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

In this distribution roundup: Spudsy reaches Whole Foods with latest product launch, nib mor launches at BJ’s wholesale club stores, Brewpub Jerky enters Publix across the Southeast, Pan’s Mushroom Jerky signs on with Kroger and more.

Trading savory for sweet, CPG executive Arnulfo Ventura announced today that he has left bean-based snack brand Beanfields to be CEO of sustainable snack brand Alter Eco. “I think we really have a chance to set the mark for what it means to be the regenerative snack company for the future,” Ventura told NOSH.

Plant-based nutrition platform kencko announced today the closing of a $10 million funding round that will help fuel the launch of a new line of hot meals. The round was led by existing investor Siddhi Capital with participation from new backers including Next View Ventures, Riverside Ventures, Silas Capital and Cheyenne Ventures, among others.

Health and wellness ecommerce brand Athletic Greens announced today that it has raised $115 million in a funding round led by venture capital firm Alpha Wave Global, which also has investments in companies like Alibaba, Uber and Atai Life Sciences. The deal, which raises the powdered beverage maker’s valuation to over $1 billion, is expected… Read more »

After seven years away, seasoned CPG executive Doug Radi is heading back to Rudi’s Organic Bakery, this time as the bakery brand’s CEO, where he’ll be tasked with rebuilding “significant momentum” for the brand.

This week we’re joined by Ross Iverson, co-founder and chief investment officer of Manna Tree Partners, a food-focused private equity firm whose portfolio includes stakes in Health-Ade, Gotham Greens and Urban Remedy. Iverson discussed the firm’s vision to improve human health by investing in better-for-you brands, why diligence plays a bigger role than innovation when evaluating companies and how Manna Tree assesses early-stage brands.

Plant-based food and beverage company The Planting Hope Company has acquired Betterer Foods, the producer of legume-based rice alternative RightRice, for $7 million.

Last Friday, industry event marketer New Hope held a virtual town hall meeting to discuss its plans for this year’s Natural Products Expo West trade show scheduled to be held March 8-12 in Anaheim, California, the first in-person version of the event since 2019.

Blommer Chocolate Company and food tech platform DouxMatok are promising consumers a chocolate-flavored chip with 50% less sugar, higher fiber, half the calories and the taste of real cane sugar through a new collaboration, the companies announced last week. The partnership marks Israel-based DouxMatok’s first major expansion into the U.S. market.

Having just secured $80 million in funding from venture firm Stride Consumer, meat snack brand Chomps is planning to use the capital to broaden its product assortment and make a move into convenience retail, said CEO and co-founder Peter Maldonado today.

Nearly 4,000 U.S. food and beverage retailers – including nearly 3 % of U.S. grocery stores – shut their doors last year, according to a study sponsored by the convenience store industry.

In this week’s Checkout: Daily Harvest fights for farmers with new partnership and campaign, Kroger publishes its predictions for the Top 10 food trends of 2022, Upward Farms to construct “World’s Largest” growing facility in Pennsylvania and Above Food and Umiami partner to develop whole cut plant-based meats.

Meat stick producer Chomps announced on Thursday that it has partnered with Stride Consumer Partners to finance the next phase of its growth.

The network will source fonio, among other “underutilized orphan grains,” from over 30,000 smallholder farms throughout West Africa with the end goal of creating sustainable market demand beyond the brand’s own use of this “miracle grain.”