Close Ad

The Spoon

Daily news and analysis about the food tech revolution

Startups

BIOMILQ Has Grown The Main Components of Human Breastmilk in a Lab

A new startup called BIOMILQ today announced that it had successfully produced human casein and lactose, the predominant components found in breastmilk, through their new patent-pending process. In short, they’ve grown the key elements of human breastmilk in a lab.

The startup was founded last year by Michelle Egger, a food scientist who previously worked in dairy R&D at General Mills, and Dr. Leila Strickland, a cell biologist who first conceptualized the technology in 2013 while breastfeeding her own daughter. The two met in the Research Triangle and created a patent-pending technology in which they trigger human mammary gland cells, kept alive by a constant stream of nutrients, to lactate. They then collect the resulting breastmilk.

Then again, the term “breastmilk” may not be strictly accurate. “We’re not calling it breastmilk just yet,” said Egger, explaining that a woman’s breastmilk contains much more than just lactose and casein alone. However, they’re confident that their samples are “quite similar to milk.” The startup’s cultured milk samples are currently readying to go through a detailed molecular characterization to affirm that they have the same nutritional profile as breastmilk.

I never thought I’d type this sentence, but BIOMILQ isn’t the only company working to growing human breastmilk in a lab. TurtleTree Labs, based in Singapore, uses lactating mammary gland cells (from humans or other animals) placed in nutrient-rich baths to encourage them to excrete milk. They then filter out the milk and distill it for a final product. However, Egger claims that BIOMILQ’s process is different from TurtleTree’s in that they don’t need to filter the end result — the mammary gland cells just secrete milk directly, no media bath needed. “It’s a much cleaner technology,” she said.

BIOMILQ has stated that as far as they knew, they were the first company to create the components of human breastmilk outside of a lactating woman. However, when I reached out to TurtleTree their CTO Max Rye said they had created human breastmilk in Q3 of 2019 and had been optimizing it ever since. So it seems fair to say that there are at least two players making strides in the space.

That’s not the only difference between the two companies. BIOMILQ is targeting Western markets, while TurtleTree will likely debut in Asia. BIOMILQ will likely enter the market selling its own product to consumers either through D2C models or through retail channels, while TurtleTree plans to license out its tech to large dairy companies.

TurtleTree has also disclosed a timeline: they plan to enter the market in two years. BIOMILQ, on the other hand, has stayed mum on the question of when they’ll begin selling.

One part of that hesitation is likely due to regulatory issues. The USDA and the FDA are jointly regulating cell-based meat, but BIOMILQ’s technology is unique — it’s not cells grown in a lab, but rather cells produced by cells kept alive in a lab setting through a precise calibration of environment and nutrition. Therefore it’s unclear how regulators will categorize their product.

Egger didn’t release hard numbers around BIOMILQ’s pricing, but did reveal that it would likely cost slightly more than top-end infant formula by the time of their full-scale launch.

Lab-grown breastmilk may be a ways away, but cultivated dairy is not. Perfect Day and New Culture are already creating animal-free dairy by fermenting genetically engineered microbes. Unlike BIOMILQ, which cultivates milk excreted from a lactating cell, both of the aforementioned companies rely on fermentation to create the various components of dairy, which they then combine with water and fat to create milk. Egger claims that their method was more efficient since it can produce all of the elements of milk in a single cell.

All of these companies could potentially have a big impact on the dairy industry. Perfect Day and New Culture are developing an entirely animal-free way to create milk, while BIOMILQ could theoretically replace dairy-based infant formula.

Though they might want to replace formula, Egger and Strickland were clear that they don’t want to replace breastfeeding altogether. “We’re not positioning ourselves to be equivalent to breastfeeding, because we know that immunologically there are some things we won’t be able to do,” Egger told me. Instead, she framed their product as a “supplemental nutrition aid.”

That could especially come in handy in low- and middle-income countries. BIOMILQ plans to eventually use its technology to provide reliable, cost-efficient breastmilk to areas were infants might struggle to get access to good nutrition.

