Fats & oils

Futureproofing the Food System

Watch this week: FoodNavigator-USA’s digital summit explores trends in food-tech, food as medicine and the circular economy

13-Nov-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

This week, join FoodNavigator-USA and stakeholders across the supply chain, including Eat Just, The Hartman Group, Oishii, NotCo, Instacart, NIQ, Consumer Brands Association, FMI – The Food Industry Association, Cargill and more for our three-day Futureproofing...

US butterfat is experiencing a resurgence – and trade opportunities await

09-Nov-2023 By Teodora Lyubomirova

CoBank lead economist for dairy Corey Geiger believes the ‘butterfat boom’ is set to provide exciting opportunities for dairy producers and consumers alike.

Don DiMasi joins Yali Bio, focuses on scaling up designer fat ingredients

07-Nov-2023 By Deniz Ataman

As designer fat supplier Yali Bio's first senior vice president of engineering and biomanufacturing, Don DiMasi will focus on expanding the company's biomanufacturing capacity and developing new processes to economically scale up fermentation...

‘It is crucial for consumer acceptance’: Replacing animal fats in plant-based food

18-Oct-2023 By Augustus Bambridge-Sutton

While with any food, ‘taste is king,’ texture is also extremely important, especially in products aiming to mimic meat. For optimal texture, many manufacturers argue, animal fats, which contribute significantly to the texture of real meat, must be replicated...

Futureproofing the Food System: What will it take to deliver on the promise of alternative proteins?

17-Oct-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

Between FDA and USDA greenlighting the sale of cultivated chicken in the US, the ground-breaking of a large-scale precision fermentation facilities and advances in molecular farming, 2023 has been a banner year for novel protein production. But the path...

Scentian Bio synthesizes insect biosensors to improve quality control processes for food and beverage

13-Oct-2023 By Deniz Ataman

Insects can offer the food and beverage industry more than a rich protein source – their heightened scent and taste capabilities can also help manage quality control, according to Jonathan Good, CEO of Scentian Bio, which has digitized their smell receptors...

California Food Safety Act signed into law, bans four food additives by Jan. 2027

10-Oct-2023 By Deniz Ataman

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the California Food Safety Act on Oct. 7, 2023. The statewide legislation, the first of its kind in the US, “will prohibit any food product manufactured, sold, delivered, distributed, held or offered for sale in...

Nourish Ingredients teams with Boston Bioprocess to scale animal-free specialty fats

20-Sep-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

Nourish Ingredients, a frontrunner in the burgeoning ‘animal-free’ specialty fat segment, is teaming with Boston Bioprocess to efficiently scale the most “potent fat molecules” responsible for replicating the “animalic” aroma, flavor and taste of meat...

Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee

Consumer Brands Association urges DGAC to develop more research on ultra-processed foods

13-Sep-2023 By Deniz Ataman

The Consumer Brands Association is pushing back against the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee’s intention to explore the health impact and future role of ultra-processed foods in the American diet, noting at a meeting hosted by HHS and USDA yesterday...

Melt&Marble creates animal-free fats to help close taste gap between alternative, animal proteins

31-Aug-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

To help close the taste-gap between alternative proteins and their animal-based counterparts, food-tech startup Melt&Marble is expanding and improving the selection and performance of available animal-free fats, which it says ultimately will help...

ELAVI expands its gut-friendly portfolio with plant-based cashew butter jars

21-Aug-2023 By Deniz Ataman

On trend with the healthy indulgence movement, ELAVI launches its low sugar, gut-friendly and plant-based cashew butter jars, adding to its existing portfolio of nut butter packets and snack bars.

IFT FIRST: U.S. Soy demonstrates the versatility of soy ingredients in product formulations

01-Aug-2023 By Ryan Daily

Soy offers a host of functional benefits that meet consumer demand for better-for-you and plant-based products, making it ideal for a range of product applications, Jean Heggie, consultant for U.S. Soy, told FoodNavigator-USA at IFT FIRST.

Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: Students lobby for more plant-based school meal options

31-Jul-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

While regulators, legislators and industry stakeholders debate whether whole, 2% and flavored milks should be offered alongside plain, low-fat and fat-free options as a required component of school meals, a growing number of students are raising concerns...

