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Daily news and analysis about the food tech revolution

foodtech

Food Tech News Roundup: Grocery E-Commerce, Food Fraud & Cooking Robot Goes Beta

Food tech news time! We had quite a few updates on the Spoon this week, too. Chris Albrecht launched a brand new podcast about food-related robots and AI called The Spoon: Automat — give it a listen! We also announced the details of our next food tech meetup: The Future of Meat. Tickets are free, so if you’re in the Seattle area we hope to see you there. And finally, we’re just a little over a month out from heading to the legendary Guinness Storehouse for SKS Europe, so if you want to network with the top leaders defining the future of food, make sure to get tickets before they’re gone.

Now, grab a second cup of coffee and take a look at these noteworthy food tech news stories from around the web.

Photo: Flickr.

Alibaba hops on the blockchain train
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba is rolling out a pilot program to combat food fraud in China using everyone’s favorite buzzword these days: blockchain. They’ll initially target food products from Australia and New Zealand that are sold in their Tmall online marketplace, China’s largest open B2C platform.

According to the Australian Financial Review, just two items are part of the pilot program: something in the dairy family and a fish oil supplement. If successful, Alibaba will expand the initiative and try to crack down on food fraud worldwide.

Blockchain is not a perfect cure-all for food fraud. It may be incorruptible, but it doesn’t guarantee that those inputting the provenance and quality of each food item are telling the truth. Other companies, such as Ripe.io and Inscatech, have nonetheless been working on establishing blockchain for food. But this move by Alibaba is on a different level; it’s giving some transparency — and responsibility — to one of the largest e-commerce suppliers in the world.

 

Photo: Klue.

Tech company introduces responsive wearables for nutrition tracking
This week Klue, a technology company developing an OS focused on behavior change, announced partnerships with Stanford University and Crossover Health (a healthcare company) to further their program on shifting consumer eating and drinking patterns.

They also promised to reveal their first wearable technology by May 7. We’ve written about Klue before on the Spoon, but that was when their tech synced up to compatible wearables; now, they’re about to unveil their own. Their press release said that the wearables will harness AI to track wrist movements and determine how much — and how fast — consumers are eating and drinking. According to their press release, they’ll then provide “personalized, real-time micro-nudges on dietary behavior modification,” encouraging wearers to make healthier consumption choices like eating more slowly, staying hydrated or avoiding late-night snacking.

While we’re not exactly sure what a “micro-nudge” is, it seems like this could lead to some literally hand-slapping when you reach for that second cookie. But Klue’s products are also very much in line with two big consumer food trends that have been on the up-and-up: personalization and dynamic nutrition services.

 

Photo: Instacart.

Instacart announces plans for $40M support center
This week Instacart said that it had plans to build a Customer Support Center in Atlanta — with a $40 million price tag. The new center will have a staff of 400, and will complete the construction and hiring process over the next two years, according to FoodDive.

With their latest expansions — including new deals with Costco, Albertson’s, and Sam’s club — plus a recent $150 million funding round, Instacart will no doubt need some serious customer support to help with new client onboarding and delivery organization. We made the claim that if they wanted to beat Amazon the grocery delivery company would have to both expand and innovate — maybe this new service center will help them achieve both of these goals while keeping their customers and suppliers happy.

 

Photo: Whole Foods

Amazon ups Whole Foods perks
Speaking of groceries, this week Amazon amped up Whole Foods perks for Prime members in an attempt to get them to shop more often at the grocery store. Most prominently, Prime members will get an additional 10% discount off of already discounted products.

According to CNBC, roughly 75% of Whole Foods shoppers are Amazon Prime members, but only 20% of Prime members shop at Whole Foods. These perks could help the grocery store move away from its reputation as “Whole Paycheck” and capture Amazon’s Prime members, who value convenience and a good deal.

 


Plant-based protein drink company raises $1.1M
This week protein drink startup Après raised $1.1 million seed round led by Rocana Venture Partners. According to BevNet, the company targets women as the core consumers for their plant-based protein shakes — each of which contains 180 -190 calories and 13 grams of protein.

