Food Industry News, Insights, and Education for the CPG Community

In our first notebook from Natural Products Expo West 20223: Bon Devil has a new owner; Jason Starr joins Awakened Foods as CEO; and brands look to fruit-based sweeteners and more sustainable pouch packaging options.

At the close of the event’s opening day, BevNET managing editor Martin Caballero and BevNET & NOSH editor-in-chief Jeffrey Klineman discuss their initial observations and takeaways thus far from Natural Products Expo West 2023 in Anaheim, California, including a pair of exits for two young brands in the bottled water space, a spike in mood-boosting and brain-focused drinks, and how the beverage and supplement markets continue to overlap via product innovation.

After moving from online into retail last year modern Chinese food brand Fly By Jing announced today it raised an additional $12 million in funding to fuel continued expansion primarily in conventional grocery stores.

Lockhart, Texas-based better-for-you food manufacturer Wella Foods announced last week that it has acquired Austin-based nutrition bar company Thunderbird. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on grocery retail prices may have been felt the most in 2022, according to a new report from Coresight Research, in partnership with the Food Industry Association (FMI).

Climate neutral cracker brand Moonshot Snacks has been acquired by Patagonia Provisions, the food and beverage division of outdoor-centric brand Patagonia. The news marks Patagonia’s first acquisition in over twenty years.

As more Americans continue to work from home and look to cut extraneous expenses — say, a stop at the juice bar on the way to the gym — lockdown-era habits have entrenched themselves into consumer routines. In turn, many frozen fruit producers have embraced smoothie kits, with some innovative brands managing to outpace the category and maintain strong growth despite the headwinds facing the CPG industry today.

Outside of its traditional domain in Asia, seaweed is rapidly gaining popularity among CPG food brands and consumers alike in the United States for its multitude of positive attributes including the potential to help achieve carbon neutrality and mitigate deoxygenation and eutrophication.

Last week, plant-based ramen startup immi announced it raised $10 million in a Series A round led by Touch Capital and featuring a slate of celebrity investors such as tennis pro Naomi Osaka and R&B singer Usher. Now, the company is looking to quadruple its retail footprint this year and bring manufacturing up to pace as demand rises.

Over the past month, BevNET and NOSH tapped contacts from around the CPG industry to get a feel for the pulse of this year’s show as it prepares for kickoff in Anaheim on Wednesday.

In this roundup: Home Chef expands business with new East Coast facility; Poppy raises $3M for handcrafted popcorn; Afresh expands to new areas of the store and Renegade Foods unveils shelf-stable vegan deli meat.

Next week brands and entrepreneurs from across the CPG industry will soon come together at Natural Products Expo West to highlight their latest product innovations along with new technology and trends. Both NOSH and BevNET will have ongoing coverage over the coming days, but here’s a quick preview of just some of the new releases from exhibiting brands, including Goodles, Rob’s Backstage Popcorn and Siete.

There are many ways to fund a startup, but using the winnings from a career as a successful, high-stakes professional poker player is certainly not the norm. However, Oats Overnight CEO Brian Tate is ready to go all-in.

Canadian pea and canola plant protein maker Merit Functional Foods has been placed in receivership with creditors filing court order Wednesday.