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Daily news and analysis about the food tech revolution

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Food Tech News: The Molson Brewmboni, Ikea’s Plant-Based Promise

Happy weekend! We hope you can fit in some time during this lovely spring weekend to catch up on some interesting news in the food tech space. This week we rounded up stories on a new material used to determine seafood spoilage, Molson Canada’s beer cooler vacuum invention, Ikea’s food accelerator program, and a search for startups disrupting the retail sector.

If you haven’t heard, The Spoon is hosting “ArticulATE: The Food Robotics Summit” on Tuesday, May 18th. The event is approaching fast, so get your ticket today!

Scientists create color-changing material to detect seafood spoilage

German and Chinese scientists used inspiration from chameleons to create a material that changes colors to indicate when seafood has gone bad. The new material incorporates luminogens, which glow and change color when exposed to different factors like a change in temperature of pH. The scientists put test strips of the material in boxes of fresh shrimp and fish for 50 hours, with one box stored at 14 degrees and the other at 86 degrees. The test strip in the 14-degree box stayed red (indicating the seafood was still fresh), while the strip in the 86 degree box changed to a vivid green (indicating spoilage).

Molson Canada designs hybrid beer cooler and vacuum

Cleaning the house and drinking beer goes together nicely (especially when you don’t need to leave the couch), and this week Molson Canada created a part beer cooler part vacuum to accommodate just that. The robot is called “Molson Brewmboni”, which holds four Molson Canadian tallboys and functions as an autonomous vacuum. The NHL (National Hockey League) will be mostly virtual for fans in Canada for the second year in a row, so this invention was created in hopes of emulating the familiar sounds of the Zamboni on the hockey rink. Unfortunately, it is not available for purchase, but it may be in the future on the product’s website. In the meantime, the company is offering the CAD files of the robot vacuum for anyone interested in building it themselves.

Photo from Ikea’s website

Ikea launches accelerator program to meet goal of serving 50% plant-based foods

Last year, Ikea made the announcement that by 2025, 50 percent of its menu items and 80 percent of its packaged foods would be vegan. To take steps towards that goal, the Scandinavian chain just launched its Food Innovation Accelerator Program. The program is looking for food startups that are focused on sustainable solutions and the ability to scale plant-based food businesses. Ikea currently has a few vegan options like its plant-based hot dog, and “plant balls”, and alternative for meatballs made from oats and pea protein.

Photo by Phil Hearing on Unsplash

Sonae Mc is scouting for start ups to disrupt retail sector

Sonae Mc, a food retail market chain in Portugal, is currently accepting applications for the second edition of its Disrupt Retail. The corporation seeks to find start-ups specifically focused on the categories of health and wellness, e-commerce, crowdsourcing, sustainability, personalized shopping experiences, and others. Those who are accepted will receive mentorship, in-store testing of the technology, access to a network of partners, and exposure to potential investors. Applications are open until June 30 on Disrupt Retail’s website.

Forager Raises $4M for Local Food Procurement Platform

Forager, a digital platform that grocers and food retailers can use to easily source local food, announced this week that it has raised $4 million. This funding round was led by Duncan Saville of ICM Limited and Coastal Enterprises Inc., with participation from other private investors.

For a food retailer, connecting with hundreds of local farmers, fishers, ranchers, and artisanal producers can be an arduous process. This is where Forager comes in handy; rather than a grocer having to deal with each local producer individually, Forager’s platform lists available local producers and their products in one place. This allows local farms and such to update their inventory on-demand with a phone or computer, and buyers from grocery stores can immediately see the amount of stock available and price of each product.

Forager’s new capital will be used to expand key product features, further develop sales channels, and incorporate upgrades to their product. Towards the end of last year, the company announced that it had partnered with Roche Bros. supermarkets to be used in 20 of its locations and subsidiaries in the Boston Metro area.

Eating food that has traveled shorter distances typically tastes better, helps support a farmer in your community, and is more resilient to supply change disruptions. With all of these benefits, it makes sense that the demand for local food has spiked has spiked, and why more companies in the food tech space are catering to this. Cropswap launched at the start of the pandemic in 2020, with its app connecting consumers to local farmers in their area. Grubmarket, a virtual farmer’s market, raised $60 million in October of last year. Chipotle launched a virtual farmers market last summer to give its customers the opportunity to source food from its ingredients suppliers.