While plant-based protein drinks made of almond or soy have been around for a while, this is one of the first drinks to market itself purely as a protein beverage — and to emphasize that it’s made of plants. Après’recent funding round indicates that plant-based protein’s popularity has expanded way beyond “chicken” nuggets and burgers. And if consumer trends hold true, the market for plant-based protein will continue to grow over the coming years. So we’ll probably be seeing it pop up more often — and a lot more prominently — in a lot of different food categories.

A user prepares food for the Oliver cooking chambers

Else Labs opens up beta testing for cooking robot Oliver

We’ve followed cooking robot startup Else Labs ever since they appeared as part of our Startup Showcase at the Smart Kitchen Summit, so we were intrigued to hear they’ve opened up beta testing for their cooking robot Oliver.  The company, which is raised $1.8 million through the Qatar Development Bank last summer, announced they were looking for beta testers via email.

Live in North America and want to beta test an Oliver? Apply here. If you live outside of North America, you may have to wait a while longer, as the company states via its beta tester survey this round of beta testing will be in “selected cities in North America.”

Big Food Invests In The Future: A Talk With Tyson Ventures’ Tom Mastrobuoni

If you’ve listened to an investor conference call for a big food company lately, there’s a good chance you know the following:

  • Consumers are asking for healthier options and want to understand better where their food comes from.
  • The world’s population continues to grow in the face of an increasingly stressed food ecosystem.
  • Food brands are increasingly establishing direct relationships with consumers and exploring new business models that represent big departures from traditional food retail.

In short, big food is being forced to think about the future.

Some of the ways they are doing this are through partnerships, incubation and accelerator initiatives and establishing direct investment arms. Tyson Foods is doing all of the above, and one of the people at the heart of the company’s investment efforts is Tom Mastrobuoni, the CFO for Tyson Ventures, our guest for this week’s episode of the Smart Kitchen Show podcast.

One of the things I talk to Tom about Tyson’s recent investment in Tovala. The deal was interesting to me because it was Tyson’s first investment in a connected kitchen and food delivery startup, joining the group’s other investments in clean meat startups Beyond Meat and Memphis Meats.

Tom and I also talk about how Tyson and other companies are thinking about technologies such as AI, Blockchain and much more.

Have a listen below, download here or subscribe on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen).

Chicago

Startup Roundup: Foodtech Incubators to Watch in 2018

While developing food technology has been a priority for many since the beginning of last century, it’s only been in recent years the concept of startup accelerators/incubators has taken hold.

It seems, though, that foodtech is making up for lost time. Startups are everywhere now, from new takes on the meal kit concept to vertical farming platforms to managing pesticide levels. And everyone from Tyson to IKEA to the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) is getting involved. Last year saw some noteworthy programs from NYC’s Food-X, the student-focused Fund the Food, and Chobani’s incubator, for which applications just closed.

If you missed the application deadline for that last one, fear not—2018 will see many more programs geared towards nurturing the next wave of foodtech business, from the farm to the data center. Here are a few of our favorites to keep an eye on in the coming months:

Yield Lab Accelerator

Since growth of plants and/or animals is a huge part of AgTech, Yield Lab’s program runs for nearly a year, either in St. Lous or Europe. Participants can apply to both. Once selected, each company visits its designated location for two-day sessions that take place six times course of nine months. The Yield Lab provides mentoring and networking opportunities, as well as $100,000 in funds. The program begins on March 6, 2018. The application process for St. Louis is open now. Europe will be announced in the near future, according to Yield Lab’s site.

Techstars’ Farm to Fork

Entrepreneurship network Techstars recently announced its Farm to Fork Accelerator, to be held in Minneapolis-St. Paul this summer. The program invites early- and late-stage startups in AgTech, food safety and waste management, and manufacturing to apply. Ecolab and Cargill have partnered with Techstars for the three-month program, which helps companies with finding mentors, product development, and learning how to communicate with investors. Applications close on April 8 2018.

IFTNEXT

The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) is still taking applications for its six-week-long IFTNEXT Food Disruption Challenge, which is aimed at helping emerging and investment-ready foodtech startups and entrepreneurs. At the end of the program, IFT will select six finalists (from the 25 participants) to pitch their companies to a panel of judges at the upcoming IFT18 conference. Applications are open until February 8.

