In This Issue:
- Food Venture Financing Trends
- CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Funds
- Links to Relevant Content and Events
Food Venture Financing Trends
- Instacart filed for its IPO, which is expected to begin in September. Instacart previously filed for IPO back in May 2022 after pulling its filing.
- MOSH, a protein bar designed to improve brain health, raised $3 million in its Series A financing. The foodtech startup plans to use the funding to expand its retail presence.
- Jellatech, a biotech company that develops animal-free collagen and gelatin, announced that it raised $3.5 million in its recent funding round.
CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Fund
This week's featured corporate venture and private equity fund is Chobani Incubator.
- Chobani Incubator, launched in 2016, is a program for companies taking on broken food systems to bring better food to more people. In addition to investment, Chobani Incubator gives startups access to its network and expertise in order to scale up their operations and achieve significant growth.
- Chobani Incubator looks for startups that share the same vision of making delicious, nutritious, natural and accessible food to more people; that want to deliver better food to more people; and that offer products accessible and affordable to all.
- Example portfolio companies include:
- Mason Dixie
- Seal the Seasons
- Partake Foods
- A Dozen Cousins
- Sherpa Foods
- Bread SRSLY
- Holmes Mouthwatering Applesauce
- Seal the Seasons
- Afia
- Nona Lim
Links to Relevant Content and Events
ARTICLES
- MOSH Raises $3 Million For Retail Expansion
- Tilray Acquires Remaining Stake in Truss Cannabis Beverage Venture
- Vegan Honey Brand MeliBio Talks Precision Fermentation, Expansion Plans & Upcoming Series A
- New Food Tech Co Superlatus Agrees To Acquire Perfect Day’s The Urgent Company Brands for $1.25 Million
- Jellatech Lands $3.5 Million to Produce Collagen Without Having To ‘Mine The Animal’
- Product Testing Firm Working With Nestlé, Kraft Heinz Raises $18 Million to Fuel Growth
- Private Equity Selling Alphia to Another Group, PAI Partners
UPCOMING EVENTS
Naturally Chicago
Morning Mingle
Thursday, September 7 | 8:00 – 9:30 a.m. CT
Location: Time Out Market Chicago, 916 West Fulton Market St., Chicago, IL
Join Naturally Chicago for their Morning Mingles gathering to meet, network, make new friends, and enjoy informative talks by Naturally Chicago Board members and other industry leaders.
Naturally San Diego
Innovation in CPG: Special Session
Tuesday, September 12 | 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. PT
Naturally San Diego is excited to participate in Connect SD's Innovation Week. Join them for a special hour with local entrepreneurs who have disrupted our CPG industry for the better.
Check out all of the events happening on Connect Innovation Day.
Speakers:
- Laura Aung, R&D Manager at Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps
- Emily Griffith, CEO of Lil Bucks
- Matt Clifford, CEO of CanDo
Naturally Bay Area
Raising Capital in 2023 (Part 1): Conventional Channels for Equity and Debt Financing
Wednesday, September 13 | 12:00 – 12:45 p.m. PT
Raising capital for emerging food & beverage brands and early-stage personal care companies is more challenging this year than it has ever been. Learn how private equity investors and commercial lenders are assessing how and when to deploy capital in this business environment.
Led by Don Buder, Partner at Davis Wright Tremaine LLP
Naturally Chicago
Working with Super Naturals Retailers
Wednesday, September 13 | 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. PT
This webinar is aimed at emerging brands seeking to get or expand shelf space in grocery stores and chains that are focused on Natural Products.
And what better partner for this webinar than Presence Marketing, the pioneering broker in the Natural Products industry, which has been helping brands get shelf space, prosper and grow for more than 30 years.
Speakers:
- Ayeshah Abuelhiga, CEO/Founder of Mason Dixie Foods
- Andrew Bell, Vice President – Natural at Presence Marketing
- Gina Coccari, National Key Account Manager at Dr. Bronner's
- Dawn Niderno, Director of Sales at Enjoy Life Foods
- Jim Slama, Managing Director of Naturally Network
Naturally New York
From Rookie to MVP: Scaling Your Brand with Athlete Influencers
Thursday, September 14 | 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. ET
Join Laura Harding of OpenSponsorship and Jennifer Fontaine of Scale Media and 1MD as they unpack the intricacies of forging dynamic and mutually beneficial relationships with athlete influencers. As the health food sector continues to burgeon, setting your brand apart becomes imperative. Athletes, with their authentic reach and genuine lifestyle fit, present a golden opportunity.
Speakers:
- Laura Harding, Account Director of Opensponsorships
- Jennifer Fontaine, Creative Brand Manager at Scale Media
Naturally Bay Area
Rooftop Party at Heffernan Insurance
Thursday, September 14 | 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. PT
Location: Heffernan Insurance Brokers, 44 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, California
Get ready to party in style with the Naturally Bay Area community — at the rooftop terrace at Heffernan Insurance in Downtown San Francisco. Enjoy nibbles, drinks, and vibe with the Bay Area's best!