London-based Loui Blake is known for is work as an entrepreneur, angel investor and public speaker in the plant-based space. Loui opened the UK’s largest vegan restaurant Erpingham House back in 2018 before going on to co-found pizza kitchen Vegan Dough Co during the pandemic, and most recently was named as new CEO of Miami Foods in May of this year. Loui has been busy since we last spoke three …
Following its Chipotle-backed $150M Series C this July, Colorado’s Meati Foods appoints Jody Macedonio as CFO. Ms Macedonio previously held the same role at Chobani as well as at Dean Foods, which was the largest dairy company in the United States. According to Meati, the new role will see Ms Macedonio overlooking Meati Foods’ financials and partner with the leadership team to drive growth as it rapidly upscales, stating its …
Dairy-free yogurt brand Lavva announces it has been acquired by its lead operating partner, Next in Natural, a New York-based business development studio. Through the partnership, Lavva is also appointing Jeff Lichtenstein as its new CEO, and adding several strategic investors to its team. According to Lavva, Lichtenstein brings extensive experience in launching and scaling national CPG brands in the natural category. As the founder and CEO of Gourmet Guru (acquired …
La Vie, the French startup leading the way with plant-based alternatives to traditional pork products (and political campaigning), has appointed Matthias Neuner, who worked for more than 20 years at Nestlé, as its new COO. “During his last assignment in Switzerland, his love for plant-based food slowly started to grow: together with his commercial colleagues, he launched Nestlé’s plant-based brand Garden Gourmet in the out-of-home channel in 2019 by building …
Soy and tofu have been staples in Japan for around 1,300 years, traditionally consumed by Buddhists and initially introduced to the country by Chinese monks. Asia News reports today that use of the soybean in food and drink production has increased significantly over the past two years, and additionally, Japan Times states this week that “soy-based alternatives to animal-based sources of protein appear to be growing on Japan”. Aside from …
Food technology company Motif FoodWorks announces that Michael Leonard has been appointed Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Leonard will replace previous CEO Jonathan McIntyre, who is transitioning to an advisory role. Leonard has served as CTO of Motif since 2019, and brings extensive experience in commercialization, R&D and innovation. As new CEO, he will lead the company as it accelerates go-to-market initiatives, including its newly launched meat alternative finished formats, …
The second part of the latest research from Blue Horizon and BCG, following the first instalment last month, finds that consumers are embracing alternative proteins and that protein transformation is one of the best tools available to combat the climate crisis. The study, titled ‘The Untapped Climate Opportunity In Alternative Proteins’, finds that almost a third of consumers would switch their diets to alternative proteins if doing so would have …
UK-based tempeh startup Better Nature announces the appointments of ex-Planet Organic CEO Peter Marsh as Non-Executive Director, and Prof. Julian McClements, the world’s most cited food scientist, as Innovation Advisor. Peter Marsh, who established Planet Organic as one of the UK’s largest organic and health retailers until his retirement in 2021, will be supporting Better Nature with its entrance into UK supermarkets and with plans for international expansion. Marsh states: …
Shiru Inc. of California today announces the onboarding of Dr Ranjani Varadan as its first Chief Scientific Officer. Dr Vardan was the first scientist hired by Patrick Brown at Impossible Foods where she served from 2011-2021 in roles including Vice President of Strategic Ingredients and Vice President of Research and Development. Founded in 2019, Shiru is focused on the discovery of naturally occurring proteins that can replace animal-based products. The …
Dr. Praeger’s Sensible Foods announces today that CPG industry veteran Andy Reichgut has been onboarded as the company’s new CEO, effective immediately. Reichgut brings over 25 years of CPG industry experience to the role, having most recently acted as General Manager for Violife cheese, an Upfield subsidiary (see our recent interview with Andy here regarding Violife and the vegan cheese category). He previously held the role of Executive Vice President …
Plant-based drinks brand Alpro has chosen Gisela Pulido, ten-time world champion kitesurfer, as brand ambassador to present its new range of high-protein products. The sportswoman was chosen because she has been following a plant-based diet for 10 years, with the aim of dispelling the myths that plant protein is less effective than animal protein in achieving good sporting performance. In the new campaign, Alpro presents six products to be consumed …
Canada’s The Very Good Food Co. (NASDAQ: VGFC) announces Matt Hall is stepping down as Interim Co-Chief Executive Officer and director, as part of the company’s succession plan. Hall, who will remain an advisor, is being replaced by Parimal Rana, an experienced food industry professional who served as Very Good’s Vice President of Operations. According to Hall, the succession comes at the right time, following two months of dedicated work …
Claire Smith, CEO of Beyond Investing, was recently named investment leader of the year in Environment Finance’s Sustainable Investment Awards 2022. Investor interest in the vegan market has reached an all-time high, spurred by the growing vegan movement and a global change in dietary preferences towards plant-based foods. Within the vegan investment category, Beyond Investing highlights that animal-friendly and climate-conscious investing can be good for people, planet and the bottom …
Brazilian alt-protein brand The New (formerly The New Butcher), announces it has selected André Carvalho, a former executive at global meat company Minerva, to lead the company as CEO. Founder Bruno Fonseca will continue to head R&D and new product development, as well as serve on the board of directors. The announcement comes as The New reports strong 20% quarter-over-quarter sales growth for Q1 and the launch of a popular …
Online delivery platform DoorDash announces Pinky Cole, CEO of vegan burger phenomenon Slutty Vegan, today begins a year-long role as the company’s Chief Restaurant Advisor. In her new position, Cole will serve as a “Voice of the Industry” by providing the perspective of a local restaurant operator. An integrated role Cole will also regularly communicate with DoorDash leaders, employees and local restaurateurs through industry roundtables and strategic meetings. DoorDash will …
