Meati Foods, a developer of mycelium-based vegan meat products, has introduced four new products to its Eat Meati range. The new products aim to bring ‘delicious, convenient nutrition’ for easier mealtimes. They include Crispy Bites – the company’s take on a chicken nugget – as well as a Garlic & Pepper Steak, Spicy Crispy Cutlet and Italian Seasoned Cutlet. The Spicy Crispy Cutlet offers the familiar crispiness from Meati’s original Crispy Cutlet, spiced with red pepper and cayenne. The Italian Seasoned Cutlet is a herb-forward juicy cutlet flavoured with rosemary, oregano and thyme. Crispy Bites are available online now, while the other three products are available in special holiday bundles and for standalone purchase in December. Meati said it intends to make all four products available in retail locations. Each of the products are created using Meati’s MushroomRoot ingredient, offering high protein and fibre content. Scott Tassani, president and chief operating officer at Meati Foods, said: “It’s easy for nutrition to fall by the wayside in favor of convenience and flavour when consumers are constantly on the go”. He added: “We’re looking forward to hearing reactions to each of these products geared toward convenient nutrition and the simple idea that flavour, nutrition and ease of cooking can be of equal prominence at the table”. #MeatiFoods #plantbasedmeat #US

Dreamfarm, a plant-based cheese start-up, has secured a new investment of €5 million to expand production, distribution and R&D. Dreamfarm, based in Parma, Italy, was founded in 2021 with a mission of creating 100% plant-based cheese alternatives that are delicious, healthy and clean label. The company launched its first products to market in May this year after two years of R&D, debuting a plant-based mozzarella alternative and a spreadable variant. The start-up claims its mozzarella is the world’s first plant-based alternative with government-certified liquid status and a Nutriscore A rating. The cheeses are created through the fermentation of almonds using selected cultures. Founders Maddalena Zanoni and Mattia Sandei wanted to create a plant-based cheese range that is ‘nutritionally superior’ to existing products worldwide. They were recently joined by Giovanni Menozzi as CEO. Investments came from Giampaolo Cagnin, a serial entrepreneur who founded Italiana Ingredienti, Campus and Hi-Food, and Francesco Mutti, the owner and CEO of the Mutti Group. Dreamfarm’s CEO Menozzi said: “Dreamfarm’s alternative to mozzarella is an innovative product with less than 1% saturated fat, making it appealing to consumers increasingly conscious of sustainability and nutritional profiles, but unwilling to compromise on the goodness of a typically Italian product”. He added: “It’s a dream come true to create a venture like Dreamfarm right here and have entrepreneurs of this calibre as part of our team. The sector is experiencing significant growth, and we are confident that we can make a global impact with the type of products we have and will continue to develop.” #Dreamfarm #Italy #plantbasedcheese

Laird Superfood has launched its new Antioxidant Daily Reds supplement drink, formulated to support muscle recovery and cardiovascular health. The company, a developer of functional coffee and creamers known for its collection of plant-based products with adaptogens, launched the product with an aim to help US consumers meet daily nutritional goals. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 91% of Americans do not consume enough vegetables and 88% do not consume enough fruit. Laird Superfood said its product can support American consumers in closing this gap by providing two servings of their recommended daily allowance of fruits and vegetables in each glass. According to the company, the red and orange fruits and vegetables included in its drink can offer high levels of antioxidants which help to combat free radicals that may accumulate in the body and can also support the oxidation-reduction (REDOX) balance, supporting the health of many body functions including the cardiovascular system. Laird Superfood Antioxidant Daily Reds contains cherry, turmeric, strawberries, beetroot and green tea extract to provide antioxidants and vitamins while also offering a light, fruity taste. It is available as a supplement powder that can be mixed into water or blended with a smoothie. Jason Vieth, CEO of Laird Superfood, said: “We’re excited to offer products that fit seamlessly into the daily lives of our customers by providing nutritious, functional, delicious foods”. “As a leader in the functional food category, we’re building on that commitment by launching our new Antioxidant Daily Reds to help support muscle recovery and cardiovascular support for all of our consumers.” #supplements #functionalbeverages #US #LairdSuperfood #antioxidants

