Dsm-firmenich focuses on trio of business-driving investments
Ingredients major dsm-firmenich will invest in a trio of areas to bolster business growth over the coming years.
Alternative proteins
Insect protein buzz waning as patents slow
Insect protein’s predicted take off has been less than a flutter as market innovation stagnates, with worldwide patents sliding year-on-year again.
Meat and dairy reduction ‘vital’ to climate health – new report warns
The meat and plant-based industries have locked horns as a new report cites diet change as a key tool in the fight to control global warming and even reverse the climate crisis.
Cultivated meat and precision fermentation – will consumers eat it?
Emerging meat alternatives – cultivated meat and precision fermentation-derived meat – need to present an appealing image to consumers if they are to succeed.
5 emerging trends in alt dairy
Alt dairy is the great success story of the animal-free movement. So, what’s next for this plant-based powerhouse?
Nestlé plant-based patents down 50% as sector innovation slowed
New plant-based meat patent application figures have fallen globally for the first time in near a decade, with companies including Nestlé slashing numbers by almost 50%.
Beyond Meat grows through price hikes, but volumes struggle
Beyond Meat has grown revenues, after several crunching years, but is the alt-meat major out of the woods?
Protein Vision 2024
5 must know plant-based meat trends
Meat alternatives are back in growth, with recent Europe-wide data showing the category has rinsed away its droop and is ticking up. But what at are the factors behind this early-stage turnaround?
What do South African consumers think of plant-based meat?
South Africa has one of Africa’s largest plant-based meat markets. How do consumers view these meat-free alternatives?
Big Interview
A sensible rebel: Juicy Marbles' boss on breaking even, NPD and beyond
After raising “peanuts” to launch a plant-based meat business around Covid-19, Juicy Marbles is set to break even within its fourth year and is planning NPD along with another funding launch.
Will COP29 focus on food?
As COP29 garners global attention, its focus on food systems continues to grow.
Video
Start-up pitch: How Fabas Foods is making alt dairy nutritious and sustainable
Alt dairy is proving to be one of the great plant-based success stories. But associations to UPF and questions over sustainability are holding it back. Fabas Foods believes it has the solution.
Erectile dysfunction and plant-based diets – a urological health revelation?
The murky waters of urological health are rarely linked to or promoted within food and drink marketing. Could plant-based diets reduce the risk of common conditions such as erectile dysfunction?
How can alternative proteins and regenerative agriculture work together?
Despite both being sustainability-focused, regenerative agriculture and protein diversification have not always got along. How can the two sectors work together?
Protein Vision 2024
Protein Vision 2024: Big name speakers announced
Quorn, Redefine Meat, THIS, La Vie and Rude Health are among the high-profile brands providing their valuable market intelligence at this year’s Protein Vision digital event.
Video
Start-up pitch: How Roslin Technologies is making cultivated meat affordable
The cultivated meat market is growing, but price remains a major barrier to success. Roslin Technologies believes it has the answer, with its animal stem cell solution.
Redefine Meat plots NPD as plant-based market 'regains sales'
Plant-based meat alternative heavyweight Redefine Meat has plotted a series of new launches and retail listings as the market rebounds following a recent tumble and stagnation.
Replacing oils and fats with water: Deep-tech start-up secures €4.2m
Healthier food-tech business MicroLub, which uses tech to replace fats and oils with water – while claiming sensory retention – has closed a €4.2 seed investment round to commercialise.
Lidl invests in own-label plant-based, targeting 25% category sales
European discounter major Lidl is betting big on plant-based following booming sales, introducing a raft of new listings under a new own-label range.
Video
Start-up pitch: How BettaF!sh is creating seafood from seaweed
The plant-based seafood market is underserved – enter BettaF!sh. This week we're discovering how founder, Deniz Ficicioglu, is revolutionising the fish-free fish space in the first edition of FoodNavigator’s start-up pitch series.
Start-up fights iron deficiency through precision fermentation
A biotech start-up is producing iron compounds, through precision fermentation, that are more bioavailable than much naturally occurring iron in plants.
Revealed: the drivers set to boost Veganuary 2025's sales
The Veganuary movement is rocketing, gaining power and influence. It has become a staple across Europe, so how will brands drive Veganuary 2025 sales to new heights?
Future Food-Tech 2024
Heura sets sights beyond meat with ‘six more patents’ incoming
Heura Foods is flexing its business muscles and seeking to bolster its portfolio by expanding beyond meat alternatives into other markets, with collaboration a key tactic in its arsenal.
UK Government to create regulatory sandbox for cultivated meat
With £1.6m funding, the new regulatory sandbox aims to streamline the novel food application process of cultivated meat in the UK.
