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The Q1 2026 funding report from Northhall paints a picture of a funding environment that is cooling, but not collapsing. Total investment in food, beverage, and CPG brands reached approximately $340M, marking a 13% decline quarter-over-quarter as deal volume also pulled back.

Building on momentum from its first full year of profitable growth, Oatly says its refreshed growth playbook is “beginning to gain traction” in North America as it leans into a more disciplined operational approach.

The energy snack aisle is rotating from caffeine to cognition. Caffeinated gum is up 207% on social channels. L-theanine, lion’s mane, and rhodiola are crowding out BCAAs and ketones. Brightfield’s Q1 2026 report breaks down the stealth formats and ingredient stacks driving the next wave.

We caught up with Laird to understand how it has gone from a business in need of a turnaround to a strategic superfood acquisition platform in just four years.

As the lines between ecommerce and brick-and-mortar become even blurrier, online sales are expected to drive the vast majority of grocery industry growth between 2026 and 2028, per a new report from FMI The Food Industry Association and NIQ. Total U.S. online grocery sales are projected to hit $452 billion by 2028.

Fresh foods delivery platform FreshRealm has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections, and will sell its business and operations through a Court-supervised process.

Discount grocery store chain ALDI is tightening its product standards, announcing plans to eliminate an additional 44 ingredients from its private-label food, vitamin and supplement lines by 2027.

Deana Karim, the founder of direct-to-consumer low-sugar, low-carb and gluten-free baking brand Good Dee’s, has acquired and relaunched West Food Brands (WFB).

Mediterranean food producer Cedar’s Foods has hit the bullseye, landing in over 1,500 Target stores nationwide. The curated collection includes the brand’s Cucumber Garlic Dill Tzatziki, Hot Honey Dip and Feta Dip.

Smearcase has secured Chicago-based venture firm Listen as its first institutional investor as the three-year-old company works to scale and support its growing natural channel distribution footprint.