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.
It’s well-known that the smaller the salt crystals, the saltier they taste, which means less is more, an enticing proposition for snack makers looking to reduce sodium. However, simply finely grinding table salt and sprinkling it on potato chips won’t...
MeliBio, the Berkeley-based startup claiming to make real honey without bees, has closed $850,000 in pre-seed funding as it gears up for a soft launch supplying food service companies with its vegan honey as a branded ingredient later this year.
When the founders of startup Holy Cow discovered thousands of cow hides are thrown away daily due to rising demand for beef during the pandemic and a simultaneous sharp decline in leather production, they saw an opportunity to create a new revenue source...
Yet another new player has emerged in the burgeoning alternative protein space, this time touting a novel Non GMO complete protein sourced from a single-celled marine microorganism, which it claims can give animal and plant proteins a run for their money.
Approaching one year since buying KRAVE back from Hershey, founder of Sonoma Brands Jon Sebastiani says he and his team have been hard at work to re-establish the brand back to its dominant premium positioning within the meat snacks category while regaining...
Plant-based energy bar brand Quantum Energy Squares has closed $2.5m in funding to ramp up brand awareness, and has brought on Major League Soccer (MLS) All-Star, US Soccer Male Athlete of the Year, and MLS Cup MVP, Jozy Altidore as an investor.
Dutch cell-cultured meat startup Meatable - which is working with porcine and bovine induced pluripotent stem cells [iPSCs] – has closed a $47m Series A round (bringing its total funding to $60m) to advance small-scale production at the Biotech Campus...
Armies of microscopic single-celled microbial food factories (yeast, bacteria, fungi, algae) are now routinely deployed to produce high-value food ingredients more efficiently than plants or animals. But next-generation ‘cell-free’ biomanufacturing processes...
Plant-based tuna featuring protein-packed red algae from Triton Algae Innovations could hit the market by the end of the year, says the San Diego-based firm, which says the ingredient could add an exciting new dimension to the small – but fast-growing...
Functional Beverages Webinar Available On Demand Now
Shifting shopping habits and channel preferences due to the pandemic hit the non-alcoholic beverage industry hard last year, leading to an overall decline in volume and value, but rising consumer interest in functional options could be a key driver in...
When former Annie’s president John Foraker joined fresh baby food startup Once Upon a Farm in 2017, it was doing less than a million dollars. Last year, revenues were north of $30m, he says, and while there have been some bumps along the road, the “brand...
Flow Water founder Nicholas Reichenbach launched with some pretty lofty ambitions (cue comparisons to Fiji, Evian, building the ‘Tesla of water’ and becoming an ‘iconic’ brand). But if you’re going to get into a business as capital intensive as bottled...
North Carolina-based Barvecue is significantly scaling up production of its plant-based pulled pork line, tapping into an underserved opportunity in the plant-based meat alternative space, says brand founder and CEO Lee Cooper.
Three Farm Daughters, a pasta and flour brand launched by three sisters, features Arcadia Biosciences' GoodWheat, a specialty durum wheat variety with significantly more dietary fiber and fewer calories per serving than traditional wheat.
Dairy-free cheeses featuring a novel bacterial protein could hit the market by the end of the year, adding an intriguing new dimension to the burgeoning dairy-alternative space, says microbial fermentation specialist Superbrewed Food (formerly known as...
Sales of functional beverages are rebounding and have a bright future despite the pandemic shutting down for most of 2020 in-person impulse purchases and food service sales which previously drove the category’s fast growth, according to market research...
Plant-based foods manufacturer Nabati Foods (part of the Eat Beyond Holdings portfolio) has closed over $7.7m in an oversubscribed funding round with plans to pursue a public listing on the Canadian Stock Exchange (CSE).
For cell-cultured meat to be commercially viable, we’ll need to see significant movement in the price and availability of growth factors (signaling proteins that stimulate cell growth and differentiation) says UK-based CellRx, which says it can produce...
Since the pandemic began, food insecurity in America has increased exponentially, and stakeholders across the value chain are stepping up to provide relief, including Simply Organic, which is giving $150,000 to five organizations that not only help put...
It’s milk, but not as we know it, Jim… To be precise, GoodSport is dairy milk, but with the protein and fat removed via ultra-filtration, leaving a clear sugary fluid loaded with electrolytes and vitamins. But does this upcycled elixir (better known as...
Oishii, a vertical farm growing Japanese omakase strawberries with 2-3x the sweetness of conventional US-grown strawberries, has closed $50m in Series A funding led by SPARX Group to scale its business for mass market consumption.
