Martín Caballero

After hiding in plain sight for years, could low-acid coffee be having something of a moment? While it may represent just a fraction of the larger coffee market, the low-acid segment has become a small but steady profit generator for a handful of rising brands looking to separate themselves from the pack, whether as a central element or as a complementary piece.

Food conglomerate Mondelēz International has agreed to pay $2.9 billion, with additional contingent earnout consideration, to acquire organic snack bar maker Clif Bar & Company.

To say that Chamberlain Coffee is built around its eponymous namesake is to belabor the obvious. At just 21-years old, vlogger Emma Chamberlain has built an audience of 26 million followers across Instagram and YouTube without much of a gimmick to speak of; her videos include activities like driving, cleaning her apartment and making lots of coffee.

Despite strong online and in-store numbers that helped push a 26% increase in year-over-year net sales to $9.6 million, Laird Superfood reported a net loss of over $14 million during Q1 2022, according to an earnings report released by the company on Friday.

Founded in 2014, the veteran-owned company has attracted attention from within and outside the beverage industry, thanks in large part by both the popularity of its pro-military merchandise and its expanding ready-to-drink product family. In February, Black Rifle went public via SPAC in an IPO valuing the company at around $1.7 billion. The company plans to reorganize as a public benefit corporation to reinforce its mission of serving veterans, law enforcement and first responders, including a commitment to hire 10,000 veterans.

For better or worse, the visage of Juan Valdez, a fictional marketing vehicle created by the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia, has become inextricably linked to the worldwide perception of Colombian coffee. The humble coffee farmer, always with his trusted burro Conchita by his side, symbolizes the global appeal and heritage of the South American nation, but perhaps in a way that at best overlooks and at worst trivializes the passion and dedication behind Colombia’s coffee farmers and their unique crop.

Coffee wholesaler Westrock announced today it is merging with Riverview Acquisition, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), to go public in a transaction that values the combined company at just over $1 billion.

Two of Canada’s major cannabis producers are coming together after Tilray Brands agreed to take on $211 million of debt from HEXO, a resolution that will allow the latter brand to shake off its “crippling overhang” by providing Tilray with “significant equity ownership position,” according to a press release.

The Colorado-based brand is one of dozens of emerging players dealing in super-premium recreational cannabis, including flower, pre-rolls and extracts. But in forming a partnership with specialty coffee roaster Intelligentsia to collaborate on new products – the first being a cannabis-infused chocolate bar with espresso shavings, which began rolling out at dispensaries in Colorado, Nevada and California last month – the self-styled “luxury cannabis” brand is aiming to distinguish itself as a leader in boutique, artisanal edibles.

Maybe they aren’t sports bras or vitamins, but food and beverage brands are establishing a presence among the country’s fastest-growing direct-to-consumer companies. Fly By Jing, Tea Drops and Golden Ratio were among the CPG names to feature in the top 25 fastest-rising D2C brands in Q4 2021, according to new research by Similarweb.