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Clif Bar & Company, a leading maker of organic energy bars, is moving into the pet food category with a new line of plant-based dog treats. According to Pet Food Processing, CLIF Pet’s Plant-Based Jerky will launch in early 2022 with three recipes: Sweet Potato & Blueberry, Pumpkin & Apple and Butternut Squash & Cranberry. Each flavor contains just seven ingredients and is formulated for easy digestion, with additional product SKU’s rolling out in the near future.  Clif Bar is distinguished among sports energy bars for being largely plant-based and organic. The company also owns the popular brands CLIF Kids and LUNA bars. By venturing into pet snacks, Clif Bar will become one of the few mainstream food companies to extend its products in such a daring new direction. A winning combination CLIF Pet is the first venture of Clif Bar’s Trailblazer Incubator, a new program which seeks to accelerate the growth of the almost 30-year-old snack company by exploring disruptive opportunities. Overseen by Chief Innovation Officer Rizal Hamdallah and Incubator Senior Director Greg Lok, one of the Trailblazer program’s top goals is to help Clif Bar double in size in order to maximize the company’s positive impacts. Entering the pet snacks category seemed ideal due to the surge in pet ownership over the past 18 months, and the growing demand for higher-quality pet foods, the company says. “With more than 11 million U.S. households bringing a pet home during the last 18 months of COVID, the category is exploding ...

The OG of plant-based, co-founders of Hungry Planet, Inc., Jody Boyman and Todd Boyman join Elysabeth Alfano on The Plantbased Business Hour.  They discuss their long journey in plant-based: the good, the bad, and the future of food. Specifically, they discuss, Why, after so many years in R&D, did they launch this year in CPG/retail, Their prolific product line, How they developed food service and with what messaging to chefs, Their thoughts  on clean ingredients and labels,  Their relationship with Post and what is has meant for distributions and the $25 million raise,  A clip and transcript from their long-form conversation is below.  The podcast is here.  Click here to display content from YouTube.Learn more in YouTube’s privacy policy. Always display content from YouTube Elysabeth: Just generally speaking, and I get the comment a lot and you probably do too, “Oh, I don’t want to hear about version 2.0 or 3.0. My food isn’t a cell phone.” What do you say to that? Todd Boyman: Yeah absolutely, I agree. Food should be a cultural experience. It should nourish your body and your soul. It should help regenerate the planet and it isn’t all about the features out there. I think the way we really thought about it, you know, there’s the saying that a problem well defined is half solved. We spent a lot of time thinking through “what’s the problem we’re trying to solve?” And because this all started so long ago, there was neither a market for it nor anybody clamoring saying, ...

PlantBaby, a direct-to-consumer nutrition company, announced today it is launching Kiki Milk, the first organic plant-based milk made exclusively for kids.  Developed with pediatrician Dr. Joe Warsh and nutritionist Vicki Kobliner, RD, the new milks are designed to replace dairy milk with a clean-label, high-protein, nutritionally-complete beverage. Founded in Hawaii by husband and wife Alex and Lauren Abelin, PlantBaby and Kiki Milk were created after the couple searched unsuccessfully for a healthy non-dairy and non-soy formula for their infant son. Their research led them to discover the existence of a massive market gap for children’s plant-based milks. The couple started PlantBaby as a nutrition-focused company that would develop organic, plant-based baby formulas, supplements and beverages designed for children’s health needs.  Transparent ingredients As the first product launch, Kiki Milk contains ingredients inspired by the Hawaiian tropics: oats, coconuts, blueberries, cacao, hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, Aquamin (seaweed), spinach, bananas and coconut sugar.  Available in Original and Chocolate flavors, the milks are free from soy, gluten, gums, refined sugar, and artificial flavors. The company also conducts 3rd party testing to ensure the products are glyphosate-free. Kiki Milk comes packaged in lunchbox-friendly, sustainable 8 oz boxes colorfully decorated with Hawaii-themed characters. According to the company, Kiki Milk is one of the only plant-based milks developed in partnership with a pediatrician. “Based on my experience as an integrative and holistic pediatrician, I know how important it is to incorporate the proper nutrients into a child’s diet in order for them to achieve long-term physical ...

