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In this interview with Project NOSH, Jeff Lichtenstein the CEO and founder of Gourmet Guru provides his candid thoughts about what he’s witnessed in the industry, what he’s proud of as he celebrates the company’s 20th anniversary, and where he sees the industry moving.

Chef’s Cut Real Jerky has landed $6 million in Series B investment, a round co-led by CAVU Venture Partners and Clearlake Capital, NOSH has learned. For its part, CAVU — whose co-founder Rohan Oza was already an early private investor in the fast-growing Chef’s Cut brand — has committed $2 million from its own $150 million fund.

For bags of broken chocolate bars, Hershey broke the bank. The massive chocolate company announced today that it had acquired the Ripple Collective, which produces fast-growing snacking chocolate line barkTHINS. Hershey has been diversifying its business from being solely confection-focused to offer more healthy snacking options through acquisition and innovation.

With springtime flowers starting to bloom, so too are sales for several NOSH brands bursting onto the scene. The growth comes after debuts at Expo West, packaging redesigns and new partnerships.

Millennial focused granola and snack bar company Bear Naked has partnered with with IBM’s supercomputer “Watson” to allow consumers to create their own perfect, customized granola blend. The resulting program speaks to the trend of customization while decreasing food waste.

Last month BevNET and Project NOSH hosted the first BevNET Boot Camp for food and beverage entrepreneurs. For those that weren’t able to join us in person, complete video coverage of the day is now available for viewing on our YouTube channel.

If you are connected to the industry, you have certainly noticed the influx of high-quality talent in food and beverage, particularly on the packaged side. A new generation of entrepreneurs is following the lead of their tech brethren. These sophisticated, inventive, and passionate founders are out-of-the box thinkers, and as investors and partners it’s our job to help them succeed.

In the month since Natural Products Expo West closed, food and beverage companies have announced millions of dollars’ worth of investment, from strategic investment in companies like Juicero and Body Armor to advanced funding rounds in brands like Perky Jerky and Health Ade.

Last week equity and investment crowdfunding platform CircleUp and venture capital firm the Collaborative Fund announced the launch of Collab+Consumer, a new fund on CircleUp for early-stage, mission-driven companies in retail, apparel, CPG and pet care.

While the Expo West frenzy has almost died down, many of the brands that exhibited at the show are now seeing pickup by retailers both big and small.