Next Gen Foods has established its US headquarters in Chicago, Illinois, as well as a research and development centre in the same location. The company, which creates plant-based chicken products under its Tindle brand, will set up an R&D and innovation centre in partnership with US food business incubator, The Hatchery Chicago. Next Gen Foods says its Tindle product delivers the taste, texture and aroma of chicken and can be moulded and designed to fit any cuisine. The new centre will enable new product development and expand Tindle’sreach in new US sales channels, including retail and foodservice. The centre will be home to early-stage exploration of plant-based products from Next Gen Foods, leveraging insights from both consumers and operators to support the expansion of Tindle’s full product line Behind the R&D facility is a team of food scientists, product innovation experts and culinarians, overseeing operations of the joint lab and test kitchen space inside The Hatchery. CEO and co-founder of Next Gen Foods, Andre Menezes, said: “We established Next Gen Foods with the mission to make saving the planet easy, enjoyable and delicious. Geographically and strategically establishing a base in the centre of the food world in Chicago will allow us to further develop our partnerships in the F&B community and strengthen consumer adoption of plant-based meats through ongoing research and development.” #NextGen #Researchanddevelopment #Tindle

Food-tech start-up Zero Egg has announced that it will soon release its new product, Zero Egg Scoopable Scramble – a new ready-to-eat frozen plant-based scrambled egg. Zero Egg has developed a frozen scrambled egg that replicates the same taste and texture as an ordinary egg. Liron Nimrodi, Zero Egg’s CEO and co-founder said: “Our customers are seeking plant-based egg solutions that are easy for them to use, highly nutritious and delicious. We’ve been engaged with them since day one, listening to them, and hearing the hardships they’re facing, including unprecedented labour shortages, supply chain disruptions, and inflated costs.” Scott Lamphere, corporate chef at Zero Egg’s added: “Our new frozen ready-to-use Scoopable Scramble is a must-have for industrial food manufacturers and foodservice operators everywhere. Whether you’re looking to manufacture an easy plant-based scrambled egg, a vegan breakfast burrito, or a frozen breakfast bowl, it is the perfect solution.” Zero Egg Scoopable Scramble will be available to food service operators and food manufacturers in the US. #plantbasedegg #ZeroEgg

Spanish start-up Innomy has raised Є1.3 million in a pre-Series A funding round for developing mycelium-based meats. The round was led by international investors, including Corporación Cervino, Rockstart, Zubi Capital, Eatable Adventures and the National Center for Technology and Food Safety (CNTA). Protein alternatives such as mycelium are said to be more sustainable and healthier than traditional meat production. Juan Pablo de Giacomi, CEO and founder of Innomy, said: “We were born as a platform to channel many years of research in the field of the properties of edible mushrooms. Our mission is to respond to consumers that demand good food products for their health but also for the planet’s wellbeing. We want to reach new markets and bring our product to thousands of people.” Giacomi and biotechnologist Pablo Sánchez Rey founded the company alongside mycologist and technology partner, Francisco Kuhar The team has spent time researching the properties of mushroom-based proteins and their benefits. José Luis Cabañero, CEO and founder of Eatable Adventures. commented: “We are very proud to be part of this new milestone that consolidates the leadership of the Spanish foodtech ecosystem. In the last few months, we have managed to raise Funding rounds of an average of 1.8M for three of the start-ups that have been selected in our acceleration program. We continue to bet on disruptive technologies that impact the way food is produced and consumed, ensuring food safety for all/” Innomy is one of three foodtech Spanish start-ups to announce its first funding round after completing the acceleration programme, Spain Foodtech, developed by Eatable Adventures, in collaboration with ICEX Spain Export and Investment and the CNTA and the Rockstart AgriFood programme. “At Rockstart, purpose-driven and determined founders are central to our investment selection. In the case of Innomy, the founding team is composed of specialists in mycelium and have all shown commercial insight and humble curiosity during the mentor sessions throughout our accelerator programme. We are delighted to make our second investment in the company,” added Mark Durno, managing partner of Rockstart. #Innomy #Meatalternative

