Carol Ortenberg

The hens have come home to roost for pasture-raised egg maker Vital Farms, which has announced a new minority investment from Sunrise Strategic Partners. The investment will help the Austin-based egg company scale its operation and grow its distribution.

Just under a year ago, Alliance Consumer Growth (ACG), a private-equity fund, announced its investment in HannahMax Cookie Chips. Yet by the second half of 2016, it was apparent the brand needed a seasoned vet to help the company move into the next phase of it’s growth. Long-time natural products CEO Jane Miller was recruited for the role and recently told NOSH she is ready to take the company to the next level with a new look and sales strategy.

Granola and hot cereal brand Purely Elizabeth today announced a $3 million investment by General Mills’ venture arm, 301 Inc. The investment marks 301’s eighth addition to its portfolio and eight-year-old Purely Elizabeth’s first outside investment.

On Thursday, the troops were rallied by Annie’s President John Foraker, who issued a call to defend beloved food activist Ron Finley, better known as the “Gangsta Gardener.” Foraker sent an email to his large list of industry contacts and posted an open letter on LinkedIn urging members of the food industry to help Finley’s Los Angeles-based inner city garden avoid eviction, which he faces as a result of his previous landlord’s default on the property.

Land O’Lakes made hay while the sun shone today, acquiring venerable artisanal cheese maker Vermont Creamery. Founded in 1984, Vermont Creamery operate as an independently operated subsidiary of the Minnesota-based dairy giant.

Now under new ownership, but back to the same old purpose: Snikiddy, an 11-year-old healthy snacking brand for kids, sported a new look, new products, and a new focus on organic that have all come to fruition under Utz Quality Foods.

While the once-staid cottage cheese category has gotten more crowded over the past year, there’s still a large segment of consumers for whom it signifies diets, rice cakes, and carrots. Jesse Merrill, the founder of Good Culture organic cottage cheese, wants to change that perception and teach consumers that cottage cheese can be the answer to their high-protein prayers. And he isn’t done spreading the gospel, as he showcased the company’s newest product, a natural line of cottage cheese that aims to reach even more consumers, at this year’s Natural Products Expo West.

CPG collective Halen Brands has acquired plant-protein centric brand Only What You Need (OWYN). The brand debuted at Natural Products Expo West as part of Halen’s newly launched, allergen-friendly brand platform, Safe Allergen Friendly Environment (S.A.F.E.).

The competition in the snack set will see some sibling rivalry with today’s announcement that Conagra Brands, producer of DAVID seeds and Slim Jim, has entered into an agreement to acquire Thanasi Foods, maker of BIGS seeds and Duke’s meat snacks

At this year’s Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim, Calif., Ruby Rockets and Brewla, two frozen novelty brands, showed off their new familial bonds.