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Food + Beverage

Food Venture Financing News – Weekly Issue No. 276

03.23.26
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In This Issue:

  • General Mills has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its business in Brazil, its portfolio of local brands and supply chain facilities, to 3corações for approximately $153 million.
  • Ali Group announced that it has completed its acquisition of Bunn Commercial LP, a manufacturer of beverage dispensing and coffee equipment.
  • Varun Beverages, PepsiCo's largest franchise bottler, announced that its South African subsidiary will acquire 100% of Crickley Dairy Proprietary Ltd. for approximately $16 million.

CPG Corporate Venture and Private Equity Fund

This week's featured corporate venture and private equity fund is VMG Partners.

  • VMG Partners is a San Francisco–based growth equity firm focused exclusively on branded consumer companies across food & beverage, wellness, personal care, and pet products and services. Founded in 2005, VMG partners with founders at key inflection points, providing both capital and hands-on strategic support to scale distribution, professionalize operations, and build enduring brands.
  • Investment Focus:
    • Better-for-you, functional, and lifestyle brands
    • Personal care and beauty
    • Health, wellness, and active lifestyle products
  • Some of its portfolio companies include:
    • Perfect Bar—refrigerated nutrition bars
    • Sun Bum—lifestyle-led personal care brand

ARTICLES

UPCOMING EVENTS

Naturally NorCal
Naturally NorCal AI Forum

Wednesday, March 25 | 10–11 a.m. PT
Location: Online Webinar

The AI Forum brings together Naturally NorCal members who are actively exploring how AI can improve their businesses. It's a collaborative working group where peers share workflows, challenges, and real use cases across departments.

The AI Forum is led by Jason Seeber (aka "Agent Red"), Naturally NorCal Board Member, multi-brand operator, and founder of Continuum AI, a platform focused on turning company outcomes into governed AI execution.

Register

Naturally Colorado
Naturally Colorado and CU Boulder Networking Collision

Wednesday, March 25 | 5–8 p.m. MT
Location: Idea Forge, 2445 Kittredge Loop Dr, Boulder, CO

Join Naturally Colorado and the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado for a collaborative networking and brainstorming event. This networking collision brings together industry members, graduate and undergraduate business students and professors to ideate collaborations between the two communities.

Register

Naturally San Diego
Careers in CPG + Sustainability

Thursday, March 26 | 5:30–7 p.m. PT
Location: Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Drive, San Diego, CA

Naturally San Diego is partnering with PLNU to host an engaging panel on sustainability and entrepreneurship within the CPG industry.

Geared toward soon‑to‑be graduates, this event will offer valuable insights into career opportunities in the growing sustainability sector. They are also inviting members of the NSD community to RSVP—come share your experiences with the students and connect through networking.

Join them for an inspiring discussion featuring industry professionals from Naturally San Diego as they share their career journeys, company initiatives, and real‑world perspectives on sustainability in the CPG space.

Register

Naturally NorCal
Category Trends with Leading Retail Buyers

Thursday, March 26 | 12–1 p.m. PT
Location: Online Webinar

Curious about what's trending on store shelves—and how to get your brand noticed? Join Naturally NorCal for a candid conversation with category buyers from some of California's most influential retailers.

In this insider discussion, buyers from Albertsons, Oliver's Market, and Thrive Market will share:

  • The trends they're seeing across natural and organic categories
  • What they look for when reviewing new products
  • How brands can stand out in the review process
  • Tips for building lasting relationships and providing meaningful marketing support

Speakers:

  • Adam Biggs (Moderator), VP of Sales at Nova Naturals
  • Dustin Canter, Natural Grocery Buyer at Oliver's Market
  • Thuy Nguyen, Senior Frozen and Fresh Category Manager at Thrive Market
  • Dave Smithley, Albertsons Companies

Register

Naturally NorCal
Naturally NorCal Coffee Meetups

Friday, March 27 | 9:30–10 a.m. PT
Location: Equator Coffees - Oakland, Mill Valley, SF, Burlingame

Naturally NorCal is officially launching their Naturally NorCal Coffee Meetups as a recurring event: coffee meetups on the last Friday of each month, 9:30–10:30 a.m. at four Equator Coffees locations across NorCal. Choose the location that works for you and enjoy relaxed, drop-in networking with fellow Naturally NorCal members.

Gather with fellow founders, operators, and industry leaders at local Equator Coffees locations for casual, welcoming, no-pressure networking.

Register

Naturally Minnesota
March Founders Forum - Expo West Recap

Friday, March 27 | 2–4 p.m. CT
Location: Ingredient, 575 SE 9th St Suite 100, Minneapolis, MN

Join Naturally Minnesota for their March Founders Forum, a space designed for founders to connect, share candidly, and support one another. This month's Forum is all about Expo West!

Join them and listen to the Founders who exhibited at Expo West this year. They will highlight what went well, what were pain points, and any major wins with retailers or other key partners. There will also be a formal trend recap presentation to hear what the industry winners are for the upcoming year.

Whether you are a Founder who walked the show, weren't able to attend, or are thinking about it next year, this will be a must attend session to help plan ahead.

The goal is simple: honest conversation, meaningful connections, and practical advice from fellow founders: Expo West Edition!

Register

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