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World Peas, which makes snacks out of beans and other legumes, has been acquired by Snack it Forward, LLC, the buyer announced today. In four years, the company has grown to have national distribution and is found in stores including Whole Foods Market, Target, The Fresh Market, Costco and online retailer Thrive Market.

Private equity firm Alliance Consumer Growth (ACG) has raised $210 million for its third fund, its founders announced Wednesday, more than doubling the amount it raised in its last fund, just two years ago.

RangeMe, an online platform that connects CPG producers with retail buyers, has expanded to the U.S. The site has seen recent success signing up major retailers (such as Target and Jet.com) and suppliers have followed.

At this week’s Consumer Analysts Group New York (CAGNY) conference several of the top publicly traded consumer brands announced their plans for growth in 2016. The presentations gave insight into two key areas that established, publicly traded players in the food and beverage industry will be focusing on: establishing natural bona fides and increasing snacking or on-the-go options.

Phenomenal Foods, the maker of Nomva, a new food brand that merges current trends in cold-pressed juice and on-the-go snacks, today announced the closing of a $3 million round of funding. Nomva markets a line of high pressure processed (HPP), organic fruit and vegetable blends that are infused with probiotics and packaged in 6 oz. pouches.

Consumer attitudes towards snacking are slowly shifting, and brands are taking note. Producers including HalfPops, Way Better Snacks and Cabo Chips have all released new snack options that attempt to offer consumers healthier ways to snack.

Bobo’s Oat Bars have always stood out for its quaint, homespun look and clean ingredients. And while the 10-year old brand may not have gotten the press of its brethren, it turns out it’s been quietly building sales of $8 million in 2015 alone. With new investment and employees, the company believes it’s ready to be the breakout bar of 2016.

Food and beverage accelerator and investor AccelFoods today announced a new $20 million fund as well as a new class of portfolio companies.

In this NOSH Voices piece, guest author Adam Spriggs, founder of Nucleus Maximus, looks at food products’ packaging and analyzes how brands talk to consumers.

As consumers become more open to international flavor profiles, manufacturers are moving past nacho, ranch and lime. Instead far flung flavors such as lemongrass, fish sauce, kaffir lime and thai bird’s eye chili peppers are sneaking into the grocery aisles as accents for products ranging from chips to sauces to jerky. At the 2016 Winter Fancy Food Show, Project NOSH spoke with five early-stage food companies, each of which markets internationally inspired concepts for packaged food.