British alt-meat startup Herblabism has signed a deal with caterer Levy UK+I to supply meatless products to major venues across the country. Levy is a caterer for sports stadiums such as Wembley, Aston Villa, and Chelsea F.C., as well as entertainment venues including the O2 Arena. The company recently completed another collaboration with Herblabism, which involved serving the brand’s meatless sausages and burgers at the COP26 Summit in Glasgow. The menu created by Levy for the summit was 60% meatless and 40% entirely plant-based. 7,500 Herblabism mushroom burgers and 6,000 of the brand’s plant-based sausages were sold over the course of the 12-day event. Levy says it is committed to a “low carbon, plant-forward strategy”, emphasising that meatless meals accounted for 60% of the company’s total sales at COP26 while beef accounted for just 2%. Transforming the supply chain Herblabism’s founder, Dr. Vincent Walsh, is quick to point out that it isn’t just another alt-meat brand. The startup has ambitious plans to transform the way food is produced in the UK, creating a more sustainable and cost-effective model that can be emulated by other companies. This could include circular farming practices, sourcing better ingredients, and innovations in the processing, packaging, and distribution of products. While Herblabism’s products have previously only been available via caterers, a selection will soon be launching on the startup’s website for consumers to buy directly. “Our vision is one where Herblabism makes an impact in every part of the supply chain, becoming central to the entire ...

Jackfruit meat brand Jack & Annie’s has announced the closing of a $23 million Series B funding round. The sustainability-focused producer will expand its distribution in the US across retail and foodservice channels for its jackfruit meat products.  Based in Boulder, Colorado, Jack & Annie’s differentiates itself from competitors in the alt meat space by making its products – including frozen and chilled sausages, pulled pork, and wings – from whole plant jackfruit. According to the brand’s research, around 70% of jackfruit goes unused, so Jack & Annie’s supports farming communities in India by preventing the underutilized crop from going to waste, providing farming families with 10-40% of their income. In less than a year in business, the brand has rapidly gained distribution nationally in over 1,500 retailers including Whole Foods, Sprouts, Meijer, Wegman’s, Hannaford, Target, and Giant. According to data from SPINS Natural Channel, Jack & Annie’s is the 3rd largest frozen brand in the entire plant-based category. The $23 million Series B funding round was co-led by Creadev and Desert Bloom, with major participation from Wheatsheaf, and existing investors Beta Angels and Investeco.    ...

The winners of the World Plant-Based Awards 2021, held by FoodBev Media in collaboration with Plant Based World Conference & Expo, have been announced. This year, there were 110 entries across 25 countries and 15 categories. The category winners were as follows. Best Dairy Product Alternative: Vegan baby food brand Else Nutrition for its Plant-Based Nutrition toddler drink. Best Meat Alternative: Vegan deli meat company Plantcraft for its Plant-Based Pâté. Best Milk Alternative: Hope and Sesame’s sesame milk. Best Plant-Based Beverage: Kabochamilk by the Kabocha Milk Co. This shelf-stable milk alternative is made from kabocha squash. Best Plant-Based Business: LIVEKINDLY Collective, a group of plant-based food industry executives attempting to make the food system more sustainable. Best Plant-Based Condiment: Thai Taste’s Vegan Fish Sauce. Best Plant-Based Dessert/Confectionery: Oat and hemp-based gelato from Wonderlab’s Doozy Pots. Best Plant-Based Functional Product: Golden Formula by TCI Co. Ltd., a Taiwanese biotech company making healthcare products. Best Plant-Based Non-Food Product: RecycAll Freshpack, a plastic-free sandwich pack made by ProAmpac. Best Plant-Based Packaging: Meal for One by Coco & Lucas’ Kitchen, part of the company’s Earth product line. Earth has been described as Australia’s first plant-based snack and party food range. Best Plant-Based Protein: Eighth Day Foods’ Lupreme, a versatile lupin-based protein that can be used to produce a variety of plant-based meats. Best Plant-Based Seafood: Mind Blown Plant-Based Scallops by The Plant Based Seafood Co. Best Plant-Based Snack: My Sweet Chickpea by Dolfin (UK) Ltd. This snack consists of roasted chickpeas dipped in dark ...

