Billed as friendlier on the gut, The a2 Milk Co's milk comes from cows that only produce A2 beta casein protein. But how much science is behind it, and what share could it ultimately take of the US fluid milk market? We caught up with Blake Waltrip,...
Boston-based Motif FoodWorks says it is “very confident” it will prevail in its legal spat with Impossible Foods over a new generation of ‘meaty’ flavors produced by precision fermentation.
Worth an estimated $1.94b globally in 2020 and slated to grow at a compound annual rate of 17.7%, according to Research & Markets data*, the plant-based yogurt category is hitting its stride, even as manufacturers struggle to balance nutrition, mouthfeel...
Tattooed Chef, a rapidly-growing plant-based frozen foods brand, is entering new categories beyond the frozen foods aisle and into refrigerated snack bars and snacking chips.
Kraft Heinz has just teamed up with foodtech startup NotCo to create a joint venture that will develop co-branded plant-based foods across multiple categories, with the first products to launch this year. FoodNavigator-USA caught up with NotCo co-founder...
The temporary freeze on mergers and acquisitions in the food and beverage space seen in the early days of the coronavirus outbreak is long gone as deal making in the segment rebounded in 2021 to levels rivaling pre-pandemic – but many of the companies...
FoodNavigator travels to Paris to take its first bite of a cell-based chicken ingredient, asking the chef: ‘What’s it like to cook with cultivated meat?’
With the holiday season in full swing, Americans who are looking for safe ways to celebrate with friends and family increasingly are turning to dessert boards – a flexible, emerging trend that Dawn Foods says meets evolving consumer demands, has ‘unlimited...
Roquette - a key supplier of protein to Beyond Meat – has opened what it claims is the world’s largest pea protein plant in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, Canada, becoming the first player to operate major pea protein facilities on both sides of the Atlantic....
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist (although it did take a materials scientist) to work out that if you can double, triple, or even quadruple the shelf-life of fresh produce, you can slash food waste, and save money.
While scientists are still unlocking the secrets of the microbiome, it’s becoming increasingly clear that the billions of bugs in our bodies are intimately connected to our health and wellbeing. But how far have we come since Jamie Lee Curtis first introduced...
Fresh Bellies has pivoted away from its original line of HPP fresh baby food and refocused its resources and efforts on the kids snacking category, a decision CEO and founder Saskia Sorrosa says has put the brand on the map in a big way.
As Vejii prepares to go public on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) in the coming weeks, co-founder and CEO Kory Zelickson shares how the company is leveraging its data and consumer insights to create the best plant-based shopping experience for...
Supply chain challenges exacerbated by the pandemic have bolstered consumer interest in buying local to better support farmers, ensure product quality and reduce environmental impact, but many do not want to sacrifice the savings or year-around variety...
Outer Aisle Gourmet – which makes sandwich thins, pizza crusts, and wraps using fresh cauliflower as the #1 ingredient – is gearing up to open its third manufacturing facility to meet growing demand for its grain-free, low-carb products.
When it comes to packaging, is it always clear which is the most environmentally-friendly choice? Mixed material packaging combining high levels of paperboard, for example, is often touted as a greener choice than plastic, but if most of it ends up in...
From plant-based and nutritionally enhanced products to improved sustainability and packaging innovations, the 45 startups participating in FoodBytes! by Rabobank’s Pitch 2021 competition announced today hit on some of the hottest trends and biggest challenges...
For a company with an over 90-year history, Ocean Spray is still in its early days of tapping into the kids beverage category with its Growing Goodness line, a functional line of kids juice products with no added sugar.
Climate change, labor shortages, inflation and strained supply chains threaten manufacturers’ and suppliers’ ability to ethically source, safely produce and efficiently deliver the foods consumers want at prices they can afford -- but what if there was...
The latest consumer price index reveals food prices have climbed 3.4% over the past year, reflecting a slow but steady month over month increase that likely won’t stop any time soon as ingredient, material and labor shortages continue.
Meat, egg, and dairy ‘alternatives’ usually come with qualifying language (plant-based eggs; meatless nuggets, oatmilk). But what should we call next generation products that are not simply mimicking the real thing, but in many cases, are the ‘real’ thing,...
Recruiting and maintaining top talent in the food industry was difficult long before the coronavirus outbreak, but for many retailers and manufacturers labor challenges have intensified during the pandemic as the type of work, where it takes place and...
The premium ice cream business can be pretty brutal – just ask Three Twins, Clemmy’s and Ample Hills – with regional brands now slugging it out with multinationals and a flurry of VC-backed startups in a market offering a bewildering array of options...
The nascent allergen introduction category is gaining credibility, visibility and reach with retailer Target creating in select stores a dedicated section of products that help caregivers conveniently and safely follow clinical guidelines to introduce...
