Carol Ortenberg

Snack brand Core Foods announced this week the close of another $6 million in venture funding from existing investors, bringing the one-year-old brand’s total capital raised to $12.5 million. The funding, president Brett Hartmann told NOSH, will be used to expand marketing efforts.

In the week since the Natural Products Expo West trade show was postponed, the food industry has seen several other shows cancelled or delayed due to the fast moving virus COVID-19. Yesterday, Expo West producer New Hope and Fancy Foods Show producer The Specialty Food Association (SFA) updated their respective attendees with show updates. Meanwhile, Supply Side East was postponed until the Summer.

Over the coming months, Green Park Brands, the producer of Hippeas, will launch Maverick Snacks and CO Chocolate, a pair of new brands aimed at giving the parent company a foothold in three new categories: crackers, cookies and confection.

Like its consumers, Once Upon a Farm (OUAF) is growing up. The fresh-focused kids CPG brand is launching a new line of non-dairy yogurt and bottled protein smoothies, both moves aimed at helping the brand expand its appeal beyond babies to families. Co-founder and actress Jennifer Garner, herself a mother of an 8, 11 and 14 year old, has been eager for the brand to age-up and “help out the lunch box.”

Just a few days after Natural Products Expo West, yesterday another trade show for the food industry was postponed. The Seafood Expo North America/Seafood Processing Expo North America conference and trade show, which was scheduled to be held in Boston March 15-17, was expected to bring 1,329 exhibitors from 49 countries for a total of more than 22,150 attendees to the city’s Seaport area.

Sunk costs. That’s what a lot of food and beverage companies facing the potential of a Coronavirus-reduced Natural Products Expo West show were regretting over the weekend as they wondered whether they could do enough business with the show’s drastically-reduced retailer contingent to justify the money they had already laid out.

As food companies gear up for next week’s Natural Products Expo West conference, some of their conversation has moved from how many samples to bring to potential health and safety risks from the fast moving virus, COVID-19, also known as the Coronavirus.

The past 16 months have been a period of growth for super premium ice cream Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, and now the brand wants to fuel the fire. The company announced today the close of $18.7 million in funding, with the goal of increasing efficiencies and reclaiming its innovative heritage.

Ellenos, a fast-growing premium yogurt brand, announced today an $18 million investment by Equilibra Partners Management, the family office of KIND founder Daniel Lubetzky. The capital will be used to help the brand scale nationwide.

Frozen food brand Farmwise is selling to one of its top competitors. The Massachusetts-based company announced yesterday that it has been purchased by B&G Foods — who also owns the Green Giant line of vegetable-based products. In recent years the brand has faced competition from larger players (such as Green Giant), co-founder Dave Peters told NOSH.