In This Issue:
- Food Venture Financing Trends
- CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Funds
- Links to Relevant Content and Events
Food Venture Financing Trends
- Eastern Standard Provisions, a soft pretzel maker, announced that it closed its $13.5 million funding round. Mondelēz International's SnackFutures was an investor in the company's latest capital raise.
- Oatly announced that it will transfer leases and production capacity at two US facilities to Canadian manufacturer Ya YA Foods Corp for $98.1 million, and enter into a long-term strategic hybrid manufacturing arrangement with Ya Ya Foods Corp in North America.
- Alterpacks, a startup that is developing sustainability solutions for food waste based in Singapore, announced that it raised $1 million in its pre-seed round.
CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Fund
This week's featured CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Fund is Unilever Ventures.
- Unilever Ventures, founded in 2003, is a venture capital arm of Unilever, based in London.
- Unilever Ventures empowers a new breed of forward-thinking entrepreneurs to help them build strong brands or technology solutions in the consumer products industry.
- Their large and diversified portfolio includes the following:
- Beauty & Wellness: Beauty Bakerie, BlowLTD, BYBI, Frank Body, True Botanicals
- E-Commerce: DealShare, Gousto, Instacart, FabFitFun, Grabango, Grove Collaborative
Links to Relevant Content and Events
ARTICLES
- 4 Food Tech Products to Check at CES
- Freshly Shutting Down Meal Deliveries
- Lotus Bakeries Invests in Nutrition Bar Company
- Liberation Labs Announces Final Close of $20 Million in Seed Financing
- Mondelēz Participates in $13.5 Million Funding Round For Soft Pretzel Maker
- Oatly Sells Some Manufacturing Capacity to Co-Packer Ya Ya Foods For $98.1 Million
- Oatly and Ya YA Foods Announce Long-Term Strategic Hybrid Manufacturing Partnership in North America
- Benson Hill Sells Fresh Division For $21 Million to Concentrate on Ingredients
- SG Food Waste Solutions Firm Bags $1 Million Pre-Seed Money
UPCOMING EVENTS
Naturally Bay Area
Quick Bites: Supply Chain as a Competitive Advantage - Opportunities in Upcycled Food
Wednesday, January 11, 12:00 – 12:45 p.m. PT
Learn about the Upcycled Food movement and how this unique supply chain can be the key to your competitive advantage.
Speakers:
- Angie Crone, CEO of Upcycled Food Association
- Caroline Cotto, Co-Founder & COO of Renewal Mill
- Matt Kreutz, CEO of Firebrand Artisan Breads
- Dan Kurzrock, Founder & CEO of Upcycled Foods Inc.
Naturally Bay Area
Thursday, January 19, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. PT
Location: Davis Wright Tremaine, LLP, 50 California St., 23rd Floor, San Francisco, CA
Naturally Bay Area
Quick Bites: Generating Actionable Insights from Data Harmonization
Thursday, February 9, 12 – 12:45 p.m. PT
In this Quick Bites session, you'll hear from Bedrock Analytics along with several CPG sales & marketing leaders about how unifying multiple data streams can save time and improve outcomes. You'll learn how syndicated data, retail portal data, eCommerce, and distributor reports can be pulled together to get a clear picture of your performance and uncover insights that will help your business grow.
Naturally Bay Area
Sales & Marketing Forum Kickoff Meeting
Thursday, February 9, 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. PT
Location: Bedrock Analytics, 350 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Suite 500, Oakland, CA, US, 94612
Naturally Bay Area is kicking off the first session of their new Sales & Marketing Forum with an in-person meetup at Bedrock Analytics in Oakland. This session will be a great opportunity to network with fellow sales and marketing professionals and learn about resources that can support your professional activities.
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.
CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Fund
This week's featured CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Fund is Lotus Bakeries' Corporate Venture Fund – Fast Forward 2032.
- Belgium-based Lotus Bakeries, owner of the Nakd snack bar and BEAR snacks brands, launched an incubator fund called Fast Forward 2032 ("FF2032"ÂÂ) to invest in emerging U.S. and EU-based brands and growth companies.
- FF2032 primarily focuses on companies that specialize in sustainability and food technology innovation.
- The portfolio companies include the following:
- The Good Crisp Company, a US savory snacking brand
- Peter's Yard, a British brand of artisanal sourdough crackers, crisps, and crispbread
- Oot Granola, a Netherlands-based organic granola start-up
- Partake, a US brand of gluten-free and allergen-friendly cookies
- Love Corn, a US crunchy corn snacks brand
Links to Relevant Content and Events
ARTICLES
- McKinsey: High Crop Prices Encourage Farmers to Invest in Agtech
- Impact Investing Moves From Niche to Norm in Agtech & Foodtech
- Robotic Agtech Startup Closes $217K Equity Raise for 'Barnstorming' Autonomous Tractor Swarms via Fort Worth's Harvest Returns
- Agritech and Foodtech Sectors Suffer Funding Slump: Venture Capital Investments in the Segments Plunge 44% in 2022 as Rising Costs and Interest Rates Bite
- Lotus Bakeries invests in Nutrition Bar Brand
- Major Dairy Ingredient Supplier to be Acquired
- Liberation Labs Closes $20 Million in Seed Financing
- MondelÄz International to Sell Gum Business For $1.35 Billion
- Molecular Farming Company Moolec Science Starts Trading on Nasdaq After Successful Closing of Business Combination
- IFF Announces the Sale of its Savory Solutions Group to PAI Partners
EVENTS & OPPORTUNITIES
Naturally Bay Area
Quick Bites: Supply Chain as a Competitive Advantage - Opportunities in Upcycled Food
Wednesday, January 11, 12:00 – 12:45 p.m. PT
Learn about the Upcycled Food movement and how this unique supply chain can be the key to your competitive advantage.
Speakers:
- Angie Crone, CEO of Upcycled Food Association
- Caroline Cotto, Co-Founder & COO of Renewal Mill
- Matt Kreutz, CEO of Firebrand Artisan Breads
- Dan Kurzrock, Founder & CEO of Upcycled Foods Inc.
Naturally Bay Area
Thursday, January 19, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. PT
Location: Davis Wright Tremaine, LLP, 50 California St., 23rd Floor, San Francisco, CA
Naturally Bay Area
Quick Bites: Generating Actionable Insights from Data Harmonization
Thursday, February 9, 12 – 12:45 p.m. PT
In this Quick Bites session, you'll hear from Bedrock Analytics along with several CPG sales & marketing leaders about how unifying multiple data streams can save time and improve outcomes. You'll learn how syndicated data, retail portal data, eCommerce, and distributor reports can be pulled together to get a clear picture of your performance and uncover insights that will help your business grow.
Naturally Bay Area
Sales & Marketing Forum Kickoff Meeting
Thursday, February 9, 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. PT
Location: Bedrock Analytics, 350 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Suite 500, Oakland, CA, US, 94612
Naturally Bay Area is kicking off the first session of their new Sales & Marketing Forum with an in-person meetup at Bedrock Analytics in Oakland. This session will be a great opportunity to network with fellow sales and marketing professionals and learn about resources that can support your professional activities.
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.