The startup is still in very early stages with no significant funding, so we don’t even know if BIOMILQ will be able to follow through on their plan to commercialize their cultured (cell-based? cultivated?) breastmilk. But considering I hadn’t heard of lab-grown breast milk until a few months ago, and now there are two new companies making it, I think it’s safe to assume that the infant formula space has a shake-up coming its way.

Egyptian Food Delivery Startup elmenus Raises $8M to Battle Uber Eats

Egypt-based online food ordering platform elmenus announced today it has raised an $8 million Series B round (via wamda). The round was led by UAE-based VC fund Global Ventures and Egyptian fund Algebra Ventures, with participation from angel investors.

The startup raised a $1.5 million Series A from Algebra Ventures in 2017, as well as undisclosed pre-Series B investment mid-2019 from Julian Dames, the VP of DeliveryHero.

Founded in 2011, elmenus‘ online ordering platform lets users browse from local restaurants for delivery or just to discover where to dine out. The startup also states on its website that it provides personalized food recommendations, but how exactly it does that is unclear. I poked around their platform for a bit and it looked pretty similar to other food delivery sites I’ve used — listing restaurant options based on location with dish photos and diner reviews.

Even if it doesn’t have a unique personalization aspect, elmenus still stands out in the world of food delivery simply because of its location. Egypt actually hosts quite a few delivery players, including international giants like Uber Eats, Glovo and Delivery Hero-owned Otlob. Elemenus is one of the few companies that started locally and focuses exclusively on the Egyptian market (for now).

So far the startup operates exclusively in Egypt and has its own delivery fleet. According to wamda, elmenus will use its new funds to scale across the country.

Eight million dollars ain’t nothing, but it’s a drop in the bucket compared to what its competitors are working with. Glovo alone raised $167 million last year. Even in an area with so much untapped market potential (only 4 percent of Egyptians order to-go food online), it might be hard for elemenus to survive.

That is, unless it can find a way to stand out. Beefing up its personalization offering could be one way to do so. If elmenus is smart, that’s how it’ll use that fresh $8 million.

If you’re curious about how personalization is changing the meal journey, from food delivery to grocery shopping, you need to be at Customize this month in NYC! Use code SPOON15 for 15% off your ticket.

Alt-Protein Accelerator Big Idea Ventures Is Taking Applications for Its Next Cohort

Alt-protein startups, take note. Big Idea Ventures, an accelerator focusing specifically on the future of protein, is currently taking applications for its next cohort, which has locations in New York City and Singapore.

Part startup accelerator, part venture fund, Big Idea Ventures (also known simply as BIV) looks for companies making plant-based food products, exploring cellular agriculture, or coming up with new ingredients that could pave the way for more animal-free proteins in the food industry. For the $5.2 billion alt-protein space, creating a standout product will become more challenging for companies over the next decade as more versions of non-dairy cheese, plant-based seafood, and lab grown burgers come to market.

The two programs run concurrently. Ten companies are chosen for each, with both programs lasting five months long. Participants get a $125,000 cash investment and a $75,000 in-kind investment, as well as office space, mentorship opportunities, test kitchen facilities, and other resources. There is also potential for BIV to invest more in a company after the program wraps.

The overarching goal, as we noted last year, is to help companies identify and overcome challenges in their business, from finding the right mix of ingredients to getting a product to market and distribution. Companies interested in applying should already have an initial product that’s ready to scale.

 “Agriculture and animal farming is one of the largest contributors to global warming. If we can move people towards a more plant-centric diet that are delicious and easy choices to make, that’s going to have an impact,” Andrew D. Ive, Managing General Partner at BIV, told me last year.

As to differences between the two programs, there aren’t many. Part of the reason BIV chooses to host a program outside North America is so that it can connect startups to the right food producers, co-packers, and distributors, and also address some of those cultural nuances and preferences needed for companies to be appealing on a global level. For example, plant-based pork is far more likely to be a success in Asian markets over something like a Beyond burger. “If we’re gonna do this, we need to take into consideration what people eat on a regular basis,” Ive said.

BIV is taking applications for both NYC and Singapore. The final deadline is March 2, 2020, with the Cohort slated to kick off in May.

