In This Issue:
- Food Venture Financing Trends
- CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Funds
- Links to Relevant Content and Events
Food Venture Financing Trends
- Partake Foods, an emerging brand that develops allergy-friendly snacks, raised $11.5 million in its Series B round.
- Stellar Pizza, a foodtech startup that develops robots to make pizzas, raised $16.5 million in its Series A round.
- Liquid Death, a canned water emerging brand, raised $70 million in its Series D round. The company is now valued at over $700 million.
CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Funds
This week's featured CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Fund is Nutrition Capital Network.
- Nutrition Capital Network (NCN) brings together active investors with curated health, wellness, and ingredient companies that are looking for capital, partnerships, or acquisitions.
- NCN hosts five Investor Meetings each year, where selected companies give live presentations about their businesses to a group of active industry investors and mentors.
- Representative NCN Investors include:
- 301 Inc.
- Abbott Nutrition
- Abrams & Company
- Ajinomoto Group
- Allergy Research Group
- Bimbo Bakeries USA
- Amway
- NCN uses the following criteria to evaluate potential Presenting Companies (for details, see Selection Criteria | Nutrition Capital Network):
- Novelty and Unique Position
- Insulation
- Economic Potential
- The Management Team
- Tangibles: Good branding or brand name, good quality & taste, unique packaging or presentation
- Intangibles: The "WOW" factor; head-turning potential
Links to Relevant Content and Events
ARTICLES
- Wicked Kitchen Raises $20m in Bridge Funding, Triples Year-Over-Year Sale
- Judge Rules in Favour of U.S. Sugar's Purchase of Imperial Sugar
- Agtonomy Closes on Seed III Round, Brings Total Funding to $13.5 Million
- Robo-Barista Artly Raises $8 Million Pre-Series A Round
- Tractor Zoom Scoops Up $5 Million to Bring Better Data, Transparency to Farm Equipment Buying
- Food Technology Startup Equii Raises $6 Million in Seed Round
- The Very Good Food Company Considers Merger or Acquisition Amid Ongoing Troubles
EVENTS & OPPORTUNITIES
Naturally Network
Bring Naturally Network to Your City: Info Session
Wednesday, October 12, 3:00 - 4:00 p.m. (GMT-5)
Location: Reading Terminal Market, Arch Street 1136, Philadelphia, PA 19107
Learn about what it takes to stand up a chapter and the application process for 2023.
In this webinar, they will discuss:
- What to Expect throughout the process
- Timing + planning
- The pre-application + application process
- Key dates
Naturally Chicago
Finding the Co-Packer Who is Right For You
Thursday, October 13, 3:00 - 4:15 p.m. CT
You've developed a food or other natural product that's so good that it's drawing interest from retailers and wholesalers. You have to scale up your production quickly, and building your own factory is years in the future.
You need a co-packer, and it's not necessarily going to be easy to find one who fits all of your needs. So if your business is at the co-packer stage, you should make sure you attend Finding the Co-Packer Who is Right for You. The expert panel is moderated by Dr. William Madden, co-founder of Whole Brain Consulting and author of Separating the Co Man from the Con Man.
Speakers:
- Will Madden (moderator), Co-Founder of Whole Brain Consulting
- Allan Berliant, President/CEO of Best Express Food
- Peter Cokinos, COO/Executive VP at Palermo's Pizza
- Toyin Kolawole, CEO/Founder of Iya Foods LLC
- Deborah Nease, CEO of Wella Foods
- Jim Slama (introductions), Managing Director of Naturally Chicago
- Pete Tsudis, CEO of TruFood Manufacturing
- Mike Weglarz, Executive VP, Commercialization at The Fresh Factory
Naturally Los Angeles
2022 Pitch Expo
Thursday, October 13, 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. PT
Location: UCLA Anderson
Naturally Los Angeles first annual Pitch Expo hosted by FABA at UCLA Anderson is giving natural products entrepreneurs the stage to pitch their up-and-coming companies to our panel of experts.
Check out the 25 up and coming LA-based natural CPG brands competing for prizes voted on by YOU! Each brand will have a booth with info and samples (where applicable) of their amazing products for you to try. Brands will be eligible for First, Second, and Fan Favorite awards so come out and support your favorites! This event will also be accompanied by a networking area stocked with tasty libations for all.
Speakers:
- Nick Sokolovskiy, Category Manager at Gelson's
- Sarah Barron, Growth Solutions Manager at KeHE Distributors
- Renee LaBran, Angel investor
- Bryan Reed, Sr. Director of Grocery at Mother's
- Joshua Lassen, Lassen's Natural Foods
- Elysabeth Alfano, VegTech Invest
Naturally San Diego
Coffee + Convos
Friday, October 14, 9:00 - 10:00 a.m. PT
Location: Superbloom Coffee & Juice, 2688 East Mission Bay Drive, San Diego, CA
Free for members, and $10 for non-members
Join your fellow San Diego natural products community members for an in-person meet up, on Friday October 14th at 9 am. This is your chance to meet, mingle and talk shop with one another while enjoying a free cup of coffee.
At DWT, we are proud to have one of the largest Food + Beverage legal practices in the country, with over 40 attorneys representing food innovators, entrepreneurs, and investors at every level of the food chain, from Farm to Label.
The facts, laws, and regulations regarding COVID-19 are developing rapidly. Since the date of publication, there may be new or additional information not referenced in this advisory. Please consult with your legal counsel for guidance.
DWT will continue to provide up-to-date insights and virtual events regarding COVID-19 concerns. Our most recent insights, as well as information about recorded and upcoming virtual events, are available at www.dwt.com/COVID-19.