TERRA

Tech/startup network RocketSpace teamed up with food- and agriculture-financing company Rabobank to start TERRA, a program is open to a wide range of CPG, AgTech, and foodtech startups alike. Participants head to San Francisco for eight weeks in workshops and mentoring sessions, followed by eight more weeks piloting their businesses. Seed-funded startups are preferred, and applicants’ products should be either in market or ready to launch. Cohort II of TERRA is happening as we speak, but applications are already open for Cohort III.

Food Nest

The Food Nest looks to scale early-stage companies focused on health, wellness, and nutrition to the next phases of their growth. For that, applicants should have at least one proof of concept in market and a run rate between $500,000 and $2 million. The Alameda, CA-based program will select eight to 10 participants from the pool of applicants who will head to program headquarters for four months of curriculum, mentoring, and networking. Companies receive an upfront investment of $40,000 for 5 percent equity in the company. Applications are due by February 28.

Kickstarted or Stopped? We Check In On Food Tech Crowdfunders To See How They’ve Fared

We are always looking for the next big thing in foodtech here at The Spoon and one of the first places we look is Kickstarter and Indiegogo.

But covering a campaign doesn’t guarantee success and, even when a product hits or exceeds its funding target, success doesn’t always mean shipping product. With that in mind, we thought we’d check back in on some of campaigns we’ve covered to see if they reached their funding goals and how close they are to shipping to backers.

NutriScale

Project: A chopping board + food scale in one
Funded? No. Raised just $1,239 (Canadian) of a $50,000 goal

GardenSpace
Project: A connected watering device for home gardens.
Funded? Yes. Raised $34,069
Delivering? No. Campaign creators said they did not receive the minimum number of orders, so they said they are refunding all backers.

Mealhero

Project: A combination of frozen meal kit delivery and countertop steam cooker.
Funded? Yes. Raised €79,151.
Delivering? Mealhero is using the money to expand farther into Europe, said it will roll out in Belgium and The Netherlands in September 2018.

Forktula

Project: A silicon spatula you affix to a fork to scrape up sauce.
Funded? Yes. Raised $11,215 (Canadian)
Delivering? In a Kickstarter update on December 17, campaign creators said people who bought Forktulas should expect them to arrive “any day now!”

Nomsly

Project: Kids’ lunch meal delivery service.
Funded? Yes. Raised $30,977
Delivering? Nomsly was already delivering lunches in the Boston area, and was using the money to buy equipment and expand into New York and Philadelphia.

Boiling Beeper

Project: Floating alarm that beeps when your water is boiling
Funded? Yes. Raised $10,088
Delivering? A campaign update in December said the company was on track to deliver devices by the end of January 2018.

iGulu

Project: Countertop beer brewing appliance
Funded? Yes. Raises $1.1 million
Delivering? No. Shipment of devices has been delayed until July 2018.

BrewArt

Project: Home beer brewing system
Funded? Yes. Raised $33,957
Delivering? Yes. According to comments left on Kickstarter in October, people were receiving their devices. BeerDroid and BrewFlo are available for purchase on the BrewArt site, on Amazon as well as, of all places, select Bloomingdales locations.

Hopii

Project: Countertop beer brewing appliance
Funded? Yes. Raised $382,321
Delivering: Estimated delivery for backers is June 2018.

Yomee

Project: Countertop yogurt maker
Funded? Yes. Raised $136,808
Delivering? Estimated delivery is April 2018

While this is a small sample size, it looks like crowdfunding is still a robust option for the right foodtech device. Fulfillment, especially for higher-end devices remains a challenge and something potential backers should still be wary of. We’ll keep tabs to see how shipments scheduled for later this year go.

Do you have a cool project going up on Kickstarter? Send me an email and let me know.

“WeWork” for Food Entrepreneurs Gets Financial Shot in the Arm

Budding butchers, bakers, and (edible) candlestick makers have another innovative option to provide the vital tools, training, and resources to facilitate movement from startup home food entrepreneurs to the realization of their goals of commercial success.

New York-based Pilotworks (formerly FoodWorks), billed as a “WeWork for food startups,” has received $13 million in expansion capital from Acre Venture Partners, a fund backed by Campbell’s Soup, along with TechStars, a funding and mentoring program. The money will be used for expansion to markets, such as Chicago and Dallas, along with the development of the necessary properties, culinary infrastructure, and staffing.