Standards could help curb fraudulent avocado oil with nearly 70% of private label samples rancid or impure

27-Jul-2023 By Lauren Nardella

A follow up study assessing the purity of avocado oil found not much has changed over the past several years, with researchers at University of California Davis determining that the majority of private label avocado oils on the market are rancid or mixed...

IFT FIRST

IFT FIRST preview: Kemin’s new InnoBLQ cuts fat, costs of battered, breaded foods

20-Jul-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

A new functional protein created by Kemin and launching at IFT FIRST in Chicago this month promises to cut the fat – and manufacturing costs – associated with battered, breaded and fried foods without compromising the full-flavor and satisfying crunch...

IFT FIRST 2023: AAK, Bartek Ingredients, Cargill, Fruit d’Or preview indulgent innovations

12-Jul-2023 By Ryan Daily

At IFT FIRST this month, food and beverage ingredient companies from across the supply chain will gather to demonstrate their latest innovations in indulgent tastes, as CPG brands look for product solutions to meet the consumer demand for sweet treats...

IFT FIRST

IFT FIRST Startup Pavilion highlights innovative solutions to today’s pressing challenges

12-Jul-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

The Startup Pavilion at the Institute of Food Technologists’ annual Food Improved by Research Science and Technology (IFT FIRST) conference in Chicago this month will be twice as big as it was at last year’s annual conference, reflecting the urgency and...

Future Food Tech Alternative Proteins

Turning the tide on alternative seafood: Strategies to close the supply-demand gap

11-Jul-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

The alternative seafood segment may be a small fraction of the size of its counterparts in plant-based and animal-free dairy and meat currently, but the sector is primed for growth as demand for seafood outpaces supply and concern about the oceans’ health...

Summer Fancy Food Show

Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: Six trends to watch from the Summer Fancy Food Show

10-Jul-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

At the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City late last month emerging and established brands were going back to basics with simplified ingredients, streamlined packaging, clear cut benefits and natural – if not always familiar – flavor profiles.

Ice cream from algae? Sophie’s BioNutrients’ chlorella-based ice cream claims to boast more B12 than dairy

29-Jun-2023 By Teodora Lyubomirova

Microalgae cultivation as a topic may be more apt for the biofuel industry, but scientific research has shown that these microscopic organisms can also be utilized as a sustainable food source.

Unilever boosts fat release in vegan bacon with new plant tech

12-Jun-2023 By Flora Southey

Unilever’s plant-based meat brand The Vegetarian Butcher has updated its vegan bacon alternative to better mimic its conventional counterpart.

Sweets & Snacks Expo

How retailers can enhance impulse purchases in-store and online

31-May-2023 By Deniz Ataman

While e-commerce impulse buys are evolving, in-store purchases are still critical in capturing snack and candy consumers—with the self-checkout lane offering tremendous potential growth for both brands and retailers, Kathy Risch, senior vice president,...

Sweets & Snacks Expo

Unwrapping consumers' candy and snack preferences across generations

31-May-2023 By Deniz Ataman

Despite inflationary pressures, consumers at all life stages continue to treat themselves both in-store and online with candy and snacks, Acosta Group's Kathy Risch shares in this first story in the two part series about consumers' candy and...

Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee needs to be “free of food industry commercial interest," advocates argue

16-May-2023 By Deniz Ataman

A lack of transparency around 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee members' affiliation with industry trade groups and multinational brands sparked scrutiny by public health advocates after last week's committee meeting.

Consumer interest in animal-free dairy builds, but many still have questions about processing, safety

27-Apr-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

While most consumers are willing to buy animal-free dairy made with precision-fermentation, a sizeable portion are either unsure or unwilling to try it – revealing a potential stumbling block that if left unaddressed could be just as damning for the nascent...

BabyBel maker Bel Group, biotech Climax Foods partner to refine plant-based cheese with AI

12-Apr-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

Iconic cheesemaker Bel Group and biotech startup Climax Foods are teaming up to create the next generation of “best in class” plant-based cheese that they say will be indistinguishable from their dairy counterparts with “zero-compromise” on taste, texture...

