Investment

Better-for-you meat snack maker Western Smokehouse Partners acquired Texas-based hand-crafted jerky and meat products producer Junior’s Smokehouse this week.

This week on the podcast, Nosh managing editor Monica Watrous and senior reporter Lukas Southard tackle the recent controversy surrounding cage-free egg producer Vital Farms, the latest updates affecting the hemp beverage industry, and a beverage maker’s strategic expansion into functional gummy supplements. The hosts also highlight several recent funding announcements.

Odeko announced today it has acquired Washington, D.C.-based specialty food and beverage distributor District Distribution as it works to build an anchor in the Mid-Atlantic region to access local products and vendors.

Brynwood Partners is continuing its recent streak of M&A deals, selling private label take-and-bake pizza producer Great Kitchens Food Company to Rich Products Corporation.

Zing Bars founder David Ingalls has reacquired his plant-based protein bar brand from the American Licorice Company with support from Dunedain Ventures, ending a multiyear strategic partnership with the maker of Red Vines and Sour Punch candy brands.

Canadian jams, jellies, and spreads producer Crofter’s Organic has been acquired by food-focused private equity platform Power Sustainable Lios, with co-investments from Farm Credit Canada, BMO Capital Partners, and the Latka family, who founded the brand in 1989.

Humble Growth, the growth equity firm founded by Andrew Abraham and Nick Giannuzzi, has acquired a minority stake in better-for-you snack maker simplyFUEL. Financial terms were not disclosed.

HighKey Cookies parent company Creations Foods has merged with Get Real Foods, the maker of REAL Cookies, to create a vertically-integrated CPG platform “dedicated to healthier, better-for-you snacking across North America,” the company said.

Early-stage venture fund Rising Tide Ventures has backed Dr Bombay, the ice cream brand co-founded by Snoop Dogg and The Happi Co. under Bosslady Foods.

Bakery ingredients manufacturer Puratos acquired Vör Foods, a producer of nut butter and nut-based fillings. Financial terms were not disclosed.