By René Floris, NIZO Food Research Division Manager
Membrane filtration has proven itself as a protein extraction technology in the dairy industry, attracting attention from players across the plant protein field. The technology offers clear benefits...but what are its challenges?
Having closed a $6m seed round, the Israeli start-up has plans to validate its functional casein – produced in ‘plant factories’ – in an industrial process with cost-efficient yields, co-founder and CEO Tal Lutzky tells FoodNavigator.
Although households on lower incomes are spending more on unhealthy food and drink than affluent households, healthier challenger brands have the potential to win over these consumers, FoodNavigator hears.
In Spain, start-up Väcka is developing plant-based cheeses with an unlikely ingredient: fermented melon seed milk. Co-founder and CEO Ana Luz Sanz talks us through the nutritional and functional benefits of mixing water with ground melon seeds.
Defra, the UK government agency responsible for food and the environment, has embarked on a project it says will make ‘significant’ amounts of environmental data accessible to businesses. We caught up with Agrimetrics, a start-up working on the initiative...
Following on from Beneo’s investment in Meatless, the functional ingredients supplier has taken the ‘next step’ in its plant-based protein strategy with a 14% stake in hybrid vegetarian and vegan brand Grillido.
This week's innovation gallery features two IP-protected ways to produce cheese alternatives: one using melon seeds and the other leveraging root vegetables as a base ingredient. We also learn about a new tie-up between Unilever's The Vegetarian...
While in the long-term, Czech start-up Bene Meat Technologies plans to develop a cell-based steak product for human consumption, its short-term focus has pivoted to cultured pet food, CEO Roman Kříž tells FoodNavigator.
A study has claimed to show that modern ‘green’ products recycled from human excreta are excellent – and importantly, safe – fertilizers to use on food crops.
The maker of mycoprotein-based seafood alternatives has begun buildout of a new facility in the US, from where it will produce products for the European market.
Multus Biotechnology’s ‘first-of-its kind’ facility will open its doors before the end of the year. We catch up with co-founder and CEO Cai Linton to ask: Why should industry outsource growth media, rather than develop it in-house?
UK scientists have uncovered what makes chocolate so popular: lubrication and fat release are key. This understanding, they say, can unlock opportunities to develop a new, healthier, generation of chocolate.
The EU is committed to the Sustainable Development Goal to halve food waste by 2030. But, with food labelling often cited as a waste driver, are restrictive regulatory requirements impeding this effort? FoodNavigator speaks to Kristen Hovland, CEO of...
In Israel, Vgarden Ltd. has developed what it claims is ‘game-changing’ vegan tinned tuna. Omer Eliav, chief of R&D and Vgarden co-founder runs us though the most challenging aspects of replicating the kitchen staple, fish-free.
Biotech group Novozymes has invested in new ‘energy-friendly’ raslysation technology developed by Danish company Lyras to replace filtration processes. It is expected to result in lower costs and increased efficiency.
US-based MycoTechnology says it is set to accelerate its growth plans in Europe after the European Commission granted Novel Food status to two of its mycelium-based plant proteins.
Start-ups are under more pressure than ever in today’s turbulent economic climate. But while securing intellectual property rights might not feel affordable, the USP they deliver could prove more important than ever.
Combining cellular agriculture technology with diverse, locally available crops allows food producers the chance to provide ‘authentic, next-generation meat alternatives on an industrial scale’, claims the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland.
Food safety, traceability and sustainability will be hot topics in 2023 as food and beverage manufacturers focus on investments that deliver returns in a down economy – and increased digitalisation will be an important tool to enable businesses to increase...
A Ukraine-based yeast maker has defied the challenges of war and launched a biotech arm producing a range of yeast-based solutions for the food industry.
In 2018, the KraftHeinz Company approached the Wyss Institute to develop a solution to sugar reduction that is workable in a food production setting. After four years of collaboration, the research team has developed an answer: enzymes that convert sugar...
A consortium of Dutch businesses and academia have launched a five-year research project examining the use of protein-based biopolymers for potential food and healthcare applications. The outcome could have a significant impact on the cultured meat sector...
Buoyed by a fresh $6.4 million fund raise, Denmark-based aroma start-up EvodiaBio says its engineered yeast can make non-alcoholic beer taste better and provide a greener alternative to the growing, transporting and processing of hops.
Nutrition, health and bioscience company DSM’s business includes solutions it believes will help make the food system more sustainable across both human and animal nutrition. When we caught up with Elisabeth Hirschbichler, VP of Strategy, Innovation and...
Mycelia-focused MycoTechnology has teamed up with ingredients supplier IFF to expand its reach to Europe, all the while Novel Foods approval for its FermentIQ protein is imminent, Lisa Wetstone, Director, Innovation & Growth Strategy, tells FoodNavigator....
Danish enzyme and cultures suppliers Novozymes and Chr. Hansen plan to merge their businesses in a move they say will create a ‘leading global biosolutions partner’.
Motif FoodWorks has filed a suite of new petitions with the US Patent and Trademark Office challenging US patents held by Impossible Foods over the use of heme proteins in meat alternatives as it defends itself against accusations of IP infringement....
The German ingredients supplier is investing in UK-based Clean Food Group (CFG) – a start-up developing a bio-equivalent cultivated alternative to palm oil – via its investment arm, Doehler Ventures.
Competing demands on finished products can sometimes place food and beverage packaging innovation ‘at risk’, according to insight from R&D consultancy Sagentia Innovation.
Israeli food tech startup Amai Proteins is finalizing the initial closing of a $100m funding round as it gears up to launch its first product next year: a designer sweet protein up to 3,000 times sweeter than sugar with a clean taste and excellent heat...
Kerry has developed the KerryNutri Guide, a tool to calculate how products perform across a range of front-of-pack nutritional labelling systems and guide users towards a better score. “The KerryNutri Guide makes it easier for us to partner with our customers...
US-based MeliBio is partnering with organic food producer Narayan Foods to bring its plant-based bee-free honey product to Europe under the Better Foodie brand.
In the US, a cultivated meat product has successfully completed the FDA’s pre-market safety review, moving it one step closer to commercialisation. What implications does this regulatory greenlight have for Europe’s cell-based meat sector?
Danone has launched a new energy programme, Re-Fuel Danone, that aims to ‘transform’ the energy footprint of its global manufacturing sites. This offers the potential to make the Alpro-to-Activia manufacturer’s operations more agile, cost efficient, resilient...
Utilized in everything from lipsticks and moisturizers to baked goods and confectionery, palm oil comes with environmental and societal costs – displacing tropical forests across Asia, Latin America and West Africa, and destroying the habitats of endangered...
How does the sustainability performance of plant-based alternatives stack up against conventional meat and dairy? Is the category worthy of its ‘sustainability halo’? FoodNavigator investigates.
Unilever has said it is exploring making ‘cow-free’ ice cream and is hoping to soon launch a product made with dairy proteins made via precision fermentation, but admitted there’s a danger they will be ultimately be rejected by shoppers if they are perceived...