Dye Another Day: Michroma Makes Sustainable Food Coloring through Fungi Fermentation

Be it Red 40 or Yellow 6, food dyes are hiding in a surprising number of food and bev products on your local grocery shelf. Sometimes these dyes are made from natural ingredients like beet juice, turmeric, or even bugs (which means they’re not vegan, and also kinda gross). But natural dyes aren’t as vibrant or heat-resistant as their artificial counterparts, which are typically made from petroleum (also gross).

Michroma, a new company currently participating in science accelerator IndieBio, is out to recast the food dye industry. The startup is developing a platform to create dyes through fermentation, specifically mushroom root fermentation. Michroma scientists use CRISPR to edit the genes in particular strains of fungi so that when they’re placed in a bioreactor they secrete vibrant, colorful dyes.

Ricky Cassini and Mauricio Braia founded the company a year ago in Argentina before moving to San Francisco for IndieBio. Cassini, who is the CEO, told me over the phone this week that Michroma has raised $250,000 from IndieBio and previously raised $200,000 in Argentina.

According to Cassini, Michroma’s fermentation process could usher in a more sustainable production method for food dyes. In addition to being free from stuff like petroleum and crushed-up bugs, Michroma’s dyes are incredibly scalable to produce since the funghi require very little light, space and energy. Cassini also told me that their fermented dyes are significantly more heat-resistant than plant-derived natural dyes.

Michroma is currently focused on developing red dye. The company can already make orange and yellow. Next up it’ll tackle blue, green and black food colorings.

For now, the startup is creating dyes at a lab scale and, according to Cassini, their products are already cost-competitive with plant- and insect-based dyes. Michroma will sell its dyes B2B to large food corporations (as well as cosmetic and pharma companies), but that won’t happen for a while yet. Cassini said that since their technology is new for food dye, they need to go through something called a “color additive petition” to have it recognized as safe to eat. That could take up to two years. By that time, Cassini said that the fermented dyes will cost around the same as those made with petroleum.

However, he’s hoping that it won’t take a full two years before they can start selling. If he’s right, maybe soon you’ll be able to scan the back of a bag of Dorito’s and see “fermented dye” listed instead of, you know, petroleum and bugs.

Rockstart Closes €3M in Fresh Funding for Its First Agtech Cohort

Copenhagen, Denmark-based startup accelerator Rockstart announced this week it has closed a €3 million (~ $3,332,000 USD) funding round to support Rockstart AgriFood, its first-ever agtech-focused program. The round follows a €15 million raise from September 2019 that was led by the Danish state fund Vaekstfonden, Dutch investment firm De Hoge Dennen, and “unnamed high net worth individuals,” according to an article on AgFunder news. This latest round of investment comes from undisclosed investors from Europe. 

Nine-year-old Rockstart, who also operates programs for the energy and health sector, kicked off the first-ever cohort for its agtech (also called “agrifood”) program last September. Ten startups were chose to participate, including ChefMe, a platform for hiring private chefs, precision-farming company Vultus, and Beyond Leather Materials, which repurposes unused foods to make leather alternatives.

For all its programs, including AgriFood, Rockstart looks for growth-stage startups and focuses on getting them access to markets and capital. AgriFood, in particular, looks for startups innovating in the following areas: optimizing processes and practices, reducing and/or stopping food waste, and improving traceability.  

Chosen companies receive an initial €100,000 (€35,000 in cash and €65,000 in program costs in exchange for 6 percent equity via a convertible loan). Startups are also eligible for potential follow-on investments from Rockstart up to their Series B stage. The program provides all participants with networking and mentorship opportunities as well as access to the wider Rockstart community. 

The first cohort’s Demo Day, where companies showcase and pitch their products and services will take place on January 30 in Copenhagen. According to the Rockstart website, applications for the next cohort open in April 2020. 

CES 2020: Stratuscent’s Digital Nose Can “Smell” When Crops are Ripe or Food is Burning

Something good-smelling must be in the air at CES this week, because digital noses are becoming a bit of a thing at this year’s tech expo. Yesterday I dropped by the booth of Stratuscent, a Montreal, Quebec-based startup which is digitizing scents to detect freshness.