As Forager continues to expand, hopefully local food will become more of the norm in standard grocery stores. To date, Forager has sourced over 200,000 local products through its platform, and currently operates in 12 states with more than 40 grocers and retailers.

Chartwells Higher Education Brings Plant-Based Food to Colleges Nationwide

The last time I ate at a college dining hall, the vegan pickings were slim. I meandered around until I was able to scrounge together a few sides of brown rice, wilted veggies, and french fries. Chartwells Higher Education is striving to change that scenario. This week, the contract food service management company launched a program called 100% Plant Forward to bring plant-based food options to campuses nationwide.

Through 100% Plant Forward, universities can bring more plant-based foods into their dining halls, either via short-term plant-based food pop-ups or more permanent options. In addition to offering fully plant-based foods, Chartwell aims to make its new platform inclusive of global cuisines. Several menu items served through 100% Plant Forward include Thai Spiced Marinated Tofu, Sriracha Roasted Cauliflower, Tikki Chaat, Pomegranate Cauliflower Chickpea Salads, and Braised Lentil Quinoa Burgers.

So far, Chartwells has piloted 100% Plant Forward on several campuses, including Colgate University, St. John Fisher College, and Northeastern University. Colgate University held a 100% Plant-Forward take over of its dining hall for a day, where all-vegan food was served and dining concepts like a vegetable butcher shop and vegan rotisserie were tested out.

Following a vegan, vegetarian, or plant-based diet is not necessarily considered fringe amongst younger generations, especially with Gen Z. Amongst this particular demographic (currently anyone aged 6-24 years old) 79 percent report wanting to eat meat-free meals, while 60 percent are interested in eating more plant-based foods. Gen Z is the average age group that is entering universities, so it makes sense for dining halls to accommodate this demographic’s dietary preferences.

Earlier this year, Chartwells also began piloting ghost kitchens on college campuses to bring a diversity of food options to college students. In addition to Chartwells, a few other companies are attempting to give college dining halls a reboot. Yo-Kai Express started installing hot ramen vending machines on college campuses, while Chowbotics is brought automated salad-making robots. Students on certain college campuses can even have restaurant meals delivered by robots through Starship and Kiwi.

Food technology is changing the way students eat on campus rapidly, and this seems to be a good thing. Thanks to companies like Chartwells, it seems the days of chowing down disappointing vegan options are numbered (hopefully).

Future Meat Once Again Slashes Production Price of Cultured Chicken

This week, Future Meat Technologies announced that it was able to reduce the production price of 110 grams of its cultured chicken breast to $4 (h/t Plant Based News). This is the second time this year that Future Meat technologies has the lowered the production price of its cultivated protein, after having reduced the price of a quarter-pound of cultured chicken breast to $7.50 in February.

This significant price drop will help bring Future Meat closer to price parity with conventional chicken and bring its first product to market. The company’s CEO, Rom Kshuk, said that the production price could drop to $2 within the next 12-18, and within that same timeframe, the company hopes to launch its product in the U.S. market.

Like other cultured meat companies, Future Meat extracts animal cells and replicates them in large bioreactors. However, the company is different from others because it uses a blend of both plant-based and animal-based ingredients for its cultured meat product.

Cultured meat is expensive to make, so many companies are racing to reach price parity with traditional meat. A consumer may choose to buy alternative meat products for ethical, environmental, and health reasons, but often, the cost of food is the driving factor in our purchasing decisions. According to The Spoon’s publisher, Michael Wolf, several things need to happen to reduce the production cost of cultured meat, including the optimization of the commercial process, bigger and better bioreactors, and a reduction in the price of growth mediums. Once companies like Future Meat reach price parity, this will allow cultured meat to become commercially viable.

Though where cultured meat could become commercially viable is another matter altogether, as Singapore remains the only country that has allowed the sale of cultivated meat. In December, Eat Just was the first company in the world to sell cultured meat at a restaurant in Singapore, and recently entered into a partnership with meal delivery service foodpanda to offer home delivery of cultured meat. Aleph Farms has plans to bring cultured meat to both Brazil and Japan. SuperMeat currently has a restaurant/tasting facility where customers cannot pay but can try cultured meat in exchange for feedback.

