Meagan McGinnes

From a major CPG giant looking to promote a more inclusive workforce to a drinkable refrigerated soup brand looking to broaden its platform, companies large and small grew their staff in recent months. Here is the latest in hiring news within the natural food world.

Today, Impossible launched a new sales channel with DOT Foods, America’s largest food redistributor, to gets its burgers in more restaurants nationally. On Monday, Beyond Meat announced its first venture beyond burgers with Beyond Sausage.

Friday’s announcement that the U.S. Department of Agriculture would decouple animal welfare standards from federal regulations around organic certification has caused outcry and debate among natural and organic food industry leaders. Now, the Organic Trade Association and its allies believe the rule’s withdrawal will impact food sourcing, pricing and certification, both for packaged and fresh food alike.

The global confectionery leader announced today that it has agreed to acquire Skinny Pop maker Amplify Snack Brands for more than $920 million. The deal, which is expected to close in Q1, will be Hershey’s largest acquisition to date.

This week, My/Mo announced the launch of its newest innovation, pints with mochi “bite” inclusions, an ice cream-forward reversal of the brand’s original mochi line. The company will also launch four non-dairy mochi flavors using cashew milk in Q1.

The big box retailer announced today that it has agreed to acquire Shipt, Inc., a leading online same-day delivery platform, for $550 million in cash. The acquisition strengthens Target’s position as a major competitor in the online grocery space.

At last week’s BevNET Live in Santa Monica, California, flavor and extract companies predicted their taste trends of 2018. Here’s what they expect consumers to be craving most in the new year.

The capital will be used to grow the company’s team beyond its current 10 employees, hiring food scientists and chefs to support a robust innovation pipeline. Although some efforts will go towards developing new flavors for its current pint line, Nicholson said an even bigger focus is to bring the brand into categories beyond pints and, potentially, beyond the freezer aisle.

After the NOSH Live conference last Thursday, a group of budding food entrepreneurs reconvened on Friday for a set of more intimate informational sessions on how to further build their businesses. A key session of the day was a deeper look at team building and best practices for hiring during periods of rapid growth.

Global confection leader Nestle announced this week that it has agreed to acquire Canadian vitamin maker Atrium Innovations, the parent company of functional food and supplement brand Garden of Life, for $2.3 billion in cash. The transaction is expected to close early next year.