The company’s sensors, called eNoses, detect chemicals in the air to create a scent print — like a fingerprint for a smell. According to CEO David Wu, who gave me a tour, Stratuscent’s “secret sauce” is its superior AI and machine learning, which can quickly and accurately determine any number of complex scents, even ones too tricky for humans to smell. The company’s tech came from NASA, where it was originally used for leak detection.

The eNose is pretty simple to use. Just wave the product in question under the eNose and it will determine what it is — as well as its percentage of accuracy — in under thirty seconds. You can Wu demonstrating the technology below:

CES 2020: Stratuscent's eNose is a Digital Smelling Machine
Can Stratuscent determine this mystery smell? (Spoiler: Yes, yes it can.)

Wu told me that Stratuscent’s noses have a variety of applications, including sniffing ethylene, a chemical that indicates spoilage, in crop shipments. They’re also working with a dairy company to detect milk freshness. In the home, Wu told me that the eNose could also be integrated into smart kitchen appliances to identify cooking stages (your sauce is about to burn!) and alert users to food spoilage.

Startuscent was founded in 2017 and has raised $4.3 million thus far. Wu said that in addition to its partnership with a dairy company, Stratuscent is pushing further into the food and agriculture space, and is also in conversations to work with indoor agriculture farmers.

Stratuscent isn’t the only player digitizing smell technology (what a world). Yesterday Chris wrote about Aryballe’s new Digital Nose 2.0, which also debuted at CES this week and also digitizes scent to detect freshness, cooking smells, etc.

Regardless, the digital scent landscape is just beginning to emerge. As food safety outbreaks grow — and consumers become more conscious about reducing home food waste — I think there will be a growing market for this sort of technology. Which means there’s ample opportunity for more than one player to nose its way into the digital smelling space.

Plantible is Turning Aquatic Plants into Next-Gen Plant-based Protein

Look at an ingredient list for plant-based meat or dairy products, and right up top you’ll probably see pea, soy, wheat, or maybe even mung bean. But San Diego-based startup Plantible is introducing a brand new player to the alternative protein landscape: lemna (commonly known as duckweed).

Plantible’s co-founders, Tony Martens and Maurits van de Ven, stumbled upon lemna as they were searching for a plant-based protein superior to what was already out there in the market. Martens explained that many alternative proteins require stabilizers to accurately mimic the texture of animal products, especially ones that “gel” when cooked, like egg whites or cheese. Stabilizers not only add to the ingredient list, they also make product development more expensive and time-consuming. 

Martens and van de Ven wanted to find a protein that could copy the nutrition and texture of animal products, and was also more sustainable to produce than industry leaders pea and soy. They believe they’ve found it in lemna, a free-floating aquatic plant commonly known as “duckweed” (though van de Ven said, understandably, they’re pushing away from the term, because who wants to eat something called duckweed?). Plantible’s scientists developed a proprietary process to extract the grassy flavor from lemna, leaving a protein that’s on par with pea or soy nutrition-wise, but is completely colorless, odorless, and flavorless. The perfect blank canvas for a variety of animal alternative products. 

Lemna is also meant to be more sustainable than other plant-based proteins out there. The plant is grown in indoor aquatic farms, so it doesn’t require land or irrigation (though it no doubt requires a lot of water on which to grow). The aquatic plant also doubles its mass every 48 hours, so it can be harvested daily as opposed to once or twice a year.

Plantible’s aquatic lemna farms. [Photo: Plantible]

For now, we have to take Plantible’s word for that. The startup began validating its lemna through CPG partners five months ago — who have used the protein as a building block for everything from plant-based burgers to ice cream. In 2020, Plantible plans to start selling its lemna to CPG partners and also launch its own consumer product featuring the protein. Martens told me that the lemna will cost about the same as pea protein.

Founded in the Netherlands, Plantible quickly relocated to the U.S. because, according to Martens, the harsher regulatory restrictions means it takes much longer to launch a new product in Europe than the U.S. Thus far the startup has raised more than $1 million, though the founders wouldn’t give me exact numbers.

