Future Food Quick Bites: Bar Vegan, Mr. Charlie’s & EU Alt-Protein Investments

In our weekly column, we round up the latest news and developments in the alternative protein and sustainable food industry. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers Mr. Charlie’s new vegan cheeseburger, Califia Farms’ acquisition of Uproot, and a raft of EU investments into alternative proteins.

New products and launches

Vegan fast food chain Mr. Charlie’s – dubbed the plant-based McDonald’s – has introduced the Mr. Royale with Cheese, a burger featuring the non-dairy Cultured Cheddar slices by Stockeld Dreamery. The menu item is available at its Los Angeles and San Francisco locations.

AI-powered protein discovery startup Shiru has collaborated with Ajinomoto Health & Nutrition to develop and commercialise sweet proteins for use in beverages and specialty products.

Pinky Cole has opened the second location of Bar Vegan – the sister establishment of Slutty Vegan – at 706 Grayson Highway in Lawrenceville, Georgia.

German ingredients company Loryma has developed three wheat-based solutions for specific fat applications to bolster the processing, textural and nutritional benefits of meat analogues.

Also in Germany, poultry giant PHW Group – known for its Wiesenhof brand – is entering the traditional and precision fermentation space with a new subsidiary this year, which will develop ingredients for alternative protein and blended products.

Israel’s Redefine Meat is continuing to expand its retail presence in Europe, gaining listings for its 3D-printed meat analogues with Coop in Switzerland, Jumbo in the Netherlands, Velivery in Germany, and Monoprix in France.

As part of the state-funded Singapore Agri-food Innovation Lab, the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) has partnered with global food giant Bunge. The latter will supply soybean, canola and sunflower fats, plus oilseed meal and cake for NTU to produce alternative protein flavours using fermentation.

And in Vietnam, Hanoi-based FPT Software has signed an MoU with the Green Tuesday Initiative to reduce its food-related carbon footprint via sustainable food policies.

Finance and business updates

In Poland, the science and education ministry’s National Center for Research and Development has invested $2.29M in Warsaw-based cultivated chicken startup LabFarm. It will use the funding to expand production, develop proprietary growth media, create products, and expand its team.

Meanwhile, Sweden’s Millow – maker of minimally processed oat- and mycelium-based meat analogues – has received a €2.4M ($2.6M) grant from the European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator and up to €15M ($16.3M) in equity funding from the EIC Fund. The startup, which has already developed multiple products with large manufacturers, will use the capital to scale up production.

Also bagging EIC Accelerator funding is fellow Swedish startup Melt&Marble. It will receive a €2.5M ($2.7M) grant and potential future equity investment to commercialise its precision-fermented fats, plus an additional €260,000 from Horizon Europe – part of the EU’s Farm to Fork strategy – to develop alt-dairy fats.

On similar lines, Dutch palm oil alternative producer NoPalm Ingredients has secured €2.5M ($2.7M) in funding, along with potential equity investment, from the EIC Accelerator. It follows a €5M ($5.4M) seed investment round in July.

Canadian cellular agriculture platform Cult Food Science‘s portfolio company Jellatech, which is making bioidentical collagen, has joined the Bezos Earth Fund‘s $30M Center for Sustainable Protein at North Carolina State University.

Cult Food Science is also about to close a $3.3M fundraise to commercialise its Noochies! cultivated pet treats. The company will soon begin feeding trials to receive regulatory approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

US plant-based milk leader Califia Farms has acquired New York startup Uproot, which makes alt-milk dispensers. The latter’s team will join Califia Farms, which aims to expand its foodservice offerings.

AI-powered vegan travel app Vegius has initiated a crowdfunding campaign on Wefunder with a target of $120,000 to fuel its global expansion. It currently lists accommodations in 30+ countries and donates half its revenue to the 125 animal sanctuaries it has partnered with.

Research and awards

A new psychology study on US and German consumers tests the Moral Foundations Theory on cultivated meat, revealing that people who say living a natural life is morally important to them are more likely to reject these proteins, while the idea of harm doesn’t have any consistent correlations.

In the UK, a new study by The Vegan Society has found that 41% of men are interested in veganism, but health concerns and unsupportive friends are the major barriers to the lifestyle.

The Vegan Society has also supported a legal case by two students from the National Major University of San Marcos in Peru, who are asking the university to recognise veganism as a protected belief and offer suitable plant-based meal options.

UK plant-based meat startup THIS has received 10 stars from the Great Taste Awards across five of its products, with its lamb kebabs earning the maximum three stars.

Another recopient of the Great Taste Awards is vegan cheesemaker Julienne Bruno, whose ricotta-style Crematta has received two stars and burrata alternative Burrella has gained one.

Finally, Japanese startups Next Meats and its subsidiary Dr Foods were finalists in the cultivated meat category of this year’s FoodNiche Summit at Cornell Tech University, where they presented vegan foie gras, caviar and truffle butter with the aim to find local distribution in New York.

Check out the last edition of Future Food Quick Bites.