Carol Ortenberg
Posts by Carol Ortenberg
Private Equity Firm KarpReilly Acquires Zola
Yesterday private equity firm KarpReilly’s acquired food and beverage company Zola. A brand pivot in 2012 enabled growth, noted CEO Chris Cuvelier.
Adding Execs, Bobo’s Builds Out Team and Aims Big
Bobo’s Oat Bars have always stood out for its quaint, homespun look and clean ingredients. And while the 10-year old brand may not have gotten the press of its brethren, it turns out it’s been quietly building sales of $8 million in 2015 alone. With new investment and employees, the company believes it’s ready to be the breakout bar of 2016.
AccelFoods Announces New $20 Million Fund and Class IV
Food and beverage accelerator and investor AccelFoods today announced a new $20 million fund as well as a new class of portfolio companies.
Rudi’s Organic Bakery Launches First-Ever Organic Kids Bread
Rudi’s Organic Bakery brand just announced the launch of Rudi’s Organic Bakery Kids Bread, the first nationally-available organic bread made for kids. Rudi’s Organic Bakery Kids Bread is unique to the market, and is now available nationwide, including all Whole Foods locations.
Early-Stage Intros: Meeting the Next Generation of Food Brands
As consumers become more open to international flavor profiles, manufacturers are moving past nacho, ranch and lime. Instead far flung flavors such as lemongrass, fish sauce, kaffir lime and thai bird’s eye chili peppers are sneaking into the grocery aisles as accents for products ranging from chips to sauces to jerky. At the 2016 Winter Fancy Food Show, Project NOSH spoke with five early-stage food companies, each of which markets internationally inspired concepts for packaged food.
Blueprint Founders Give Birth to Second Company
In 2014, when co-founders Zoe Sakoutis and Erica Huss moved on from Blueprint, the healthy juice company they had sold to Hain Celestial, they, like many other young professional women, found conversations kept turning to one topic: pregnancy, and the way nutrition affects both the mother and unborn child. Hence, in November, 2015, the pair gave birth to a new company, Ezro Foods.
Video: Busha Browne’s Founder Talks Specialty Food
When Winston Stona founded Caribbean gourmet food company Busha Browne’s over 25 years ago, Caribbean cuisine was still unfamiliar to many cooks, consumers and shoppers. But as consumers’ preference for new, innovative, and flavorful products has increased, so too has demand for the company’s sauces, chutneys and jellies. Stona shares his journey in a video interview with Project NOSH.
Video: Blending Trends With Kaleidoscope Living Foods
The 2016 Winter Fancy Food Show featured a surge in exhibitors whose products are positioned as both indulgent in flavor and nutrient dense. Kaleidoscope Living Foods was one of those exhibitors, having showcased its bone broth-infused kale chips. Its founder talks to Project NOSH about the evolution of this movement and her company.
Back to the Roots Fertilizes Growth with Seed Round
Sustainable packaged food and gardening company Back to the Roots announced that it has grown one step closer to its goal becoming the “Pixar of Foods” after raising a $5 million seed round. The Berkeley, Calif. based company plans to use the money to fertilize its growth plan within K-12 schools as well as traditional grocery retailers.
Sonoma a CPG Town? Wine-Not, Says Sebastiani
Austin, Boulder, San Francisco, Brooklyn — these are the places that have yielded some of the most prolific and innovative food companies and entrepreneurs in the country. With the announcement of his departure from KRAVE jerky, Jonathan Sebastiani wants to add another to the list: Sonoma. The wine and meat snack entrepreneur started 2016 with the news that he would be departing from Hershey (which purchased KRAVE in 2015) to start Sonoma Brands.