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...
Unilever experienced an “explosion” in the growth of non-dairy ice cream when it introduced products through mainstream brands such as Ben & Jerry's and Magnum, according to global ice cream EVP Matt Close. But getting plant-based proteins to...
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...
Geltor – which has developed a computational biology platform to create a range of ‘designer’ functional proteins via microbial fermentation - will launch the world’s first ingestible ‘animal-free’ vegan collagen for the food and nutrition markets this...
Plant-based milk has captured 15% of the US fluid milk market. Plant-based cheese - which has been around for just as long - has captured less than 2%* of the market, because it's much more technically challenging to formulate, and consumers are...
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...
New Culture – one of a cluster of startups in the emerging ‘animal-free’ dairy space* engineering microbes to produce dairy milk proteins, without cows – is aiming to launch animal-free Mozzarella in late 2023.
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.
The FDA has responded with a letter of no objection to Cargill’s GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) notification for EpiCor – a ‘postbiotic’ ingredient claimed to have immune, digestive, and respiratory health benefits.
Oatly – which made its debut as a public company today (Nasdaq ticker: 'OTLY') after an IPO that raised $1.4bn – has started producing its first products from its new plant in Ogden, Utah, this month, opening up new capacity to meet surging...
Biohm Health, a company founded on the science relating to the importance of the fungal components of the gut microbiome, now has a testing tool that consumers can use to do their own assessments.
Arbiom is a start-up developing solutions to convert timber by-products into food and feed ingredients. The group recently unveiled its first protein ingredient, SylPro. We caught up with the company to find out more about its technology and commercialisation...
Impossible Foods is heading into K-12 schools across the US this month via pilot programs in California, Washington, and Oklahoma ahead of a wider K-12 market entry in the fall, after securing a Child Nutrition Label for its burgers from the USDA's...
US retail sales of plant-based milk surged 21.9% to $2.542bn in measured channels in the year to Jan. 24, 2021, while sales of plant-based cheese and yogurt (far smaller categories) were up 43.6% to $233.9m and 16.4% to $346.2m respectively in the year...
The ABV threshold at which kombucha switches from a non-alcoholic beverage to what is effectively 'beer' for tax purposes is currently set at 0.5%. The KOMBUCHA Act, reintroduced to Congress by Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR-3) and Senator...
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...
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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...
[UPDATE NOV 22, 2021: The authors of this report have just issued a corrigendum*] Cell-cultured meat could be cost competitive with some forms of conventional meat within a decade, according to two new studies from Dutch consultancy CE Delft using data...
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...
Forager Project has entered the burgeoning plant-based cheese category with a new line of organic products made from a base of cashews, starch, and coconut cream and oil, which it claims delivers the “cheesiest vegan cheese with the best melt and stretch.”
Wild Tonic Jun Kombucha (fermented from honey and green tea instead of traditional cane sugar and black tea) is banking on several growth trends in the kombucha category this year including its refreshed slim cans and expanding line of hard kombucha.
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...
In its ninth year, the 2020-2021 Danone North America Gut Microbiome, Yogurt and Probiotics Fellowship Grant will award two $25,000 grants to graduate students exploring links between the gut microbiome, probiotics and yogurt and human health and wellness.
What does a ‘healthy gut microbiome’ look like? And is an ‘unhealthy’ microbiome a corollary of poor health, or directly responsible for certain health conditions? If the latter is true, to what extent can we address these health problems by modulating...
Postbiotics is a term we’ll likely be hearing a lot more of in 2021, predicts ADM, which says the fermentation byproducts - which don’t require refrigeration or special processing conditions to maintain their viability - make an attractive addition to...
While interest in plant-based options for children is on the rise, meeting the high bar for taste and texture set by kids – who often are less willing than adults to compromise on experience for nutrition – can be a tall order, according to some nutritionists.
While the terms 'plant-based' and 'vegan' might appear to be interchangeable (they both exclude animal products), consumers do not view them in quite the same way, claims Foodchain ID, which has just launched separate 'vegan,'...