Forced by the pandemic to change where and how they buy groceries, consumers in the past 16 months have been exposed to a wide range of shopping experiences – online and in store, good and bad – which simultaneously eroded their loyalty and raised their...
For a fraction of the price and hassle of in-person sampling or focus groups, the new product discovery and data analytics platform Snack Drop allows emerging brands to offer goods directly to consumers in exchange for honest feedback and detailed information...
Convincing children to eat their vegetables doesn’t have to be a struggle, according to the founders of Tiny Organics, who, with an infusion of $11 million in Series A funding, are helping kids break the sugar addiction with which they are born by replacing...
With a new name and a new fund, Loft Growth Partners – formerly known as 2x Consumer Products Growth Partners for the past 20 years – is looking to invest $60m in six or seven emerging brands that solve complex problems, are led by ‘pathological optimists’...
Poverty in the coffee industry is an “enduring crisis,” despite US consumers’ willingness to pay upwards of $16-$22 per 12-ounce bag of roasted coffee and a premium for products that promise to ethically source beans and pay farmers a fair price.
While most Americans know dairy milk can help growing children build strong bones and healthy bodies, they may not realize it also can help athletes and everyday people of all ages perform better and recover faster – something the California Milk Advisory...
The unprecedented shift to ecommerce during the pandemic and predictions that many consumers will continue to buy groceries online even after it is safe to return to retail stores has elevated the importance of an omnichannel strategy – but according...
With digital commerce sales accelerating during the pandemic and expected to climb from $35 billion to more than $250 billion by 2025, Danone North America is reallocating traditional marketing dollars to online in a bid to better drive consumer engagement...
The shift in food consumption towards the home in the early weeks and months of the coronavirus pandemic has been well-documented, with many packaged food products experiencing a noticeable uplift. But have things since returned to 'normal,'...
For many consumers a freshly toasted bagel is a source of joy, comfort – and guilt, but thanks to food-tech startup Better Brand Inc.’s proprietary Grain-changing Technology, Americans can soon enjoy a clean label option that tastes and functions like...
Startup Alchemy FoodTech is arming manufacturers of baked goods, pasta, rice and other products high in refined-carbs with a new weapon in the war against carbs led by advocates of the keto, paleo and other low-carb diets.
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...
A new early-stage venture capital fund sees significant upside for financing food and beverage startups that may be too small for many other VC investors, but which in a few years could help meet “pent up demand” for innovation from large CPG players...
“By 2035, every tenth portion of meat, eggs, and dairy eaten around the globe is very likely to be alternative,” says a new report from Boston Consulting Group and Blue Horizon Corporation predicting alternative proteins could account for 11% ($290bn)...
As part of a “moonshot” to end hunger and eliminate food waste, The Kroger Co.’s Zero Hunger Zero Waste Foundation and seed stage funder Village Capital are offering $2.5 million in collective grants and development programming to 10 innovative startups...
Known for its strong track record of helping emerging brands, like KIND, Bare Snacks and Spindrift, become household names, private equity firm VMG Partners is on the lookout once again for new investment opportunities after securing $850m for its Growth...
As the ongoing pandemic accelerates consumer interest in the role of nutrition in wellness and underscores the supply chain’s fragility, the investors at Manna Tree Partners are looking for at least three growth stage companies that are revolutionizing...
Most startups have more questions than funding, which means when they come across something they don’t know they lose time, resources and occasionally their businesses finding the answer the hard way – but a new program from the food brand builders at...
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...
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.
A new business model developed by Milwaukee-based startup Agricycle that combines a vertically-integrated supply chain with a portfolio of upcycled brands is proving that with a little imagination and basic resources small growers can have an outsized...
Rising consumer concern about the long-term detrimental impact on children’s health and palate development from baby food overly-sweetened or predominately packed with fruit is opening the door for a new cohort of entrepreneurs promoting vegetable- and...
PepsiCo is driving incremental growth for two of its hottest brands by bringing together flavored sparkling water bubly and at home water carbonation platform SodaStream to launch a line of bubly drops that will hit store shelves and ecommerce this month.
When launching a business, founders often are asked to rely on friends, family and their community for financial support and guidance until they have proof of concept – but not all networks are created equally and entrepreneurs without affluent or influential...
Pandemic-fueled consumer demand for food that is healthier, more sustainable, ethically produced and easier to access has fueled a “burst of investment” in food-tech in 2020 that Finistere Ventures predicts will have a lasting impact on the industry long...
While the pandemic may have slowed the flow of venture capital funding in some segments of the packaged food and beverage industry earlier this year, analysis from Finistere Ventures shows it threw open the tap for the food- and ag-tech sectors, which...
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