Innovation still drives the food landscape even though “treasure hunting” may look different now than before the pandemic sidelined casual in-store consumer browsing and retailers and brands rationalized SKUs to focus on best-sellers to alleviate supply...
Market projections for meat and dairy alternatives vary wildly, with Impossible Foods’ CEO predicting animal agriculture could hit a ‘death spiral’ by 2035, while Wells Fargo reckons plant-based meat will account for a rather more modest 4% of the US...
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),...
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,...
Five years after the United Nations celebrated 2016 as the International Year of Pulses to raise awareness of legumes’ nutritional value and sustainability, SPINS data shows sales of dried beans are skyrocketing as consumers look for more nutrient-dense...
Earth Island (Follow Your Heart) co-founder and CEO Bob Goldberg has always had an independent streak, telling reporters over the years he’s happy dancing to his own tune despite periodic overtures from big CPG suitors. Last month, however, he inked a...
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.”
Maple Leaf Foods will continue to invest heavily in plant-based protein, including renovating and relaunching two of North America’s “best-known and most-loved” brands Lightlife and Field Roast, although the division fell far short of company targets...
'When these restaurant chains move, the entire food industry takes notice...'
In a clear signal that plant-based meat is hitting the mainstream, Beyond Meat has announced global partnerships with two of the biggest players in fast food: McDonald’s, and Yum! Brands (KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut), a month after striking a deal with...
Nestlé reported ‘strong’ growth of its plant-based brands when it delivered its full year results. But, CEO Mark Schneider stressed, the opportunity is much bigger than meat-free burgers or bangers.
Plant-based based ingredient supplier PURIS Holdings and LIVEKINDLY Collective have entered two joint ventures to create a path towards affordable and accessible plant-based food products.
Hot on the heels of price cuts to foodservice distributors, Impossible Foods is cutting prices to US grocery stores and supermarkets, taking suggested retail prices for two patty packs down 20% to $5.49, and 12oz bricks down to $6.99.
Ingredient supplier Kerry has introduced a web-based tool designed to help food and beverage manufacturers with their plant-based product formulation challenges.
What are the primary purchase drivers for plant-based foods? Should humans drink cow’s milk? Why don’t the Dietary Guidelines address sustainability? And could tapping into consumer interest in the microbiome help make fiber the go-to functional ingredient...
PepsiCo and Beyond Meat will form The PLANeT Partnership to develop, produce and market beverages and snacks made from plant-based protein. PepsiCo says plant-based protein offers ‘a new frontier’ in its efforts to build a more sustainable food system,...
If high-tech reverse engineering has enabled a second generation of meat analogs that precisely mimic their animal-based counterparts, a third wave of plant-based innovation will meet demand for less processed, more culinary-inspired products featuring...
Vancouver, Canada-based Eat Beyond Global Holdings has completed an investment in Above Food Inc.– a distributor of plant-based ingredients and finished products – adding the company to its publicly-traded portfolio of emerging alternative protein companies.
Private equity firm Vestar Capital Partners has made a majority growth investment into Dr. Praeger's Sensible Foods, which makes a range of frozen and refrigerated vegan and vegetarian burgers, sausages and nuggets, appetizers, and snacks.
Israeli start-up Redefine Meat has pulled off the ‘world’s largest’ blind taste test for its 3D printed meat alternative. The taste test targeted meat-eaters and the results are in. The company secured over a 90% acceptance rate.
Plant-based meal options are becoming more common at family dining tables this holiday season as 70% of households plan to have at least one plant-based dish on the table, according to results from a OnePoll survey commissioned by Eat Just, Inc.
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.
Chobani has moved further into the functional foods arena with the launch of probiotic yogurts and shakes, which follow hot on the heels of its plant-based probiotic beverage and protein- and fiber-packed Chobani Complete range, which hit shelves in the...
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,'...
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...
US plant-based seafood brand Good Catch is expanding in Europe, having secured listings in the Netherlands and Spain. “We have a passion for the culinary arts, for saving our oceans and for providing craveable plant-based products for consumers that believe...
Red is set to become a trending color in the food and beverage industry heading into 2021 as the shade can help signal the "start of a new era," says EXBERRY Coloring Foods supplier GNT Group.