Finnish dairy company Valio has partnered with the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland for a project that will investigate what kinds of food industry raw materials could be produced with cellular agriculture. The project will aim to develop biotechnologically produced proteins, where an organism such as a fungus is instructed to produce the protein. After being fed with nutrients and sugar, the fungus secretes protein into the growth medium. Other potential applications of the technology could involve producing purified fats or multidimensional cell structures. While producing cultivated meat and dairy products is very complex, making individual components is much simpler. This technology is already widely used in the dairy industry to produce animal-free versions of enzymes such as rennet. In recent years, it has also been used to produce dairy proteins like casein for use in vegan cheeses and ice creams. Another application is ingredients for meat alternatives, such as Better Meat Co.’s mycoprotein superfood ingredient Rhiza. “To meet the increasing food needs of the growing population, all possible food production methods are needed and they must become more sustainable. There are also certain cellular agriculture challenges that we have to solve,” said Harri Kallioinen, Senior Vice President of Research & Development at Valio. “For example, a lot of low-cost and low-carbon energy is needed in order for the large-scale production of proteins in fermentation tanks to be feasible. This is what we are working on with Hanna Tuomisto, Associate Professor of sustainable food systems at University of Helsinki, ...

An alternative proteins course is to be taught at the National University of Singapore (NUS) for the first time. An “Introduction to Advanced Meat Alternatives” will run as a 13-week graduate module on future foods as of January 2022. The course will feature teaching contributions from Dr. Dean Powell and Dr. Wasamon Nutakul from The Good Food Institute APAC – Asia’s leading alternative protein think tank. The module is being offered by NUS’ Department of Food Science and Technology, which is the first and only full academic FST department in Singapore’s university sector. A similar undergraduate module was established this year at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, which was itself the first of its kind in Southeast Asia and was also developed in collaboration with GFI APAC. Students learn the science of producing alt-protein products via plant-based, cell-cultured, and fermentation methods. Alt Proteins in Singapore  With the growing food tech and alt protein sectors in Singapore set to boost the economy of the city-state, universities in Singapore are ensuring education in alt proteins to harvest future talent in the space. The government has invested $72 billion in climate crisis preparation, with a focus on sustainability and food security, thus creating the present hub of food tech innovation. It is also the only country to give regulatory approval to cultivated meat products currently.  “The eyes of the world are looking to young scientists to alleviate the looming environmental and food security crises stemming from industrial animal agriculture. There is no pathway to ...

Thai pork and poultry giant CP Foods has joined forces with US vegan fat startup Lypid. The San Francisco-based food tech develops vegan fat with an animal fat mouthfeel to increase the authenticity of plant-based meats.  Having launched its popular MEAT ZERO vegan range, CP Foods has been investing more and more into the plant-based sphere. Its latest partnership with Lypid came about as the food-tech startup won the recent Asia-Pacific Agri-Food Innovation Summit in Singapore.  CP Foods expects to start the commercial phase of this collaboration in the next two years. Having sold over 4 million units since its launch, CP Foods entered the Singapore market recently with alt meat brand MEAT ZERO. The company also works closely with ProVeg Asia to incubate future food tech startups in SouthEast Asia.  Vegan Fat  With food techs around the world identifying fat as the key to taste in the alt protein sphere, Lypid develops all-natural, trans-free fats, with a rich “meaty” mouthfeel. It is not just plant-based fats that are in high demand, but also cultivated fats are in development in the segment, with fellow Californian startup Mission Barns recently producing a plant protein sausage using cultivated animal fat.  “Lypid’s vagan fat will create a better experience for consumers,” said Dr.Lalana Thiranusornkit, senior vice president for Food Innovation and New Product Development of CP Foods.      ...

DUBLIN–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The “Faba Beans Global Market Report 2021: COVID-19 Growth and Change” report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com’s offering. The global faba beans market is expected to grow from $3.06 billion in 2020 to $3.18 billion in 2021 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.77%. The growth is mainly due to the growing demand for natural and plant-based proteins. The market is expected to reach $3.47 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 2.19%. Major players in the faba beans market are Prairie Fava, Unigrain, Roland Beans, Aviip Group, Alberta Pulse Growers, Stamp Seeds, Riddell Seed Co., and Pawnee Buttes Seed Inc. The faba beans market consists of sales of faba beans. The market consists of revenue generated by establishments that are engaged in the production of faba beans. The faba bean is a common legume cultivated for its edible seeds or beans. Some varieties of faba beans are used as a source of protein for livestock. Faba beans are also widely used in the production of products such as protein powders and custom blends. The companies in the faba beans production distribute their products through various distribution channels to both individual customers and commercial establishments. The main types of faba beans are organic and conventional faba beans. Organic faba beans are produced using natural principles such as biodiversity and composting. Conventional faba beans are produced using high-input modern agriculture with synthetic chemical fertilizers, fungicides, insecticides and others. Faba beans are used in food processing, animal feed, nutraceuticals, ...