Future Meat has been looking for regulatory approval in multiple countries, but it has yet to announce any approvals.

Food Tech News: Powdered Oat Milk, Vietnamese Coffee Pour-Over Kits

Welcome to the weekend, the peak of spring, and your favorite place to catch up on food tech news. A few stories caught our eyes this week including China’s recently passed food waste law, new high-protein sesame seeds, Copper Cow Coffee’s latest funding round, and oat milk in the form of powder.

Copper Cow Coffee secures $8.5M in Series A funding round

Copper Cow Coffee produces Vietnamese coffee pour-over kits, and this week the women-owned company raised $8.5 million in funding that will be used for expanding distribution and product innovation. The round was led by Cultivian Sandbox and Arborview Capital and saw participation from Siddhi Capital, Silverton Partners, Social Starts, Montage Ventures, CRCM, and Stormbreaker Ventures. Copper Cow Coffee sources its coffee from farms in Vietnam that apply organic agricultural and processing practices. The company’s pour-over kits include condensed milk or coconut milk creamer packets and Vietnamese coffee, with flavor varieties including vanilla latte, churro, rose, and vanilla. The pour-over kits require no special equipment because the coffee bags fit over the rim of any mug or cup (as depicted above).

Photo by Diego Morales on Unsplash

High-protein sesame seeds for plant-based alternatives

Equinom, a seed-breeding technology company, has partnered with Dipasa, a sesame seed processor and exporter, to develop a high protein sesame seed for use in plant-based protein alternatives. The new sesame seed will be bred using Equinom’s AI-backed genomic optimization algorithms and distributed globally by Dipasa. Sesame seeds do not naturally have a high protein content like soy or wheat does, but the new high-protein sesame seed will contain 65 to 70 percent protein content (a normal sesame seed has a 23 percent protein content). Boosting the protein content of a sesame seed will make it a more viable option as a base for plant-based products.

Photo from Blue Farm’s website

Blue Farm aims to make oat milk more sustainable

Berlin-based Blue Farm has created a powdered oat milk base with the intention of making the plant-based milk sector more sustainable. Transporting liquid-filled cartons across the country, or even globally, releases transportation emissions. On top of this, many plant-based milk cartons are not recyclable. Blue Farm’s oat milk powder comes in a compact, 100% recycled plastic packaging which can be recycled again. The oat milk powder is shelf-stable, and simply must be shaken with water to create liquid oat milk.

Food Tech News: Eco-Friendly Restaurant App, Beyond Meat Chicken, and Microdrink Cubes

Before you head outside and bask in glorious sunshine and cherry blossoms, we invite you to catch up on some Food Tech News. This week, we have stories on an app that rates restaurants based on sustainability, Kalera’s first harvest, micro drink cubes, and Beyond Meat’s alternative chicken launch. Enjoy!

Eco-friendly restaurant app Jybe to soon launch in New York

JYBE is an app that helps users connect to eco-friendly restaurants, and this week it shared in an email with The Spoon that it will be launching in New York City in mid-May. Many restaurants provide single-use plastic cutlery and styrofoam packaging for take-out food, but JYBE highlights the restaurants using more environmentally friendly options, like paper, bamboo, glass, and reusable materials. JYBE also offers free resources for restaurants looking to make the transition to more environmentally friendly packaging. The app is currently available in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Denver, Boulder, Seattle, and Austin.

Kalera celebrates first harvest at Atlanta, Georgia location

Kalera is a vertical farm company, and this week announced its first harvest at its location in Atlanta, Georgia. The 77 thousand square feet facility is its largest facility and the largest vertical farm operation in the Southeastern U.S. The vertical farm grows lettuce and microgreens, with the capacity to produce over 10 million heads of lettuce per year. In addition to the location in Georgia, Kalera operates two locations in Orlando and is building new facilities in Hawaii, Minnesota, Seattle, Columbus, Denver, and Houston.

Microdrink cubes launch in the U.S.