Protein Industries Canada is supporting a project with four industry partners to develop new artificial intelligence (AI) technology expected to improve the quality of Canada’s protein crops and ingredients. Project partners Enns Bros, Crop Sentry, DL Seeds and AGT Foods will develop the technology to meet the needs of farmers and ingredients processors. Building on the Internet of Things (IoT) sensor system previously developed by Crop Sentry, the partners will optimise in-field sensors for pea and canola crops to autonomously gather phenotype data throughout the growing season. This in-field data gathering aims to help farmers better collect measurements related to crop quality, leading to improved data-driven decisions that are expected to have ‘positive ripple effects’ across the value chain. Improved crop quality will allow ingredient processors a more consistent supply to work with, helping them to develop a steady supply of high-quality, functional ingredients that will aid consumer packaged goods manufacturers in developing new food and beverage products. The technology will also aim to aid in traceability efforts related to sustainability, in-field management practices and allergen concerns. The project is the first to be announced under Protein Industries Canada’s artificial intelligence stream. A total of 13 million CAD (approx. $9.5 million) has been invested in the joint project, with Protein Industries Canada committing approx. 5.9 CAD (approx. $4.3 million) and the partners committing the remainder. Bill Greuel, CEO of Protein Industries Canada, said: “Canada’s food and ingredient sectors are evolving, and with this evolution comes a need for new technology—including technology that utilises the vast potential of artificial intelligence and machine learning”. He added: “By focusing their initial efforts on in-field AI technology, our project partners are building on the established success of Canada’s agriculture industry to help add value and increase the sustainability of our plant-based value chain”. #CropSentry #Canada #EnnsBros #agriculture #DLSeeds #plantprotein #AGTFoods #ProteinIndustriesCanada

UK healthy food-to-go brand Pollen + Grace has launched a new limited-edition plant-based festive wrap into its range for grocery and retail. The Festive Stuffing + Winter Veg Wrap aims to cater to consumers seeking ‘tasty alternatives to traditional festive foods’. Pollen + Grace said the offering is ‘truly healthy, plant-based and delicious’, designed to provide alternatives to supermarket festive sandwiches that are ‘often laden with over-processed ingredients’. The seasonal special includes a rich and herby mushroom, onion and sage stuffing, winter red cabbage slaw, roasted red onion and butternut squash, spinach and cranberry sauce. Available for a limited time only, the wrap reflects the brand’s mission to ‘make eating well easy and enjoyable’, providing an on-the-go Christmas offering made from natural, whole food ingredients. Founders Stephanie Kingston and Kristina Komlosiova, founders of Pollen + Grace, said: “Festive eating has long been associated with overindulgence and health pitfalls, with overprocessed food and drink dominating the category. Our mission has always been to help people eat better, and this doesn’t change at Christmas time!” The new wrap is available now at Sainsbury’s, WHSmith and Wholefoods stores nationwide as well as through wholesaler CLF Distribution, RSP £4-£4.50. #festive #Foodtogo #PollenGrace #UK