Research revealing how the starch structure of potato flakes impacts oil uptake during deep frying could enable snack makers to slash the fat content of Pringles-style potato chips by up to a third, say the authors of a new study.
Plant-based eggs, bacon, and everything inbetween… check out our gallery of plant-based brands and innovations to watch in 2021, from NotCo and Black Sheep Foods to Gold & Green. There are of course SCORES of exciting brands not covered here; this...
From a flurry of startups using microbes – instead of plants or animals – to produce proteins, to AI-driven platforms exploring ‘the dark matter of nutrition,’ and real honey produced without bees, check out our gallery of foodtech companies to watch...
While consumer understanding of prebiotics may still be in its infancy, basic knowledge around the topic is growing as more food and beverage brands enter the category, finds Kara Landau, founder of prebiotic functional food brand Uplift Food.
Cincinnati-based Graeter’s Ice Cream, a 150-year-old family-owned company, and Perfect Day, a San Francisco-based startup producing animal-free milk proteins via microbial fermentation, have partnered to launch “Perfect Indulgence”, a line of frozen desserts...
When the pandemic prompted some retailers to delay category resets or close their doors temporarily to new brands, the emerging wellness shot brand So Good So You didn’t dwell on delayed distribution opportunities – rather it doubled down support for...
Cargill is in advanced conversations with CPG brands about using EpiCor – a ‘postbiotic’ ingredient claimed to have immune, digestive, and respiratory health benefits – in a range of applications from yogurts to tea as it seeks to take it beyond dietary...
What will it take to make cell-cultured meat – growing animal cells outside of an animal to produce ‘real’ meat without slaughter – commercially viable on an industrial scale?
Impossible Foods is gearing up for market entry in Europe, China and Brazil; Beyond Meat is looking at “any and all plant-based protein sources” as it expands its ingredient toolbox; Meati Foods is preparing to launch fungi-based steaks, and Planterra...
Innovation at the hands of forward-thinking entrepreneurs will be key to creating a more sustainable food system and healthier population, Whole Foods Market CEO John Mackey told attendees of an online discussion about the new documentary, 'They...
New data shows oatmilk – a relative newcomer to the US plant-based milk category – has overtaken soy to take the #2 spot in the category behind almondmilk. But what are consumers looking for from their oatmilks, do they expect them to be fortified, and...
School closures – and tentative re-openings – have compounded stress levels for families, while COVID-19-induced economic anxiety is also straining household budgets. So how can food and beverage brands come up with enticing – but affordable – recipes,...
US retail sales of refrigerated kombucha and other fermented beverages edged up 2.4% to $703.2m in measured channels* in the year to July 12, 2020, with dollar sales up 5.1% in the conventional (MULO) channel but down -6.1% in the natural channel, delegates...
Plant-based protein specialist PURIS – a key supplier of pea protein to Beyond Meat - is rolling out a series of new products this year including a pea syrup that can serve as an alternative to corn-, brown rice- or tapioca syrup; and sweet lupin flour,...
Clio Snacks -- known its for chilled, chocolate-covered Greek yogurt bars -- has closed an $8m series C fundraising round led by long-term investment partner Alliance Consumer Growth (ACG) and new investor in the brand, AF Ventures, bringing total investment...
There are over 1,600 human clinical trials on probiotics listed in ClinicalTrials.gov and the WHO’s trial database, according to a new analysis that seeks to address the misconception that there is no human data around probiotics.
Chobani has moved into new territory with the launch of Chobani Probiotic: a new line of organic, plant-based functional beverages; and Chobani Complete: a new line of protein- and fiber-packed lactose-free Greek yogurt cups and shakes with no added sugar,...
Americans need to more than halve their consumption of added sugars, reducing average consumption from 13% of daily energy intake to just 6%, the equivalent of 30g for someone on a 2,000 calorie-a-day diet, according to the expert committee advising the...