UK-based waterdrop crafts small flavored beverage cubes that can be dropped into water, and the product will now be sold in the U.S. The tiny sugar-free cubes consist of unique fruit- and plant-based extracts like elderflower, cactus fruit, artichoke, starfruit, and thyme. The company aims to encourage people to drink more water while simultaneously reducing single-use plastic bottles typically used for cold beverages and water. Due to the fact that the cubes are small and compact, this reduces both plastic bottles and the energy it takes to ship liquid-filled bottles throughout the world.

Beyond Meat to refocus on chicken products

Beyond Meat is known for its alternative beef and pork products like burger patties, breakfast patties, and sausages, but now it will be focusing on the development of alternative chicken products. The company produced plant-based chicken strips in 2012, but pulled the product after its alternative beef and pork products gained more popularity. The plant-based chicken product will likely be available this summer. In 2019, Beyond Meat partnered with KFC to pilot plant-based fried chicken in an Atlanta, Georgia location, and the product sold out in five hours.

Something Better Foods Receives $500K Investment from ICA

Oakland, California-based Something Better Foods, a producer of various plant-based meat and seafood alternatives, raised $500,000 this week through ICA, a nonprofit venture capital fund. Something Better Foods aims to make plant-based foods more accessible to people of color, and ICA’s goal is to “…accelerate great businesses through mentoring and investments to close the racial and gender wealth gaps.”

Better Chew is Something Better Food’s brand, and its product line includes plant-based chicken patties, meatballs, fried chicken, steak, fried fish, chicken nuggets, breakfast sausage patties, and chicken patties. The company uses an undisclosed proprietary process to replicate the taste, texture, and look of meat. Better Food is focused on distributing its products through direct-to-consumer channels and foodservice outlets. One thing that sets Something Better Foods apart from other plant-based meat companies is that it has chosen to incorporate both equity and representation into its business model.

Healthy food and veganism movements often leave out marginalized communities, and this is a huge issue that both Something Better Foods and ICA are trying to offer solutions to. Low-income neighborhoods in the U.S. often only have immediate access to fast-food chains and convenience stores, and about 2.3 million people in the U.S. live in a food desert. Even if someone living in one of these communities wanted to eat healthy, fresh foods or try a plant-based diet, it would be incredibly challenging to access these foods.

This initial round of funding will be used to expand Something Better Foods’ operations and offer additional employment opportunities in the company’s local community. Something Better Foods’ is ICA’s most recent portfolio company and the venture capital fund has so far placed $1.5 million in growth equity to Bay Area companies, focusing on companies founded by entrepreneurs of color and women.

Finally! Prime Roots’ New Koji Bacon is a Really Good Vegan Bacon

Whenever conversation arises around my decision to follow a plant-based diet, it is inevitable that someone will say, “I could never do that because of bacon.” The salty, crispy, aromatic cuts of meat have people hooked. I get it – bacon is a classic breakfast side, it appears on top of donuts and wrapped around dates, and provides the crunch in a BLT. It makes me wonder if a really good vegan bacon existed, would this be enough for more people to transition to a plant-based diet?

This week, I was lucky enough to try exactly that – really good vegan bacon from the company Prime Roots. To celebrate Earth Day, Prime Roots launched four new flavors of its plant-based bacon, black pepper, sriracha, maple, and hickory. Prior to today’s launch, Prime Roots has been selling its original bacon on its website and according to the founder, Kimberlie Le, the product frequently sells out.

The plant-based bacon alternative looked, smelled, and cooked just like its meat counterpart. Depending on your preference, the bacon can be made chewy or crispy depending on how long you cook it. I opted for crispy and fried the bacon in a cast iron pan for a little over 10 minutes. The bacon was umami-rich with the familiar hickory smoke flavor, and definitely delicious.

The star ingredient in all of Prime Root’s bacon and alternative protein products is koji, a filamentous fungus. Koji is important in Japanese cuisine because it is used in products like miso, sake, and soy sauce. The fungus is great for plant-based meat alternatives in that it grows rapidly, has a neutral flavor, and it can be easily molded into any shape.

Besides bacon, Prime Roots produces a myriad of other meat and seafood alternatives from koji. A few other products include plant-based lobster mac & cheese, sausage ravioli, and prepared meals like kung pao chicken. Le said that Prime Roots’ goal is to become the Nestle of plant-based foods.