Plant-based meat company Beyond Meat has this week announced plans to significantly reduce operating expenses, including a 19% reduction in its global non-production workforce. The alternative meat company announced the measures in a statement published yesterday (2 November) in which it revealed that it would be cutting back its annual revenue outlook for the second time in 2023 ahead of its third-quarter earnings conference call scheduled for 8 November. As a result of ‘softer than expected’ third-quarter results, the company is now expecting net revenues to be in the range of $330 million to $340 million, representing a decrease of approximately 21% to 19% compared to 2022. In addition to the staff cuts, described by CEO and president Ethan Brown as an immediate step in the company’s broader programme to reduce expenses, Beyond Meat will also initiate a global operations review, narrowing its commercial focus and ‘accelerating activities that prioritise gross margin expansion and cash generation’. These efforts include the potential exit of select product lines, changes to the company’s pricing architecture within certain channels, accelerated cash-accretive inventory reduction initiatives and further optimisation of its manufacturing capacity and real estate footprint. It will also conduct a review and potential restructuring of its operations in China. Approximately 65 employees will be affected by the staff cuts, representing approximately 19% of its non-production workforce and 8% of its overall global workforce. Brown commented: “We anticipated a modest return to growth in the third quarter of 2023 that did not occur, reflecting further sector-specific and consumer headwinds. Even as we implement measures to address those headwinds that are within our sphere of influence, we intend to pursue a further, sizable reduction of operating expenses to improve our cost structure.” Beyond Meat said it believes net revenues in the quarter were primarily impacted by weaker than expected sales volumes in US retail and foodservice channels, lower than anticipated promotional effectiveness and ‘unfavourable’ changes in product sales mix, reflecting weaker than expected sales of its core products including Beyond Burger, Beyond Beef and Beyond Sausage, relative to certain non-core products including Beyond Steak, Beyond Chicken Tenders, Beyond Popcorn Chicken and Beyond Chicken Nuggets. #BeyondMeat #financialresults #plantbasedmeat

California-based food-tech company Yali Bio has appointed Don DiMasi as its new senior VP of engineering and biomanufacturing. Photo credit: Yali Bio Yali Bio engineers precision-fermented lipids and fats for the plant-based industry, suitable for use in alternative dairy products such as butter, cheese and ice cream. The company ferments yeast to turn carbon-neutral feedstocks into a variety of nutritious fats with a lower environmental impact than those provided through traditional animal agriculture. The ‘designer’ fats can be used by food companies within innovative NPDs, or to improve existing products’ nutritional profile, taste and texture, cost and carbon footprint. DiMasi served as senior VP of engineering and process development for Impossible Foods from 2015-2019, where he designed and built its fermentation, downstream processing and plant-based food manufacturing facilities. His newly created role at Yali Bio will focus on building biomanufacturing capacity and process development so that the company can meet growing demand for its products. In the coming months, Yali Bio said it plans to deliver its offerings to a growing list of clients and manufacturing partners. CEO and founder, Yulin Lu, said: “Don’s significant experiences scaling up fermentation processes economically to commercial volumes are recognised broadly in the industry, and we are very pleased to have him joining Yali Bio”. DiMasi, who has now started in the role, said that biomanufacturing at scale is a key success metric for fermentation-based food ingredients. “I’m looking forward to scaling up Yali Bio’s fats, and enabling the business into the next phase of growth,” he added. #precisionfermentation #US #fats #YaliBio #plantbaseddairy

US-based plant-based nutrition and healthcare company Kate Farms has launched a range of whole food blended meals, coming to market in early 2024. Kate Farms Pediatric Blended Meals are described as the “first-ever” whole food formulas inspired by meals at home with resealable packaging that directly connects to common tube feeding devices. The pouches contain a proprietary blend of organic whole foods, nine grams of “easily digested” pea protein and 27 vitamins and minerals, working to deliver between 1-3 cups of fruit and vegetables per pouch. Used for tube feeding, as sole source nutrition or oral supplementation, the blended meals come in three flavours and provide complete nutrition to support healthy growth and development for children aged one to 13. Each serving is USDA organic, non-GMO, high in vitamin D and a good source of fibre, with no added sugar or artificial sweeteners. Debora Duro, program director of paediatric gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition at US medical centre Broward Health, said: “Kate Farms listens. We – clinicians, parents and caregivers – have been asking for whole food variety, convenience and smart packaging, and Kate Farms delivered. A new package that easily connects to common tube feeding devices is truly innovative, and the kid-friendly design will make the little ones smile too.” The meal pouches are compatible with common ENFit tube feeding devices and flow easily through feeding tubes with minimal thinning or dilution, versatile for tube feeding and drinking. The flavours include a banana, blueberry and oat pouch and butternut squash, carrot and buckwheat. Kate Farms’ chief commercial officer Catherine Hayden said: “Today marks a significant milestone for Kate Farms as we unveil our latest innovation – Pediatric Blended Meals. This product combines innovative advancements in product design, packaging, and delivery with our unwavering commitment to quality, plant-based ingredients, a value we’ve upheld since day one.” The company’s VP of clinical nutrition, Vanessa Millovich, added: “Clinicians prescribing Kate Farms’ peptides or standard formulas may find our blended offerings an effective addition to address the nutritional needs of their complex patients. Parents and caregivers will appreciate the resealable pouch that connects to common tube feeding devices, and the flavour choices may help with sensory or transition challenges.” #KateFarms #US