Plantible may be trying to next “it” alternative protein, but if it were up to the company’s founders, we wouldn’t be using the term “alternative” at all. They prefer to call their product “next-generation” protein instead. “These ingredients are not alternative,” Martens explained. “They’re just the new standard of how we produce food.”

Considering how the plant-based food market has ballooned in 2019, that’s not too lofty an exaggeration. That said, Plantible’s lemna is still extremely green compared to behemoths like pea and soy. But with companies hungry to develop more and more plant-based products, I expect there will be plenty of demand for a new alternative — er, next-gen — protein.

Dear Startups: Kick Off 2020 by Applying to One of These 3 Food Tech Accelerators

If joining a startup accelerator program is in your plans for 2020, it’s never too early to get a jumpstart on the competition. First, if you haven’t already, read up on who should ideally apply for these companies, and why (hint: you shouldn’t be doing it for the money). Then, check out the programs below to see if they fit your company’s goals for growth. Note that some of these application deadlines close soon (like, tomorrow).

We update this list monthly, so if you don’t see what you’re looking for, check back February for a fresh list of programs. 

FoodFutureCo
New York City

NYC-based FoodFutureCo looks for companies it can help move from early product-market phase to the mainstream, with specific focus on plant-based food, agtech, sustainable seafood, and fighting food waste. Plant-based frozen meal maker Zoni Food, ethical food brand Eat Nice, and analytics platform Farm Fare are all past participants of the program, which was founded in 2015.

The five-month-long program looks for companies on track to gross more than $1 million in annual sales. Four to eight startups are chosen for each cohort. Participants receive up to $10,000 (for 4 to 8 percent equity) along with mentorship opportunities and potential follow-on investment.

Applications close December 31, 2019.

Brinc Food Technology Accelerator
Hong Kong

Brinc’s Food Technology Accelerator covers a wide range of what it calls “investment verticals”: agtech, alt protein, cellular agriculture, packaging, food safety, supply chain, and food waste. Startups looking to join the program should have a product-market fit in one of these verticals, along with a defined business model. According to the program website, companies must be willing to incorporate in Hong Kong and, ideally, want to deploy their product or solution in the Southeast Asian market. 

Unlike many programs, Brinc charges a $30,000 participation fee for the program, though this can be deducted from the $80,000 investment Brinc gives each participating company (for 10 to 15 percent equity). Startups also receive mentorship, customized curriculum, access to potential investors, and post-program support. Companies must be present in Hong Kong for six weeks of the program for onsite training.

Applications close February 17, 2020.

Coming Soon . . .

Techstars Farm to Fork
Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota

A partnership with Cargill and Ecolab, Techstars Farm to Fork program looks for startups and entrepreneurs working up and down the food chain, from agtech and manufacturing to food safety, traceability, and waste reduction. Techstars looks specifically for companies using tech to solve problems in these areas, as program alumni like Spoonshot and  Renewal Mill have done.

Chosen participants get a $100,000 convertible note along with mentorship and networking opportunities and access to potential investors. They also get workspace, as relocation to the Minneapolis-St. Paul area is required for the duration of the three-month-long program. 

Applications open on January 6, 2020.

DishDivvy Partners with DoorDash to Deliver Home-Cooked Meals

Today DishDivvy, an online marketplace for home-cooked meals, officially announced its integration with DoorDash to facilitate food deliveries. Previously, hungry folks who had purchased a meal from a home cook over DishDivvy’s platform had to go and pick up their homemade lasagna/spanikopita/pad thai themselves. Now they have the option to pay a mileage-based delivery fee to have it delivered directly to their door.

DishDivvy may have just officially announced the news, but CEO Ani Torosyan wrote to me today that the startup had been making deliveries with DoorDash since 2019. “We held off on announcing because we wanted to test the integration and really understand delivery when it comes to home kitchen operations,” she wrote. Since then she said that they have iterated on their integration, but wouldn’t reveal exact details.