UK meat snacks brand, The Curators, has entered into the plant-based category with the launch of a new line of high protein veggie puffs. The range is available in three flavours: cheese, salt & vinegar and sriracha. The veggie puffs are made from peas and contain 10g of protein per pack. The brand said that the new plant-based snack contains significantly fewer carbs and fat than a standard packet of crisps. The Curators co-founder Max Rees said: “In a world of carb-heavy savoury snacks that deliver little functional benefit, we are proud to have developed a clever plant-based product for everyday crisp lovers with over five times the amount of protein as comparable ‘better for you’ snacks…” He continued: “…it feels like a great time to bring some genuine innovation to the crisps fixture as we seek to lead the development of a fast-emerging functional snacks category and provide consumers with a tasty savoury alternative to protein bars”. “We have seen a growing emergence of ‘better-for-you’ and protein-led products in the UK across multiple categories, but believe we are in a unique place to bring this positioning to savoury snacks and add strong incremental value to the grab-and-go offering.” #TheCurators #UK

Nestlé has expanded its plant-based portfolio by launching three vegan meat substitutes in its Garden Gourmet range. The new products are chicken-style chargrilled bites, chicken-style pieces and chicken-style breaded mini fillets. They have been developed by chefs and nutritionists and are high in fibre and protein. “We are constantly striving to provide our fans with delicious vegan and vegetarian alternatives and these products are great for food lovers looking for more meat-free poultry options and those who want to include more vegan and vegetarian food at lunchtime,” said Laura Mack, senior brand manager at Garden Gourmet. #GardenGourmet #Nestlé #plantbasedchicken

DSM has extended its enzyme portfolio with the launch of DelvoPlant Go, enabling producers to simplify the production of oat-based dairy alternatives. The new enzyme solution simplifies the production of oat-based products by enabling manufacturers to perform the liquefaction and saccharification process – breaking down the oat starches into glucose and maltose – in one step. This enables a shorter and more efficient process, which DSM says will reduce hydrolysis time by up to 30%. Less energy and water is required than with existing processes, supporting oat-based product manufacturers in achieving their sustainability goals, while increasing capacity and reducing costs. Ben Rutten, global business manager of milk and plant-based dairy alternatives at DSM, said: “Now is the right time for producers to simplify their production processes to keep pace with this fast-moving market. The category isn’t immune to the current difficulties around volatile energy prices and the constant pressure to deliver the nutritious and sustainably produced products consumers love. “This is why we set out to not only save producers time, but also enable energy and water savings. Producers can enjoy it all without compromising on taste, texture, health or sustainability.” #DSM #Oatmilk #plantbaseddairy

Plant-based meat maker, Redefine Meat, has announced the launch of its first pork product, the New-Meat Bratwurst. The company’s latest offering made its debut at Oktoberfest in Munich, on the menu of traditional Bavarian beer house Tegernseer Tal. The vegan bratwurst is said to offer the same fatty mouthfeel and level of juiciness that characterise its meat-based counterpart, with a flavour profile developed in partnership with chefs. Redefine’s expansion into pork alternatives follows the commercial launch of its plant-based whole cuts last year, which were created using 3D printing technology. Julian Kinner, restaurant manager at Tegernseer Tal – Bräuhaus, said: “We’ve been selling Redefine Meat’s New-Meat burger products for several months now and it’s fair to say that customers love it as much as our chefs do”. “The demand for tasty, sustainable plant-based meat alternatives has increased enormously. The bratwurst delivers the high level of quality we have come to expect from Redefine Meat in terms of taste, texture and preparation, offering our customers a plant-based alternative to one of the nation’s favourite meat products that doesn’t compromise on the eating experience. ” The New-Meat Bratwurst will be commercially available for foodservice providers in Germany, the UK and the Netherlands starting in November, with a number of restaurants already signed up. #Germany #RedefineMeat