Ecotone UK-owned brand Kallø has entered the crispbread market with the launch of a new range of crackers made from plants. Kallø Veggie Thins are snacking flatbreads crafted from chickpeas, boasting natural richness in fibre and plant protein. Available in three flavours – Rosemary & Sea Salt, Mixed Seeds, and Beetroot & Mixed Seed – the snacks are baked, not fried, and are not gluten-free as well as suitable for vegans, and free from artificial flavours or preservatives. Ecotone’s marketing director, Adele Ward, said: “It’s at Kallø’s core to deliver delicious healthy products suitable and accessible for all while making sure it’s also the right thing for the planet…Our goal is to continue transforming snacking with healthy and innovative products that don’t compromise on taste. With Kallø Veggie Thins, consumers can be proud to enjoy them both at the dinner table and as part of the ultimate sharing board.” “As with our wider portfolio, Kallø uses natural ingredients to provide healthier, everyday snacking solutions. Veggie Thins are a source of plant protein and help bridge the fibre gap – with an estimated 91% of consumers not getting enough fibre in their diets.” Kallø Veggie Thins are available at Waitrose stores for an RRP of £2.99. #Kallø #healthysnacking #Ecotone #UK #crackers

Tupu, a Berlin-based AgTech company, has successfully raised $3.2 million in a seed funding round to support its goal of revolutionising food production through its decentralised mushroom farming system. The round was co-led by FoodLabs and Zubi Capital, alongside Clear Current Capital, FoodHack, IT-Farm, Coast Cap and prominent business angels in the food and tech industry. Tupu combines its patent-pending modular farming system with bioscience, robotics and AI to grow a diverse range of organic gourmet mushrooms directly in cities. It aims to offer consumers sustainable, farm-fresh products at a competitive price. The start-up’s first farm was launched in November last year and supplies more than three tons a month to a range of customers from local wholesalers to Michelin-starred chefs. With the fresh capital, Tupu aims to further scale its production capacity and supply large players in the food service and retail sectors. The team is also working on increasing space efficiency and advancing its automation technology. Tupu was co-founded in 2021 by Eldad Arnon and Daniel Lock, both of whom brought experience from the controlled environment farming industry (at Infarm and Kalera respectively). Their goal is to ‘unlock the untapped potential hidden in the mushroom kingdom’. Mushrooms can be grown anywhere, indoors and year-round, making them immune to supply chain disruptions while offering numerous nutritional benefits. They are efficient in water consumption and land usage, but their current journey from fark to fork is unsustainable – mushrooms are transported across distances of up to 7000km, which often results in compromised taste, a shorter shelf life, fewer nutrients and a larger carbon footprint. There is a growing demand among consumers for organic, sustainable and local products, with mushrooms being used as a key ingredient for many plant-based products including meat alternatives. In foodservice, Tupu supplies its mushrooms to renowned chefs to craft new vegan dishes – for example, Sebastian Frank, head chef and owner of two-starred Michelin restaurant Horváth, uses Tupu’s King Oyster mushroom for his vegan foie gras. Co-founder and COO Lock said: “While the vertical farming sector has been challenging recently, in particular for leafy greens and other energy-intensive crops, urban farming will play a key role in our future food system”. He added: “Unlike plants, mushrooms have always been cultivated indoors, yet in an inefficient manner, and we’re leapfrogging the current state of the industry with our technology by 50 years. Mushrooms offer immense potential across various sectors – food is just the beginning.” #Urbanfarming #verticalfarming #Mushrooms #Tupu #Germany