McDonald's France reveals vegan nugget first
McDonald's France has taken its first step into the plant-based alternative meat space with an alternative to its chicken nuggets.
Why has the ECJ blocked France’s plant-based name ban?
The ECJ has ruled that France cannot ban ‘meaty’ names for meat-free substitutes.
Meat-free sausages bucking category dip, but they’re on a knife-edge
Sales of branded meat-free sausages are growing despite a wider plant-based category slump, but meat and alt-meat processor, Pilgrim’s, says any sales positivity could easily reverse.
Future Food-Tech 2024
Future Food-Tech 2024: Exciting innovations from the show
Brands put innovation on centre stage at Future Food-Tech 2024. Here are just a few of our favourites from the two-day food and beverage celebration.
Future Food-Tech 2024
Three hot start-ups designing and creating sector-challenging proteins
There are myriad ways to design and create proteins. We spoke to some of the key players in this varied space.
Future Food-Tech 2024
Mycoprotein’s finished being quiet and about to raise its game
The OG meat alternative mycoprotein is set to retake the spotlight in a sector rife with food start-ups bringing to market products through an increasing array of food-tech innovations.
Future Food-Tech 2024
Alt meat’s slow progress: Who’s to blame, government or business?
Food-tech industry leaders have turned the table and asked who is responsible for the sluggish pace at which alternative proteins gain legislative approval in Europe.
€8.1bn and 25,000 jobs predicted from alt-protein boom
Private investor and government backing has sparked a jobs and revenue boom in Europe’s alternative protein market, leading to a need for specialist recruitment services.
Big names tie-up to propel cultivated meat sales
Two giants have agreed a partnership with the aim of rocketing cultivated meat production and sales.
Leading meat alt maker Marlow Foods suffers profit landslide in tough market
Losses have continued for Quorn and Cauldron parent company Marlow Foods as the vegetarian and vegan mycoprotein food major suffers the shocks of the relentless meat-alternative market slowdown.
Cow-less casein protein 'first' creates full cheese spectrum
A full spectrum of ‘cheeses’ can be made without cows, following the development of a casein that can self-assemble into micelles, the foundation for stretchy, protein-rich cheese alternatives.
Is cultivated meat cost reduction possible? The industry speaks
A recent study suggested that radical cost reduction in cultivated meat production is possible. Ivy Farm, Aleph Farms and Vital Meat speak on the potential of this.
Could links to longevity boost plant-based sales?
The plant-based trend has slowed in recent months, but new research could be set to restore its fortunes.
Alternative meat patents are rising, but which country leads the way?
Meat alternative makers are applying for patents at increasing levels, with the US leading the way, FoodNavigator reveals.
Speedier novel food approval as UK FSA changes regulation
The changes could make cultivated meat, precision fermentation and animal feed additive novel food applications quicker and more efficient.
Big Interview
‘I do see an investor appetite to improve’: World Fund's principal on what investors are looking for in fermentation
Fermentation is one of the main methods for producing alternative proteins. How does it look to investors?
Europe’s largest food upcycling plant opened for spent grains
A new plant is upcycling spent grains for a whole range of uses.
What are the barriers to innovation in food and beverage?
Many of food and beverage's greatest innovations are born from from start-ups. But why is innovation on a decline and what's the future of food and drink NPD?
How food and beverage is innovating to safeguard food security
The food and beverage industry is throwing out the rule book to create new, sustainable systems, which will protect food security for future generations. Discover how at Climate Smart Food 2024.
Which cheeses still use animal rennet?
Animal rennet is still prevalent in many of Europe’s cheeses, despite a shift towards vegetarian rennet. Geographical indicators are a key reason why.
F&B opportunity: Boosting protein intake earlier for elderly
Additional protein intake for older people should begin much earlier than most consumers think, providing food and drink manufacturers with a new market to profit from.
Ukraine’s growing soy output could be vital to Europe
Ukraine is Europe’s largest soy exporter and could be the key to sustainable soy for the continent.
Profile
How food tech start-ups can attract investors and thrive
How do food tech and alternative meat and dairy start-ups gain the interest of investors? Kim Anders Odhner has his ear to the ground and explains what backers might be looking for.
Is duckweed the next miracle plant protein?
Duckweed is far more than just a pond-dwelling plant. It’s a nutrient-dense, easy-to-produce alternative protein.
Filtration technique could slash the cost of cultivated meat
One of the key barriers to upscaling cultivated meat is cost. With a more efficient process and a cheaper culture medium, a new study claims to have reduced this input.
How AI can help design proteins for the food industry
Using a combination of artificial intelligence and synthetic biology, one start-up is enhancing proteins into a wide array of functions across the food industry.