RightRice has launched its newest innovation in the rice category, RightRice Risotto, a veggie-based product line that is dairy-free using just water while achieving the same level of creaminess the well-known rice dish is known for (in under 15 minutes),...
Clinical data suggests that arabinoxylan – a fiber found in the cell walls of several plants – has a range of benefits from prebiotic effects to blood glucose control and immune health support. But no one has found a cost-effective way to isolate and...
The sparkling water category may seem crowded with products made by CPG giants and offerings from smaller, independently-owned brands, but the reality is that sparkling water is still just a small piece of the overall carbonated beverage category, says...
Santiago-based food tech company NotCo has been granted a first-of-its kind US patent for its AI technology, which it claims gives it a clear edge in the race to reverse engineer animal foods and put them back together - molecule by molecule - with plants,...
To mark International Women’s Day today, March 8, organizers are asking participants to “choose to challenge” and call out gender bias and inequality with the hope that from challenge will come change – something that women entrepreneurs desperately need...
The first flavors were made from plants, but were gradually replaced by ‘artificial’ alternatives, thanks to advances in synthetic chemistry. By the end of the 20th century, however, natural flavors were back in vogue.
Many consumers are aware of the nutritional value so-called superfoods have, but few can commit to a daily diet packed with turmeric, ashwagandha, and elderberry (and even fewer enjoy the taste). This hangup was the impetus for Grummies, a brand of gummies...
Clara Foods – one of a new wave of startups using ‘precision’ microbial fermentation technology – is announcing what it claims is the world’s first commercial launch of ‘animal-free’ pepsin, an enzyme traditionally sourced from pig stomachs that’s used...
London-based start-up Hoxton Farms is cultivating animal fat for plant-based meat alternatives. What is the secret to the duo’s competitive edge? Computational biology, the founders tell FoodNavigator.
2020 was a breakout year for 'agrifoodtech' companies as the sector attracted over $26.1bn worldwide in investment, a 34.5% increase from 2019, according to global venture capital firm AgFunder's 2021 investment report.
On a crusade to make buckwheat "cool" -- which has taken strong digital marketing efforts to educate the consumer in a demo-less landscape -- founder of sprouted buckwheat brand Lil Bucks, Emily Griffith, has made the leap from shared kitchens...
The plant-based seafood market is pretty small fry in dollar terms right now, but is poised to grow significantly in the next couple of years, predict the entrepreneurs behind a new wave of brands seeking to take plant-based tuna, shrimp, crab cakes,...
Vertical indoor farming company Kalera has acquired Vindara Inc., a company developing non-GMO seeds specifically designed for use in vertical indoor farm environments.
Less than a year after taking the helm at Clif Bar & Co., new CEO Sally Grimes is spearheading the company’s first transformation in 30 years with an ambitious goal to double its business to $2 billion and double its positive impact on the world....
Upcycled foods and beverages made from ingredients traditionally not consumed by people are gaining popularity with consumers seeking more sustainable diets – creating a fast-growing market opportunity estimated to be worth more than $46 billion, which...
The ice cream aisle used to be a lot less complicated. There were national brands, regional brands, a couple of super-premium players, and a smattering of dairy-free. Today, shoppers are presented with a bewildering array of options from lactose-free,...
Boston-based startup Slate Milk – which gives adults permission to keep drinking chocolate milk by dialing down the sugar, increasing the protein and packaging it as a functional beverage in shelf-stable cans - has raised $1.7m in a seed round (taking...
The co-founders of the fast-growing banana-based Hakuna Banana and oat-milk based Totes Oats nice-cream brands are bringing their better-for-you pints and bars under the new umbrella brand Must Love to better communicate the company’s core values, leverage...
Nature’s Fynd - a Chicago-based startup growing protein from a micro-organism with origins in the geothermal springs of Yellowstone National Park – is giving consumers a first taste of the novel ingredient via dairy-free cream cheese and meatless breakfast...
Rule Breaker Snacks, an allergy-friendly snack brand featuring chickpeas as its star ingredient, has secured a minority investment from Bimbo Ventures, the venture capital arm of global baking company Grupo Bimbo.
Plant-based milk is growing at an impressive clip, although not every subsegment is gaining momentum and not every new entrant has struck CPG gold. Barleymilk, however, has the potential to be a major player, and is every bit as exciting as current category...
While the nut butter category has evolved dramatically in recent years - with JIF and Skippy now competing with everything from almond and cashew butters to sunflower seed, mushroom, and chickpea butters - the jams and jellies category doesn’t look wildly...