Another start-up called AtLast also uses mycelium to craft its plant-based bacon product, and the company recently raised $40 million in funding. Meati uses mycelium to create plant-based steak, chicken, and jerky, and is planning for a rollout of its products this upcoming summer.

Like most of Prime Roots products, the four new bacon flavors will only be available for a limited amount of time. Until the products sell out, an 8 oz. package of bacon costs $9.99, plus $15 shipping on Prime Roots’ website.

Food Tech News: Carbon-Negative Cutlery at Target, Upcycled Food Label Launches

Welcome to your weekly Food Tech News round-up! Many companies in the food tech space made efforts to honor Earth Day, so this week all of our news is relevant to sustainability. We have stories on AirCarbon cutlery launching in Target, a new upcycled food certification, BlueNalu’s essay contest, and Perfect Day’s new advisory council.

Restore AirCarbon Cutlery launches in Target nationwide

Newlight Technologies‘ brand Restore produces carbon-negative cutlery from its proprietary material called AirCarbon. At the beginning of this week, the cutlery launched in Target locations nationwide. The cutlery is carbon-negative because its created from biodegradable plastic made from absorbed greenhouse gases. The straws and cutlery are dishwasher safe and, if disposed of, will decompose in a landfill. A 24-piece pack of wrapped straws costs $2.99 and a three-piece cutlery pack with a natural fiber carrying case costs $4.99. The products are available on Target’s website and in stores.

Upcycled food label officially debuts

Vegan, organic, non-GMO, and gluten-free food labels exist, and now a label exists for products comprised of upcycled food ingredients. The Upcycled Food Association officially launched the “Upcycled Certified” label this week. The certification can be used to signify if food, beverages, pet food, dietary supplements, cosmetics, or household cleaners contain upcycled food ingredients. The organization defines upcycled food as essentially any food using ingredients that otherwise would not have gone to human consumption and ended up in a food waste destination. The organization’s goal with the newly debuted certification is to empower consumers to make climate friendly purchases through upcycled food products.

BlueNalu announces scholarship winners

BlueNalu, producers of cell-based seafood, held a contest called the Eat Blue Essay Contest in collaboration with the Research Chefs Association (RCA). The point of the contest was to prompt discussion around sustainable seafood and ocean conservation goals set forth by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Culinary students of RCA from around the world were encouraged to submit essays. This week the three finalists were announced, and the essays can be read on the Eat Blue website. BlueNalu is awarding the finalists with scholarships to support educational expenses.

Perfect Day forms advisory board

Berkley, California-based Perfect Day, pioneers in fermented animal-free dairy, announced this week that it has formed a Sustainability & Health Advisory Council. The advisory board includes former Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman, cardiologist Dariush Mozaffarian, Leonardo Di Caprio, and several other leaders in the food, agriculture, and nutrition space. The council members will help guide Perfect Day on decisions regarding health and the environment. Perfect Day recently commissioned a comprehensive Life Cycle Assessment to evaluate the environmental impact of its non-animal whey protein, and the report found that it generates at least 85 percent and up to 97 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than conventional production methods.

LegenDairy Rebrands to Formo, Announces Plans to Bring Products to Market

LegenDairy, a precision fermentation alterative dairy company, announced today that it has rebranded to the name Formo, and that it will focus on consumer-facing products with plans to unveil its first products later this year.

To create its animal-free milk proteins, Formo uses microorganisms instead of cows. These undisclosed microorganisms are first encoded with the DNA sequences of milk proteins. A fermenter is then used to grow the cells, which are harvested when enough protein has been raised. From this point, the cultivated milk protein can be used to make cheese.

Plant-based ingredients, like different fats and carbohydrates, are added to the milk proteins to create the base of cheese products. Like traditional cheese, the product is heated until it turns into curd. After this step, a wide spectrum of cheese products can be created from this base and packaged as fresh or ripened to create a stronger flavor.

Formo shared that it is first focusing on specialty European cheeses, like ricotta and a few ripened/aged kinds of cheese. The company will launch its products where customers are most excited about it (based on its upcoming consumer acceptance study) and where it can get regulatory approval.