The official news comes just a couple weeks after DishDivvy announced it would be expanding from its home state of California into Utah. Torosyan said that they hadn’t tested DoorDash delivery in all of Utah yet, but that as of now there is some coverage in the state. She added that third-party delivery of home-cooked food is completely legal in both California and Utah.

DoorDash’s costs for the home-cooked food are a bit pricey: $6 for delivery within a 3-mile radius. That might seem excessive when you could just zip over and pick it up for free. However, adding the delivery option allows DoorDash to reach a wider audience: those extremely strapped for time, people without access to a car, anyone who is mobility-challenged, or doesn’t want to leave the house, etc. etc.

It may seem like a relatively small step, but integrating with delivery shows that DishDivvy is serious about making the cottage food marketplace a legitimate food option available to all — not just a niche audience. Well, at least in those states that allow the sale of home-cooked food.

My Family Tried JUST’s Plant-based Egg. Reviews were Mixed

While grocery shopping in an Ohio Kroger with my extended family this week, my eyes set upon something intriguing in the egg aisle. It was a container of JUST Egg, a plant-based substitute made from mung beans meant to scramble just like the real thing.

Since last holiday break my family did a White Castle Impossible slider taste test, I thought that this year we should keep the tradition going and try out a new alternative protein product. So I added a container JUST Egg to my cart.

I scrambled up a couple of regular eggs in some neutral oil to compare to the JUST Eggs, and kept the salt amount the same on both. The JUST Egg took a bit longer to coagulate than the regular egg but once it did, the textural cooking experience was quite similar. Almost undistinguishable.

JUST Egg on the left, traditional eggs on the right. [Photo: Catherine Lamb]

In fact, texture was the number one thing my family commented on. While almost everyone sniffed out the real egg, they still commented that the JUST Egg had a creamy texture almost eerily similar to the real thing.

The flavor, however, was not quite as successful. While everyone enjoyed the JUST Egg — one even preferred it — no one said that it would have fooled them. “Put some cheese on it, and I might not know the difference,” said my dad.

Clearly our family isn’t the only one to like JUST Egg. The plant-based substitute is now available at Costco, Whole Foods and Kroger, plus over 500 foodservice spots. It’s even on menus at Le Pain Quotidien as part of an eggless frittata. To keep up with the growth, JUST just (lol) acquired a 30,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Minnesota to amp up production.

JUST Egg may not have fooled my family, and at its price — $7.99 for a 12-ounce container — I doubt it’ll become a regular fixture in our fridge. However, the crew still liked JUST Egg well enough to finish the whole thing. And we’re a crew that really loves our eggs.

Maybe tomorrow I’ll scramble the rest of the JUST Egg into breakfast burritos and see if it’s more popular.

COFFEEJACK, the Handheld Espresso Maker, Crowdfunds $1.1M on Kickstarter

Last week on The Spoon Editorial podcast, Head Editor Chris Albrecht discussed his recent look back at food- and drink-related crowdfunding successes and failures of 2019. He noted that some of the biggest success stories from the year were around gadgets geared towards two beverages: beer and coffee.

When it comes to the COFFEEJACK, that analysis seems accurate. The product, from Bristol, UK-based company HRIBARCAIN, launched a $13,081 Kickstarter for its single-serve portable espresso maker back in October. As of this writing, the campaign has raised over $1,093,000.

The COFFEEJACK is a handheld device that brews a single serving of espresso directly into your cup. Put finely-ground coffee beans in the base, fill it with hot water, and press the pump a few times to get a DIY espresso.

COFFEEJACK’s co-founders Ashley Hribar-Green and Matthew Cain (Get it? HRIBARCAIN!) met when they were engineers working on the cordless vacuum at tech company Dyson. They began developing an idea for an affordable portable espresso machine three years ago. Almost 400 prototypes later, they filed a patent on the current COFFEEJACK device, which creates high-pressure coffee extraction without the use of pods, filters or electricity.

