares to launch its first consumer product – UPSIDE chicken – later this year, pending regulatory...
New research revealing that nearly nine out of ten participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps, struggle to maintain healthy diets suggests the method for how aid is determined is outdated and reveals...
Attempts to put plant-based meats “in the same category as Twinkies” because they are both “processed foods,” should be dismissed as “meat industry propaganda,” Impossible Foods CEO Dr Pat Brown told delegates at the Future Food Tech alternative proteins...
By Matthew Walker, managing director, S2G Ventures
A market with a variety of alternative meat sources provides ultimate flexibility for the consumer, and several emerging technologies have a role to play in the meat supply chain of the future.
Israeli startup Future Meat Technologies has opened what it claims is the first ‘industrial’ cell-cultured meat facility, capable of producing 500 kilos of meat a day (the equivalent of around 5,000 hamburgers), as it gears up for a US launch next year,...
Nature’s Fynd has received a coveted 'no questions’ letter from the FDA in response to its GRAS safety determination for its ‘Fy’ fungi ingredient (Fusarium strain flavolapis*), a protein-packed naturally-occurring micro-organism with origins in...
What is on the inside is what matters to most consumers when it comes to food and beverages, according to research from the International Food Information Council released yesterday that found Americans are paying more attention to ingredient lists than...
Mars is backing a new coalition that aims to support climate action through global supply chains. Kevin Rabinovitch, VP Global Sustainability, tells us that procurement is one of the most powerful tools in the company’s arsenal in the fight against climate...
Motif FoodWorks – a Boston-based startup focused on high-impact ingredients that can be added to plant- based meat and dairy formulations in small quantities but make a significant difference to the eating experience – has raised $226m in Series B* funding,...
Is consumer sentiment around MSG (monosodium glutamate) shifting? According to MSG supplier Ajinomoto, perceptions of the flavor enhancer have improved over the last three years since the company undertook a full-scale awareness campaign to educate consumers.
Lightlife Foods’ recent campaign pitting its ‘real food’ credentials vs the 'hyper-processed' wares of Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat was dismissed by some as a PR stunt. However, it started a conversation, says president Dan Curtin, who predicts...
As the G7 summit draws to its end and groundwork commences for COP 26, world leaders have been urged to look at the food system to deliver progress on COVID-19, economic security, climate change and health.
Natural and organic brands catering to alternative eating styles and combining better nutrition with convenience are shifting consumer perceptions of frozen to boost purchase intent and sales that could outlast the pandemic pantry stocking surge of 2020,...
The Superior Court of California has ordered the state of California to answer a petition brought by a nonprofit calling for it to add processed meat to the Proposition 65 list of substances known to cause cancer or reproductive harm.
Following a nutrient-dense plant-based or pescatarian diet could protect against severe COVID-19, according to researchers who found healthcare workers at high risk of exposure to the coronavirus were less likely to experience severe infections if they...
The Better Meat Co – a startup best-known for providing plant-based meat enhancers – has completed construction of a “substantial mycoprotein fermentation facility” in Sacramento that will produce fungi-based meat alternatives that “work phenomenally...
Israeli cultured meat firm Future Meat Technologies has its eye on Asia as a major market for its products with China and India as key targets, after notching-up two successes in significantly lowering production costs this year.
The plant-based meat category is not short of starry-eyed founders armed with me-too products and a lofty mission to fix the broken food system (spoiler alert, they probably won’t). But there is still room for new players with a genuine point of difference...
When it comes to meat alternatives, fat remains the final frontier for formulators, says Nourish Ingredients, which is harnessing the power of microbes to produce next-generation ‘animal-free’ fats it claims can deliver a ‘meatier’ experience than plant-based...
During the pandemic, sales of dairy and animal protein grew off strong foundations, but many of the claims that traditionally drove consumer interest in the categories slowed or performed unevenly – revealing shifting priorities that could influence future...
With nearly one in five Americans now following some type of specialty diet, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the extent to which products appeal to different food tribes can heavily influence sales – but not all diets are...
Specialty ingredients solution supplier Innophos has introduced Optibalance 200, a specialty blend ingredient created to help bacon processors achieve peak flavor, improve appearance, and produce greater yields of bacon.
While freshly vaccinated food and beverage execs may be tentatively emerging from their homes to attend face-to-face meetings and events in the coming months, the last year has proven that virtual meetings – done right – can be just as effective, and...
CPG brands that invest in restoring healthy farmland can earn more than the goodwill of consumers who increasingly care about sustainability – they also could cash-in on the surge of ESG-earmarked funding and secure high-value assets that will support...
Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods enjoy more than twice the in-store velocity of other plant-based meat brands in the US retail market, "and so we believe this is still very much a two-horse race,” claim analysts at Bernstein, who say some of the...
As shoppers increasingly incorporate more plants into their diets, Whole Foods Market predicts a summer season where plant-based foods and brands take center plate.
Unilever has partnered with food tech company ENOUGH, which will supply it with mycoprotein to fuel innovation behind its plant-based brands, starting with The Vegetarian Butcher.