Toronto-based Mother Raw, a fast-growing brand of fresh, plant-based dressings, condiments, and quesos, has closed a US$6.1m Series A financing round to accelerate distribution across the US while expanding marketing and innovation initiatives, said CEO...
The plant-based meat category is becoming increasingly competitive, with legacy brands vying for shelf space with multinationals, well-funded foodtech players, and a host of enterprising startups, says No Evil Foods co-founder Sadrah Schadel. But independent...
Unilever is targeting annual sales of €1bn ($1.19bn - or around five times what it's selling today) from plant-based meat and dairy alternatives within five to seven years as part of a broader plan to make plant-based options more accessible, affordable...
Beyond Meat will gradually replace its flagship plant-based Beyond Burger in 2021 with two new variations: a “juicier and meatier” burger featuring 35% less saturated fat than 80/20 beef burgers, and its “most nutritious patty yet,” featuring 55% less...
SunOpta has struck a deal to sell its Tradin global ingredients business to Amsterdam-based global commodity trading co Amsterdam Commodities N.V. (‘Acomo’) for €330m ($390m) as it lays out its vision to become “a high-growth, plant-based company.”
Protein-fueled organic snack brand IWON Organics has raised $500k in a new funding round and is gearing up to launch a new product in 2021 that will take it into new territory, says founder and CEO Mark Samuel, who has just picked up some new distribution...
After scooping up Lightlife and Field Roast in recent acquisitions, Maple Leaf Foods should have been well-positioned to capitalize on the rising demand for plant-based meat and dairy during the pandemic, but instead COVID-19 related supply chain struggles...
Do children like oatmilk and Beyond Burgers? Research* shows that US families with children over-index for plant-based milk and yogurt sales and that parents of children under 18 are more likely to think that plant-based proteins are healthier than animal-based...
Verso Food has secured a patent covering its fava bean processing technology for plant-based foods and meat analogues. FoodNavigator hears from the company's CEO Tomi Järvenpää about the product development opportunities it could unlock, the group’s...
With oatmilk muscling ahead of soymilk to become the #2 player in the plant-based milk category, SunOpta is aggressively building capacity to meet growing demand, with a new oat extraction facility in Alexandria, Minnesota, due to come online in the fourth...
Plant-based egg firm Eat just will open its first Asia manufacturing site in Singapore after securing a US120m partnership with a consortium led by Proterra Investment – with the two outfits also discussing opportunities in the cultured meat space.
Kroger has added more than 50 items -- from oat milk ice cream and non-dairy cheese to the debut of Emerge Chik'n -- to its Simple Truth plant-based collection to meet consumers' growing appetite for plant-based alternatives.
The authors of a 2019 report from RethinkX predicting that the US dairy and cattle industry would collapse by 2030 as microscopic microbial protein factories disrupt the food system as we know it were dismissed by some as living in a ‘vegan fantasyland.'...
As plant-based protein gains acceptance with mainstream consumers, manufacturers and investors are looking beyond the flash of new brands to consider the needs – and marketing opportunities – around services and ingredients that support increased production...
With most retail chains now stocking a wide selection of plant-based burgers, sausages, and grounds, retailers and investors are looking for areas of untapped opportunity in the plant-based meat space, says Berkeley-based startup Renegade Food, which...
Daring Foods – a startup seeking to punch above its weight in the plant-based chicken category via a lower calorie product with a shorter, cleaner, ingredients list and bold branding – has closed an $8m Series A funding round led by VC firm Maveron, taking...
Looking back, spring 2020 was not the ideal time to debut in grocery retail, observes Planterra Foods CEO Darcey Macken, who was gearing up to make a splash in the plant-based meat set in mid-April with the OZO brand before a certain pandemic threw a...
Lavva – best-known for its pili nut and plaintain-fueled plant-based yogurts – has moved into the plant-based milk category with a higher-fat product made with three ingredients: organic coconut water, filtered water, and pili nuts; with no added sugar,...
Santiago-based food tech company NotCo has closed an $85m Series C funding round co-led by Future Positive and L Catterton,* and is gearing up for a move into the US market in late 2020 or early 2021.
Giving up meat was tough… but there are lot of great alternatives out there, says LOCA Food founder Lauren Joyner, a UX designer turned food entrepreneur. Giving up nacho cheese sauce – a staple of her childhood diet – was a whole different ballgame....