As a one-time barista, I know that making espresso is far more difficult than, say, brewing up some joe in a french press. The key is to apply the exact right amount of pressure on the beans to extract all of the flavors. Cain told me that most espresso makers rely on air to create said pressure, which is why they’re often large and heavy. COFFEEJACK, however, relies on hydraulics to exert the necessary pressure, which requires far less space. That’s how the engineers came to develop a portable espresso maker small enough to hold in your hand, but forceful enough to extract an optimal shot.

Traditional espresso makers are not just unwieldy — they’re also expensive. An average home espresso maker — a real espresso maker, not the stovetop kind which essentially makes concentrated brewed coffee — will set you back around $500. By contrast, prospective backers can pre-order a COFFEEJACK for £70 ( around $91 USD). That’s on par with other handheld espresso makers on the market, though COFFEJACK’s founders told me their machine’s hydraulic extraction made it stand out from the rest.

Hribar-Green and Cain haven’t decided how much the device will cost once it hits the market. They expect to sell the COFFEEJACK both through traditional brick and mortar retail partners and online through their website. 

If you missed out on the COFFEEJACK Kickstarter campaign but really want a handheld espresso maker, don’t panic. HRIBARCAIN plans to keep the crowdfunding a-rollin’ with a six-month IndieGoGo campaign, launching soon.

The COFFEEJACK is set to ship in May of 2020. As always with crowdfunded hardware, there’s no way to guarantee that you’ll actually get your hands on the thing you forked over money for. However, HRIBARCAIN already has two successful Kickstarter campaigns under their belt, for a magnetically controlled pen and pencil, both of which are still shipping today. So the pair clearly has at least some experience with the hardware crowdfunding world. 

One thing I personally like about the COFFEEJACK is how it cuts down on coffee waste. Keurig and Nespresso machines rely on tons of disposable pods to make espresso. While some of those pods can technically be recycled, they usually end up in landfills. COFFEEJACK isn’t reliant on pods or even filters, so it’s relatively waste-free.

HRIBARCAIN is based in the U.K., but they plan to ship COFFEEJACK globally. Down the road, Cain told me they would probably focus on the U.S., since Americans have, in his words, a “real appreciation for gadgets and great coffee.”

At least when it comes to crowdfunding projects, he’s got a point.

DishDivvy to Expand Homemade Food Marketplace to Utah

Talented cooking hobbyists of Utah, you’ve got a new potential side hustle. Yesterday DishDivvy, a marketplace which connects home cooks with hungry neighbors, announced that it had begun operations across Utah.

DishDivvy is a mobile app that lets preapproved home cooks sell food to local consumers. The startup helps home cooks get certified and onboarded onto their platform. They also handle all ordering and payment internally, and can even help arrange for home delivery. Utah will be the second territory for Glendale, CA-based DishDivvy, the first being its home state of California.

DishDivvy wasn’t the first company to try and create a cottage food marketplace. Josephine was an early entrant in the food sharing economy, similarly connecting home cooks with hungry consumers. Due to regulatory issues they were forced to suspend operations at the end of 2017. However, with the passage of California law AB-626 (which was pushed forward by Josephine’s team), DishDivvy was able to commence operations in California at the end of 2018.

Utah has just passed a similar law with H.B. 181, The Home Consumption and Homemade Food Act. Under the law, home cooks in Utah are “exempt from any state, county, or city licensing, permitting, certification, inspection, packaging, and labeling requirements,” provided they comply with certain requirements set in the law. Therefore Utah residents, like Californians, are now able to sell homemade food directly from their home — as long as they have the proper permits to do so and follow some basic rules (food must be for home consumption, sold directly to consumer, etc).

We at the Spoon have been intrigued by the idea of a home cook marketplace for awhile. It’s an interesting way to give people a supplementary revenue source, keep money within a community, and connect neighbors, all while cutting down on food waste. That’s why we named DishDivvy one of our FoodTech 25 for 2019.

Last June, when Mike Wolf wrote about AB 626, he noted that “California often leads the country when it comes to forward-leaning legislation” and that the new law “could open the door for nationwide legalization and give a framework for home food entrepreneurs.” It seems like California has indeed opened that door for Utah — and I’m guessing we’ll see some more states pass laws to welcome cottage food industry in 2020.