Top Feature

While the appetite for investment in meat snacks may be waning somewhat, investors are still hog wild for innovative brands in the category. Yesterday meat snack brand 4505 Meats announced the close of a round of funding led by Encore Capital, with investment firm CircleUp also taking part.

This week Evolv Ventures, Kraft Heinz’s $100 million venture fund, announced its first investment: GrubMarket, a platform that sources local food directly from producers and delivers it to businesses and consumers. Additionally, Ben & Jerry’s announced its launch into a new product category and Whole Foods Market tested a new store format.

Your packaging needs to tell a story ‘beyond the box’ — and you’d better tell the consumer how to recycle that box as well. Those are key findings from research firm Mintel, which just released its 2019 Global Packaging Trends report.

Last year John Roulac, the former CEO and founder of superfood brand Nutiva, started a CBD business as a “hobby.” Now RE Botanicals is in 150 doors with commitment for another 850, has 10 employees and as of today, a backer with money. The company announced today the close of a $2 million round of funding, with $1 million of the investment from firm BIGR Ventures.

Outgoing U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) chief Scott Gottlieb today announced new steps towards clarifying and constructing a legal framework around cannabis and cannabis-derived products, including the formation of an exploratory group examining CBD supplements and foods, and a public hearing for “stakeholders to share their experiences and challenges with these products.”

The natural food industry showed off its humorous side today as brands took to social media to celebrate April Fools’ Day with wacky new product launches.

Growpacker, a Canadian contract manufacturer of THC- and CBD-infused edibles and beverages, announced yesterday its plans to launch an investment accelerator that will allow the company to invest in “key supply chain and technology partners.”

In an interview recorded at Natural Products Expo West, BevNET and NOSH Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Klineman sat down with Stonyfield founder Gary Hirshberg to discuss the company’s history, what the future for the brand looks like under new owner Lactalis and how the category has changed.

Since launching in 1996 beauty brand Pacifica has grown from a niche player to a mass market darling. But along the way, some things have remained constant — namely founder and CEO Brook Harvey-Taylor’s understanding of her core consumer and innate ability to remain culturally relevant despite a category that thrives on what’s “new.” Now the brand is is taking a leading role in the emerging sub-category of “edible beauty.”

Plant-based frozen foods brand Alpha Foods announced today the close of a $7 million round of capital. Co-founder and CFO/COO Cole Orobetz and co-founder and CEO Loren Wallis told NOSH that, for now, they have chosen to raise smaller rounds more frequently rather than a single large round.