Quorn has launched a vegan deli slices range available in yorkshire ham, finely sliced ham, roast beef or roast chicken style slices. Made from Quorn’s unique protein, Quorn mycoprotein, the new range is high in protein and fibre and low in saturated fat. The brand says that the new range also has a lower carbon footprint than the meat equivalent. “You wouldn’t believe it’s not meat. Packed with flavour, our ready-to-eat meat style slices are ideal to put in sandwiches, salads, and wraps,” said Gill Riley, Quorn marketing director. #delimeat #plantbasedprotein #QuornFoods

Plant-based clinical nutrition company, Kate Farms, has raised $75 million in a Series C funding round. Kate Farms produces organic and vegan-friendly formulas for tube and oral feeding to meet the nutritional needs of those with chronic illnesses and acute conditions. Led by life science investor Novo Holdings, the round also received participation from existing investors, and is for a minority stake in the company. “Novo Holdings’ investment in Kate Farms will allow us to develop more innovative products, enter new markets and continue to serve the patients who depend on us for their nutrition, as well as thousands of healthcare providers,” said Kate Farms chairman and CEO, Brett Matthews. Kartik Dharmadhikari, partner, Novo Growth, Novo Holdings, added: “We are pleased to partner with Kate Farms and support them in their efforts to meet the nutritional needs of numerous patient populations”. “We believe our life sciences heritage can serve the company well as it explores additional ways to utilise science and clinical evidence to support plant-based clinical nutrition.” #clinicalnutrition #KateFarms #US

Beyond Meat’s chief operations officer, Doug Ramsey, has been suspended with immediate effect, the company announced in a statement on Tuesday. The plant-based meat producer also announced that operations activities would be overseen on an “interim basis” by Jonathan Nelson, senior vice president of manufacturing operations. The suspension came following reports of Ramsey’s arrest for allegedly biting a man’s nose during an altercation, according to Reuters. The chief operations officer was accused of attacking the man after his car made contact with Ramsey’s, according to news station KNWA, which cited a police report. KNWA said Ramsey “punched through the back windshield” of a Subaru that had hit the tire of his car. The incident took place in a parking garage near Razorback Stadium in Arkansas. Ramsey joined Beyond Meat as COO last December, following 30 years at Tyson Foods, where he oversaw the company’s poultry and McDonald’s businesses. On Sunday, Ramsey was released after being charged with third-degree battery and terroristic threatening, with a total bond of $11,085, as reported by Sky News. #BeyondMeat #plantbased #US

Filippo Berio has launched basil and sundried tomato pestos in a vegan format, using tofu as a cheese substitute. The new plant-based and gluten-free products expand on Filippo Berio’s variety of wine and balsamic vinegars, pestos and glazes. The new basil pesto and sundried tomato pesto increase the options for those looking for quality plant-based products without compromising on taste. “After ongoing recipe development and countless blind taste tests comparing our classic pesto and vegan recipes, we are thrilled to launch two flavourful and delicious vegan recipes that live up to the standards of the Filippo Berio brand”, said Dusan Kaljevic, deputy CEO of Filippo Berio USA. #FilippoBerio #Pesto #Tofu

Chickenless Roasting Joint will launch at Tesco stores next week for an RRP of £4.50 and combines pea protein with parsley and sage crumb “to create the ultimate plant-based roast,” said Meatless Farm. Chickenless Roasting Joint is high in protein, free from soya and low in saturated fat. Meanwhile, Meatless Chipolatas, which comes in a 12-pack, replaces the brand’s original six-pack of sausages and are now available at Sainsbury’s stores for an RRP of £2.50, with an Ocado launch planned for later this month. The plant-based chipolatas offer a realistic imitation of real meat and are rich in pea protein, low in sugar, gluten-free, soya free and a source of fibre. Morten Toft Bech, founder of Meatless Farm, said: “We know that there are many factors at play when people consider making the switch to meatless, so we want to do all we can to innovate and offer better solutions that will keep our existing customers interested while enticing new people to try our products”. “With huge competition from new and challenger brands in the category, we wanted to relaunch our popular sausage pack to a new and improved tasting chipolatas and create a versatile roast product that could feed the whole family. Both launches are quick to cook and a planet-friendly swap for the foods our nation knows and loves.” #MeatlessFarm #UK