A company press release reveals the company was founded in 2016 and has since helped more than 250 food and beverage startups get off the ground. Pilotworks says that more than 70% of the businesses it has worked with are women or minority-owned.

“We’re very excited to add so many great strategic partners and continue our work of empowering anyone to start a food business successfully. We will be adding new units: Newark just opened, and Chicago and Dallas are slated to open in December alongside our existing kitchens in Brooklyn, Portland, and Providence, as well as furthering our presence in New York City. We are also excited to continue expanding our services and offerings across the entire food stack,” said Pilotworks CEO and co-founder Nick Devane.

The company’s website says it offers a full range of services that go beyond a mere stove and fridge. Everything from garbage and linen service, to assistance with branding and web design, is available to its members. Companies such as Aida Eats, Mac & Son, BOONBOX, Dank, and Crown Jewel Beverages are veterans of Pilotworks programs.

While the association with WeWork is fine for general identification purposes, it fails to capture the essence of what makes the boom in community commercial kitchens a hot commodity. Pilotworks enters a crowded space that spans options from highly regarded Food Corridor—a community and network of commercial kitchens that offers similar services to Pilotworks in a more federated manner—to individual shared-use kitchen incubators such as Capital Kitchens in Austin. The website Culinary Incubator offers a database and list of 725 shared-use kitchens in the United States.

What looms as a difference-maker for Pilotworks is its association with Campbell’s Soup. The New Jersey-based food and beverage giant could use this network of startup kitchens to find the next great idea to bring in house and take to the global market. That said, Tyson Foods, General Foods, and others also are operating accelerators with the same endgame in mind.

Worth noting is the startup goldrush led by Pilotworks and other similar endeavors focused on major markets that are either population centers (New York, Dallas, Chicago) or food meccas (Portland, Providence). A tour of any farmers market in smaller cities would prove there are some great food-next ideas worth nurturing outside marquee locations.

Innovative Approaches Bringing Urban Farming To Cities Across The Globe

Across the globe, innovators are working to make fresh, locally grown food more accessible to city dwellers via urban farming.

In Paris, where consumers pay a premium for fresh everything, the concept of urban farming might lead locals to turn up their nose. Agricool, a French startup, is hoping to dot the country’s landscape with shipping containers that are retrofitted to grow plump, juicy strawberries. What separates this startup from others in the urban farming space is the care it takes in developing custom LED grow lights and precise temperature control. With a new round of startup capital, Agrciool is moving from early stage to production mode.

The short-term plan for Agricool, explains co-founder Guillaume Fourdinier, is to have five custom containers in the Paris area selling strawberries, “Our mission is global and we have to go where fruit and vegetable prices are “an anomaly”.  In [places such as] New York, in the Emirates, and in Asia, you cannot find strawberries of good quality at reasonable prices,” Fourdinier told French magazine Les Echos. Once the Paris rollout is successful, the company plans to outsource manufacturing of its container gardens and sell the units globally.

AGRICOOL et la Révolution Hydroponique - Rencontre #05

(ed note: turn on captions and auto-translate to see comments in English)

The fledging company’s roots began in a small apartment in Paris. As Fourninier wrote in Medium:

We were disgusted with the strawberries we could buy in the city. So (co-founder) Gonzague (Gru) and I (both sons of farmers) decided to build a farming system in our apartment. A few weeks later (and really, against all of our expectations) we had 2 strawberries waiting for us. And even more surprisingly, they tasted delicious and sweet!

We were shocked. How did our little experiment, with no preparation, no science, give us strawberries? Ok, only two, but still, real and delicious strawberries! Why does the rest of the world say it’s impossible to grow fruits and vegetables without pesticide in cities? Fear? Ignorance? Laziness?

Whatever, those two strawberries gave us the magic to keep going. 
We wanted more. Much more.

And so Agricool warn born.

Agricool is but one of several urban farms operating outside the U.S., each deploying a different market approach.

In Berlin, InFarm is working with wholesale grocer Metro on operating a vertical farm in one of its supermarkets. Twice a week is harvest time and customers can buy fresh basil grown in this 10-foot-high tech-driven agricultural marvel.