Upfield-owned Elmlea is launching a new limited-edition plant-based alternative to brandy cream ahead of the festive season. According to Upfield – which manufactures a range of plant-based offerings within its brand portfolio – Elmlea Br+ndy performs just like a dairy cream and can be poured or whipped to complement consumers’ desserts. It has been formulated to cater to a wide range of dietary requirements and is free from soy, oat, gluten and lactose as well as being 100% plant-based and dairy-free. The product is also free from alcohol while delivering the ‘indulgence’ and flavour notes of traditional brandy cream. Ian Hepburn, marketing director UK at Upfield, said: “This versatile, festive plant-based alternative to cream will make a fantastic addition to any Christmas dinner table, perfect for pouring and whipping in equal measure”. “We’re confident that shoppers will love the taste, and we’re delighted to be offering shoppers delicious, dairy-free choices.” Elmlea Br+ndy will be available from all major retailers across the UK from 13 November 2023. #Elmlea #festive #UK #Upfield

Solugen, a climate technology company, and ADM have unveiled a strategic partnership aimed at enhancing the production of plant-based organic acids. The companies plan to achieve this by constructing a manufacturing facility in Marshall, Minnesota, adjacent to ADM’s existing corn complex. The new facility, encompassing 500,000 square feet, will mark a significant step in the scaling of Solugen’s unique chemienzymatic process. It will leverage ADM’s supply of dextrose to expand the production of lower-carbon organic acids, and it will also explore the development of novel molecules to replace conventional fossil fuel-based materials. The collaboration aims to commercialise these biomaterials across diverse sectors, including energy, water treatment, agriculture, construction materials, cleaning products, personal care, and more. Gaurab Chakrabarti, co-founder and CEO of Solugen, commented: “The strategic partnership with ADM will allow Solugen to bring our chemienzymatic process to a commercial scale and meet existing customer demand for our high-performance, cost-competitive, sustainable products. As one of the few scaled-up and de-risked biomanufacturing assets in the country, Solugen’s Bioforge platform is helping bolster domestic capabilities and supply chains that are critical in ensuring the US reaches its ambitious climate targets.” Solugen’s Bioforge is a platform that employs a combination of computationally engineered enzymes and metal catalysts to convert plant-derived substances into materials traditionally derived from fossil fuels. This process stands out due to its high efficiency and scalability, resulting in a substantial reduction in carbon emissions compared to traditional manufacturing methods. Chris Cuddy, president of ADM’s Carbohydrate Solutions business, added: “Sustainability is one of the enduring global trends powering ADM’s growth and underpinning the strategic evolution of our Carbohydrate Solutions business”. He continued: “ADM is one of the largest dextrose producers in the world, and this strategic partnership will allow us to further diversify our product stream as we continue to support plant-based solutions spanning sustainable packaging, pharma, plant health, construction, fermentation, and home and personal care”. “The initial phase of the project will significantly increase Solugen’s manufacturing capacity, which is critical for commercialising our existing line of molecules and kicks off plans for a multi-phase large-scale US Bioforge buildout,” said Sean Hunt, co-founder and CTO of Solugen. “The increase in capacity will also free up our Houston operation for research and development efforts into additional molecules and market applications.” Marshall, Minnesota, has an abundant supply of corn and advanced corn-to-dextrose conversion technology, providing an ideal location to support the scale of Solugen’s products. Construction of the new facility is set to begin offsite this year, with on-site construction commencing in early 2024. The initial phase, scheduled to commence operation in the first half of 2025, is expected to create a minimum of 40 permanent jobs and an additional 100 temporary construction jobs during the commissioning phase. #US #ADM #dextrose #corn #Solugen