Bunge debuts balanced energy molecule for muscle health in U.S.

21-Mar-2023 By Asia Sherman

Bunge Loders Croklaan – a global producer and supplier of plant-based lipids – is bringing its novel NuliGo molecule to the US market to support muscle health in the trending sports nutrition and active aging categories.

Cargill aims to be “an inclusive protein provider” with portfolio, recent partnerships

15-Mar-2023 By Ryan Daily

As CPG brands look to innovate in the plant-based meats category, they often meet a host of formulation challenges, including ensuring products have a similar taste, texture, and appearance as their animal-based counterparts. At Natural Products Expo...

Are all saturated fats equal? Research examines saturated fatty acid chain length and effect on heart health

07-Mar-2023 By Lauren Nardella

Saturated fatty acid chain length should be taken into consideration when assessing the impact on heart health, a new study suggests, indicating an opening for food marketers to differentiate the types of saturated fats used in their products and for...

Aloha, Terviva team to launch plant-based protein bar featuring much-anticipated, ‘ultra-sustainable’ Ponova oil

01-Mar-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

Ahead of schedule and in partnership with like-minded plant-based protein brand Aloha, California-based Terviva’s much-anticipated, “ultra-sustainable” Ponova oil is debuting in its first commercially available food – a limited edition bar that celebrates...

Upcycling sawdust to make alternative oils and fats

09-Feb-2023 By Oliver Morrison

Estonian start-up ÄIO joins the ranks of those brewing solutions to replace palm oil, coconut oil and animal fats with sustainable and healthier alternatives.

Hooray Foods’ plant-based bacon bucks declines in overall meat alternatives

09-Feb-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

Against the grim backdrop of tumbling sales, units and volume for fresh and frozen alternative proteins, plant-based bacon is emerging as a bright spot – with sales inching up, thanks in part to innovative production techniques, like those championed...

Dissecting cultivated meat regulation part 1: What’s working in Europe and Israel, and what’s not?

08-Feb-2023 By Flora Southey

Achieving pre-market authorisation to put cultivated meat on people’s plates is no easy feat. With different geographies handling the regulatory process in their own unique ways, we dissect how it works in the EU and Israel, and ask how these systems...

Stricter school meal standards could require reformulation to lower sodium, fat and sugar

03-Feb-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

Research shows school meals are the healthiest source of nutrition for most students in the US, but the US Department of Agriculture thinks they can be healthier, which is why it is proposing stricter standards that would reduce added sugars, fat and...

ByHeart to triple its production of infant formula, reinforce supply chain with facility acquisitions

30-Jan-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

With this month’s acquisitions of an additional domestic manufacturing facility and an FDA-registered packaging and blending facility, infant formula company ByHeart successfully consolidated its supply chain and significantly boosted its production capacity...

DSM builds algal portfolio to help meet the growing demand for omega-3

18-Jan-2023 By Stephen Daniells

DSM is expanding its algal omega-3 portfolio, driven by a gradual convergence in prices between fish and algal oil, and a focus on sustainability.

Filippo Berio USA’s new CEO sets aggressive growth strategy for olive oil focused on westward expansion, diversified consumers

18-Jan-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

After leading Filippo Berio to become the No. 1 brand for olive oil, pesto and vinegar in more than 20 countries across Central and Eastern Europe and in Russia, Dusan Kaljevic hopes to work his magic again in the US where this month he assumed the position...

‘The most comprehensive study on cultivated meat production published to date….’ Believer Meats data shines light on cell cultured meat metrics

11-Jan-2023 By Elaine Watson

A study published in the journal Nature Food outlining key production metrics at cultivated meat co Believer Meats, “shatters” some of the assumptions made in a high-profile article in The Counter, which argued that cell-cultured meat faced “intractable”...

Unilever rethinks formulation strategy, noting: ‘Just taste is no longer enough’ to win

11-Jan-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

Taste may be considered king by most food and beverage makers, but at Unilever it no longer reigns supreme after the CPG giant adopted a new ‘holistically superior’ product testing framework and ‘boldly healthier’ food commitments for 2025 – a move that...

