In this week’s Checkout, Renewal Mill closes a $1 million funding round; Impossible Foods clears a legal battle over FDA approval of its heme; and Kellogg’s and Hain Celestial report quarterly earning results.

In this week’s Checkout, the FDA introduces “Closer to Zero” action plan for toxic elements in baby food; cultivated animal fat company Mission Barns raises $24 million; Impossible Foods launches its first national ad campaign; and Conagra reports its third quarter results for fiscal 2021.

In this week’s Checkout: Impossible Foods and JUST expand in Asia and preview new innovations, True Made Foods signs a deal to be the exclusive condiment supplier of Fenway Park and Aleph Farms launches a program to grow meat in space.

While plant-based meat alternatives continue to rise in popularity, many brands are facing the challenge of reconciling a premium price point with a desire to reach more consumers. Brands seeking to move beyond the natural channel and deepen their presence in conventional retail are looking for ways to create accessibility through lower prices, but they face hurdles in the form of manufacturing and ingredient costs, and in some cases, regulation, they say.

In this week’s Checkout, GFI studies plant-based retail trends, Kraft Heinz sells its natural cheese business and aims to focus its portfolio, and Beyond Meat rolls out meatballs while Impossible Foods grows further into retail.

This week in the checkout, plant-based brand Lightlife pens an open letter to Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods urging them to use cleaner ingredients, Meanwhile, KIND commits to using only “bee-friendly almonds” and plant-based cheese and butter brand Miyoko’s comes out ahead in its labeling lawsuit against the state of California.

In this week’s Checkout, Impossible Foods raises $200 million, Once Upon a Farm launches a shoe collaboration with Tom’s, and Kroger will add a third-party marketplace to its e-commerce site this fall.

Albertsons files an IPO, IRI reviews center store growth trends, and Doordash announces a $400M series H raise and a new partnership with CVS in this week’s Checkout.

The plant-based meat category was already growing before the COVID-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, many plant-based brands have seen huge sales upticks since pantry loading began in March. Now, they need to figure out what comes next.

Oakland, California-based plant-based meat company Impossible Foods today announced the close of an approximately $500 million Series F funding round, led by South Korea-based firm Mirae Asset Global Investments. To-date, the company has raised to nearly $1.3 billion, including $300 million closed last May.