In China, Alesca Life is developing turkey hydroponic container farms which will aid with the country’s lack of arable land.

A Meal from an Urban Farmer by Alesca Life

In Singapore, Panasonic developed an indoor farm that produced leafy greens which were sold to local grocers and restaurants. From its inception in 2014, the 2,670-square-foot farm yielded 3.6 tons of produce per year. With its success, both the size of the farm and its output have nearly quadrupled.

Clean Air Nurseries in South Africa has patented what it calls a “closed-loop water system” called EGGS to grow greens indoors in a short time frame with less water. EGGS is a computer-driven technology that monitors the recycled water as it flows through a series of glasss tubes, while using a hybrid of hydroponics, aquaponics and aeroponics techniques.

No matter what the approach, it’s clear urban farming is beginning to work its way into dense city landscapes as a way to bring fresher food closer to point of consumption.

The Smart Kitchen Summit is around the corner. Get your ticket today before early bird ticket pricing before it expires to make sure you are the the one and only event focused on the future of food, cooking and the kitchen. 

Watch Sally The Robot Make My Salad

Yesterday at the FOODIT event in Mountain View, I had salad for lunch.

Why I am telling you this? Because unlike any salad I’ve had before, this one was custom built for me by a robot named Sally.

We’ve written about Sally before at the Spoon, but this is the first time I got to taste a Sally-crafted salad.  On hand to give me a tour and tell us about Sally was Chowbotics CEO Deepak Sekar.

You can watch the video of Sally making a salad above, but here are a few takeaways from my conversation with Sekar and Chef Kelly Olazar:

  • Sally allows the user to choose “chef salad” mixes or build their own using the twenty types of ingredients.  Users can also use an app to do greater customization of the salad.
  • The list price on a Sally is $30 thousand, but the company does offer discounts
  • Sally herself weighs in at 400 pounds
  • The product is targeted towards office cafeterias, universities and restaurants
  • Sally can make about 40-50 salads before she has to be refilled. Yesterday at the FOODIT event, they had to once and served 90 salads. Chef Kelly Olazar told me people were coming back for second salads later in the day (cheapsters).

Overall, I like the salad and was impressed with how quick Sally worked. While the robot’s price seems high, I figured that if could replace a worker and generate $500-$1000 a day in a busy cafeteria, the product makes sense financially in a high-volume food service location.

Anova Opens Pre-Orders For The Sub-$100 Nano

This week, Anova opened up pre-orders for their Nano, the company’s first sub-$100 sous vide circulator.

The device, which ships in October, is 25% smaller and a full pound lighter than the company’s Wi-Fi Precision Cooker. Perhaps more importantly, the Nano comes in about $70 less than the company’s flagship product. The full price for the Nano is $99, (if you move fast, you can preorder the Nano for $69), marking the first time Anova has dropped below the $100 mark.

The new lower-priced machine comes at a time when the sous vide market is getting more competitive. ChefSteps has been doing well with the Joule (and recently released a lower-cost version of their own), and low priced competitors like Gourmia have attracted budget conscious consumers. With the Nano and its $99 price tag, Anova hopes it can attract value customers looking for a low-priced sous vide circulator.

Later this year the company will ship its second generation Pro circulator for $299.  The company’s Precision Oven, a combi-oven that the company announced last year at the Smart Kitchen Summit, was originally expected to ship this summer, but the ship date has been bumped back to summer 2018.

Want to see Anova CEO Steve Svajian speak about building a smart kitchen company? Come to the Smart Kitchen Summit.  Also, make sure to subscribe to get The Spoon in your inbox. 

Yes, Millennials Are Staying Home To Cook. Here’s What They’re Making

Last week, Buffalo Wild Wings CEO Sally Smith wrote a letter to investors to tell them that times are tough in the world of fast casual dining.

According to Smith, one of the big reasons for the struggles of Applebee’s and others in the world of fast dining is millennials are eschewing mountainous plates of fried fare to cook at home and use food delivery services like Blue Apron.