‘It all comes down to rate, titer, and yield…' Precision fermentation startup Seminal Biosciences gears up for 2024 launch of cocoa butter alternative

10-Jan-2023 By Elaine Watson

San Diego-based Seminal Biosciences – one of a growing number of startups deploying precision fermentation to produce specialty fats – is aiming to get its first product, a cocoa butter alternative, to market next year in a dark chocolate bar, with additional...

Bel Brands, Perfect Day launch animal-free cream cheese to expand exposure, appeal of dairy alternatives to mainstream shoppers

09-Dec-2022 By Elizabeth Crawford

While the alternative cheese market remains relatively small and the focus of a niche consumer-base of vegan and lactose-intolerant consumers, a partnership between cheesemaker Bel Brands USA and animal-free dairy protein innovator Perfect Day seeks to...

Doehler invests in lab-grown palm oil alternative

06-Dec-2022 By Flora Southey

The German ingredients supplier is investing in UK-based Clean Food Group (CFG) – a start-up developing a bio-equivalent cultivated alternative to palm oil – via its investment arm, Doehler Ventures.

c16 Biosciences gears up to launch fermentation-based palm oil replacement for personal care in 2023, food in 2024

28-Nov-2022 By Elaine Watson

Utilized in everything from lipsticks and moisturizers to baked goods and confectionery, palm oil comes with environmental and societal costs – displacing tropical forests across Asia, Latin America and West Africa, and destroying the habitats of endangered...

Many US adults misjudge the quality of their diets, study finds

17-Nov-2022 By Mary Ellen Shoup

While most adults are aware of the importance of fruits and vegetables in their diets, many individuals overestimate the quality of their daily diets, new research from the American Heart Association has found.

Animal-free dairy: New Culture attracts new funding; Change Foods eyes up Abu Dhabi for new plant: 'There is a massive commercial manufacturing capacity bottleneck in the industry'

04-Nov-2022 By Elaine Watson

Two US-based precision fermentation startups making real dairy ingredients using microbes instead of cows have announced significant developments as they gear up to launch next year in the emerging ‘animal-free dairy’ category.

‘A golden color, slow melting curve and high smoke point…’New plant-based oil on the block from pongamia trees to hit market by mid-2023 as Terviva teams up with Ciranda

25-Oct-2022 By Elaine Watson

Terviva – a California-based firm commercializing ingredients from low-input, high-yielding pongamia trees – has teamed up with food ingredient supplier Ciranda to launch the first commercial supplies of ‘Ponova’ oil by mid-2023.

Plant-based cheese by numbers: Small declines in dollars and units overall, but big variations within category

24-Oct-2022 By Elaine Watson

SPINS data shared with FoodNavigator-USA ahead of our Futureproofing the Food System virtual summit (Nov 15-17) shows a mixed picture for US retail sales of plant-based cheese, with overall dollar sales down -2.3% to $218.94m and unit sales down -3.6%...

What’s the future of meat? Join Beyond Meat, Air Protein, Meati Foods, Orbillion Bio and the GFI at Futureproofing the Food System

21-Oct-2022 By Elaine Watson

The long-term imperative behind reducing our reliance on animal agriculture seems fairly compelling: The planet can’t sustain it. But with less engaged consumers dipping in and then out of the meat alternatives category as budgets tighten, and a subsegment...

‘A quantum leap in taste and experience of alternative protein products…’ Nourish Ingredients raises $28.6m to commercialize designer animal-free fats in 2023

19-Oct-2022 By Elaine Watson

Nourish Ingredients – one of a new breed of startups deploying synthetic biology to program microbes to produce more animal-like fats - has raised $28.6m in a series A round led by Horizons Ventures and supported by Main Sequence Ventures and Hostplus...

More hikes imminent: EU’s deforestation stance set to cause food price rises – policy experts

11-Oct-2022 By Pearly Neo

The EU’s recent approval of its controversial deforestation regulation is expected to drive up the cost of palm oil and other affected commodities, and thus food and beverage prices, amid ongoing inflationary pressures that have already affected a majority...