In This Issue:
- Food Venture Financing Trends
- CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Funds
- Links to Relevant Content and Events
Food Venture Financing Trends
- Picnic, a Dutch e-grocery startup, announced that it raised 355 million Euros in its recent fundraising round. Investors included The Gates Foundation and Edeka, Germany's largest supermarket group.
- Standing Ovation, an alternative protein food tech company, announced that it received 2 million Euros in government funding.
- Semaai, an agritech startup that provides solutions to maximize efficiency for rural farmers, announced that it raised $4.7 million in its pre-Series A capital raise.
CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Fund
This week's featured corporate venture and private equity fund is 7-Ventures.
- 7-Ventures, LLC, is the 7-Eleven® corporate venture arm focused on investing in startups that complement 7‑Eleven's mission of convenience.
- Portfolio companies include:
- Super Coffee
- Adrenaline Shoc
- BellyCard
- KeyMe
- PayNearMe
- 7-Ventures invests in early-stage food and beverage businesses as well as convenient services. Its portfolio companies gain access to the 7-Eleven business system, offering guidance with commercial distribution, operations support, product development, marketing, insights, and analytics.
Links to Relevant Content and Events
ARTICLES
- Oakland Startup Voyage Foods Making Coffee, Chocolate Without the Beans Raises Millions in Fresh Funding
- The Burro Grande Finds the Agtech Robotics Firm Going Big
- Perfect Day Raises $90 Million in Pre-Series E Financing Round
- Better Foods Secures Funding from Cleveland Avenue, Founded by Former President & CEO of McDonald's Don Thompson
- Indigo Ag Announces Former Tyson CEO Dean Banks as New CEO, Closes on Nearly $270 Million
- Kroger Venture Capital Partnership Acquires Nutpods
UPCOMING EVENTS
Naturally Chicago
Getting on the Shelves and Succeeding at Costco
Tuesday, January 23 | 1:30 – 2:45 p.m. CT
With 107 warehouse stores in its 13-state Midwest region, Costco can be a partner with which emerging Natural Products brands can grow. To provide the big picture on these opportunities, Naturally Chicago is presenting Getting on the Shelves and Succeeding at Costco, a free webinar on Tuesday, January 23, 1:30-2:45 p.m. central.
Speakers:
- Amy Haugrud Becker, Assistant General Merchandise Manager at Costco Wholesale Midwest Region
- Amy Kurzawski, Founder/Chief Creative Officer of Amylu Foods
- Alex Marquis, Club National Accounts Manager at Good Foods Group
- Kurt Penn, Founder/CEO of Good Foods Group
- Jim Slama (moderator), Managing Director of Naturally Chicago
Naturally Boulder
Colorado Food & Beverage Co-Manufacturing Summit
Wednesday, January 24 | 3:00 – 7:00 p.m. MT
Location: CSU Spur, National Western Drive 4777, Denver, CO
The Colorado F&B Co-Manufacturing Summit brings together brands and co-manufacturers to discuss opportunities and challenges in Colorado's consumer product production ecosystem.
Speakers:
- Alex Cioth, Founder & CEO of Claremont Foods, LLC
- Benjamin Frohlichstein, Founder of Cappello's
- Lee Gray, Attorney at Gray Bugos & Schroeder LLC
- Chris Lehn, Founder and Owner of Made4U Foods
- Zora Tabin, Chairwoman at Wild Zora Foods, LLC
- Bart Taylor, Business Development Executive at Moss Adams
Naturally North Bay
2024 - The year of Employee Recruitment, Retention, and Well Being!
Thursday, January 25 | 8:30 – 10:00 a.m. PT
Location: Traditional Medicinals, Valley House Drive 1400, Rohnert Park, CA
Come join Naturally North Bay for a Finance Forum Roundtable and Panel presentation on how Food industry finance leaders are addressing these employee issues. What are the challenges, failures, and best practices? Rub elbows with other Finance professionals, learn, and share.
Speakers:
- Paul Herrerias, Managing Director of Comhar Partners
- Leilani Johnson, HR Leader, Executive Coach & Consultant at Leilani Johnson Consulting, LLC
- David Vosburg, CFO-CXO at Local Bounti
Naturally New England
Naturally New England Launch Event
Thursday, January 25 | 5:00 – 8:00 p.m. ET
Location: Trillium – Canton, 100 Royall St., Canton, MA
This is an opportunity to meet and connect with New England's growing food startup and innovation community including founders, industry leaders, investors, retailers, and more.
Attendees are invited to apply to showcase their brand here.
Speakers:
- Charley Cummings, Walden Mutual Bank
- Kiera Foti, Brand Manager at Atlantic Seafood
- Daniela Jensen, Big Picture Food
Naturally Minnesota
Capital Access Education Workshop + Resource Fair
Friday, January 26 | 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. CT
Location: FINNOVATION Lab, Fifth Avenue South 817, Minneapolis
Are you an entrepreneur looking to explore more options for funding your business? Dive into this capital access education workshop that will cover the wide array of funding options that are appropriate for each stage of a company, from pre-revenue to over $1 Million. You'll have the chance to learn from industry experts, connect with local financing leaders, and take the next step to growing your natural product, tech, or agriculture-based business.
Speakers:
- Groove Capital
- Lunr Capital
- MDA Ag Marketing and Development Division Staff
- Sue Marshall, CEO of NETZRO, SB
- Allison McDonald, Marketing and Events Manager | Program Coordinator (Deluxe E-ternship Program) at Gary S. Holmes Center for Entrepreneurship
- Lolly Occhino, Sr. Scientist, Food at AURI
- Kailin Oliver, Associate Director of Minnesota Cup
- Connie Rutledge, Executive Director of FINNOVATION Institute
- Leah Thiele, Director of Rural Business Investment at Compeer Financia
- Women Venture
- Connor Wray, Co-Founder, CFO of JonnyPop
Naturally San Diego
Coffee + Convos at Jimbo's
Friday, January 26 | 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. PT
Location: Jimbo's Carmel Valley, 12841 El Camino Real, San Diego, CA
Kick off 2024 with San Diego natural products community members for an in-person meet up, on Friday, January 26th at 9 am at Jimbo's Carmel Valley. This is your chance to meet, mingle and talk shop with one another while enjoying your morning coffee.
Free for members, and $10 for non-members.
Naturally New York
2024 Town Hall with Naturally New York
Friday, January 26 | 1:30 – 2:00 p.m. ET
Join this interactive session to hear how Naturally New York has developed and grown as an organization in 2023 and their plans for 2024!
Share your thoughts on what you've enjoyed about being an NNY member and what you'd like to see in 2024.
Hear POVs from NNY Board Members and Advisors - and get answers to all your questions.
Speakers:
- Gigi Lee Chang, Managing Partner at BFY Capital
- Eric Schnell, Founder of BeyondBrands
- Adrienne DeLisio, Executive Director of Naturally New York