Here at the Spoon, we’re not surprised. According to a survey we conducted of over 1000 US households, we found that 95% of millennials (age group 18-29) cook weekly at home, compared with 92% of those aged 30-44 and 93% of those aged 45-59.

However, while a slightly higher percentage of millennials do cook at home, they do so less frequently than their older counterparts. According to our survey, 47% of millennials cook at home 5 or more times per week, compared with 55% of those aged 30-44 and 60% of those over 60.

When they aren’t cooking at home, millennials aren’t necessarily heading to their local Red Robin. That’s because as Smith notes, the younger generation has embraced home delivery more fully than their older peers.

As can be seen above, millennials are the biggest adopters of home delivery from restaurants. According to our survey, 36% of those under age 30 have food delivered from their local restaurant, compared with 34% of those aged 30-44 and just 19% of those over 60.  Those aged 30-44 are most likely to use meal kit services (10%), just slightly ahead of the 9% of those under 30 years of age who use meal kit services. Only 3% of those over 60 use meal kits delivery services, according to our survey.

When millennials do decide to cook at home, are they zapping frozen food in the microwave or trying to unleash their inner Bobby Flay with a more complicated multi-ingredient meal?

According to our survey, the most common typical meal (33%) is a simple one or two ingredient meals like burgers or spaghetti, while some choose to spend a couple of hours making a more complicated meal (26%).  It’s clear this isn’t the microwave dinner generation, with just 11% choosing a frozen or instant meal on a typical night.

So when they do cook at home, what type of equipment do use? Pretty much the same as everyone else. According to our survey, the under 30 crowd use stove tops, microwaves and ovens as their go-to cooking equipment for a typical meal, just as their older peers do. Millennials were more likely to use a toaster oven than other age groups, with one-third of respondents under 30 using the quick and convenient device once per week.

Not all hope is lost for restaurants hoping to get some wallet share of millennials. According to our survey, 47% of those aged under 30 still eat out at least once per week, and 21% eat out multiple times per week.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that restaurants don’t have lots of work today, especially when it comes to figuring out how to deal with the robots both in the front and back of house.

Make sure to subscribe to the Spoon newsletter to get it in your inbox. And don’t forget to check out Smart Kitchen Summit, the only event on the future of the food, cooking, and the kitchen. 

Calling All Startups: Apply To Pitch & Demo At 2017 Smart Kitchen Summit

One of the best parts of attending the Smart Kitchen Summit is getting a front row seat to brand new technology and innovative products that are coming down the pipeline. The event’s startup showcase is now in its third year and invites all startups in the food tech and smart kitchen space to apply for a spot.

Details

The Startup Showcase is the perfect way to demonstrate the most innovative new ideas, products and companies reinventing food, cooking and the kitchen. If you have the next great idea that will change the way we buy, cook, store, or consume food, apply today on the SKS website. Anyone with a working product that is either a late-stage working demo or actually shipping is welcome to apply free of charge.

SKS organizers will select 15 startups as finalists and they will be invited to the event to demo their product and get on the Summit stage to talk about who they are and how they’re going to change the future of food, cooking or the kitchen.

From these 15, a winner will be chosen from a mix of judges and crowd-voting and be crowned the winner of the Startup Showcase on October 10th.

To apply, fill out the application and make your case for why you deserve to be a finalist – the more articles, photos, videos and compelling info you can provide on your product and company, the better your chances are of grabbing one of the coveted tables at the 2017 Smart Kitchen Summit.

Past Startup Showcases

The Startup Showcase in 2016 proved to one of the top highlights of the Smart Kitchen Summit – attendees poured into the showcase room to see live demonstrations of 3D food printing, home growing systems, smart precision cooktops, connected spice racks and more. For startups, the Smart Kitchen Summit audience consists of directors, executives, investors and press across the tech, food, design, housewares and appliances, commerce and retail spaces.

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The 2017 Showcase will not only offer a demo table and an eager audience but a demo space in the heart of the main Summit event at Benaroya Hall and a chance to pitch a panel of judges and the audience. No event brings together the decision makers and disrupters from across the food, cooking, appliance, retail and technology ecosystems. The Startup Showcase provides a platform for exciting startups, investors and entrepreneurs to demonstrate what they are working on and let others experience it firsthand.

The deadline for applications is August 15.