In addition to Formo, a few other companies use precision fermentation to create alternative dairy and cheese products. Perfect Day applies its precision fermentation process through its spinoff brand, Brave Robot, to create an animal-free ice cream that is molecularly identical to real dairy. Change Foods uses precision fermentation to develop its cheddar and mozzerella, and plans on launching its product on the market in 2023.

Formo is currently expanding its team of scientists and executives in preparation for its initial product presentation in Europe this year, and market launch in 2023. Prior to the launch, the company will host a tasting this summer for its alternative cheese products with Ricky Saward, the first plant-based Michelin star chef.

Atlast Food Co. Secures $40M Series A Round to Expand Whole Cut Plant-Based Meat Analogues

Atlast Food Co., which uses mycelium to produce plant-based meat alternatives, announced today in a press release that it has raised a Series A round of $40 million USD to create new whole cut meat alternatives. This latest funding round was led by Viking Global Investors and saw participation from 40 North, AiiM Partners, Senator Investment Group, Stray Dog Capital, Footprint Coalition, Applegate, Stonyfield, and Whole Foods.

This new funding will be used to scale the company’s technology, production, and team to bring its product to a commercial scale. To create the new whole cuts of alternative meat, Atlast is partnering with Ecovative, its parent company. Using Ecovative’s AirMycelium manufacturing platform, Atlast is currently building the largest aerial mycelium farm in the U.S. to supply its production of meat alternatives.

Atlast offers its first product, mycelium-based bacon, through its brand MyEats. Dubbed MyBacon, it consists of six plant-based ingredients, is cholesterol-free, and the serving size of two slices contains 4 grams of protein. The Honest Weight Food Co-op in Albany, New York is the only retailer that carries MyEats bacon right now, but the product will be distributed to more grocery retailers as production picks up.

Mycelium works well as an ingredient for plant-based meat alternatives because of its fibrous texture that can mimic the muscle texture of animal proteins. Additionally, mycelium grows quickly, and its neutral flavor allows for any desired flavor to be absorbed. Meati is another start-up that produces mycelium-based meat alternatives, and the company trialed its mycelium-based steak last summer and is also developing mycelium-based chicken and jerky.

Atlast was not able to disclose exactly what variety of meat analogs it will be developing, but did say that mycelium gives them the opportunity to create a wide variety of meat alternatives like filet mignon, chicken breast, and even fish. The products will be made available to CPG, foodservice, and grocery industries, and Atlast plans on distributing its mycelium meat alternatives to these industries this year.

Revo Foods Raises €1.5M to Advance its 3D-Printed Alternative Salmon

Austria-based Revo Foods crafts 3D-printed salmon made from plant-based ingredients, and over the weekend the company announced that it has raised €1.5 million euros (~$1.78 million USD) in funding. This is the company’s first round of funding, and it included participation from Hazelpond Capital, Eva Summer (CPO of Peace of Meat), Friends2grow, Jens Schuman, MKO Holdings, and national support from the FFG Austrian Research Promotion Agency and Vienna Business Agency.

Revo Foods’ funding will be used to accelerate its 3D food printing process, as well as expand its team. The company has several plant-based salmon products that its plans on launching in Europe this year. Its smoked salmon strips and smoked salmon spread is made from pea protein, citrus fiber, and algae oil (these products are not made through 3D printing). The plant-based salmon sashimi is still being developed, and is created using a 3D printing process to create complex structures similar to real salmon.

The company held the first live tasting of its plant-based salmon products at the beginning of March. The tasting was held in Vienna, Austria and Revo Foods partnered with Budapest Bagels to serve its smoked salmon strips in the bagels. Only a handful of journalists were able to attend in person, and one food vegan food writer said, “It tastes too similar like fish, I can hardly eat it.”

There are a few other notable players in the plant-based fish space, however, these companies do not use 3D printing like Revo Foods. In the U.S., Gathered Foods (the parent company of Good Catch) raised $26.35 million in a B-2 bridge funding round at the beginning of April. Hooked is a Swedish-based company that produces plant-based tuna and shredded salmon alternatives. New Wave Foods announced the last week of March that its’ plant-based seafood alternative is now available for foodservice companies and restaurants.

Revo Foods plans on launching its smoked salmon strips first in Europe within 2021. In the next two to three months, the company expects to finalize the development of its plant-based salmon sashimi.