Ingredients manufacturer Lycored has more than doubled its production of lycopene following a three-year multi-million-dollar investment. The investment – in new lines, equipment, and process and supply optimisation strategies – enables the company to harvest record volumes of tomato annually for its colour and health ingredient portfolio. Lycopene is a form of carotenoid found in tomatoes and other red fruits and vegetables which has been said to have a range of health benefits. The company says that supplementation can ensure people are getting lycopene on a regular basis. Lycored has also inaugurated a new formulation facility in Branchburg, New Jersey which will contribute to increased colour formulation capabilities, reduce its carbon footprint, as well as support expansion and supply into additional markets in Asia and the Middle East. Rony Patishi-Chilim, CEO at Lycored said: “The expansion of our lycopene production follows a period of strategic equipment investments and improvements in tomato usage during key harvest periods. “These changes ensure that we have the expertise and the capacity to meet the needs of our customers across the food, beverage and health ingredient industries looking for natural colour, active health ingredients and taste-enhancing solutions.” The expansion intends to meet ‘unprecedented’ demand for its lycopene and will enable opportunities in colour applications across a variety of emerging food segments including vegan products and functional beverages. Rony added: “The demand for natural colour ingredients is higher than ever and continues to grow as clean label, traceable, vertically integrated pigments that are plant-based grow in popularity, alongside the plant-based movement towards a more sustainable future. “As manufacturers and developers look to capitalise on this trend, we are ready with our portfolio to support their projects. Our new Branchburg facility will also be the location for an application laboratory to support colour application and proof of stability initiatives.” According to Lycored, it will continue to invest further and has revealed plans to further expand to its seasonal capacity in collaboration with a third party in the Southern hemisphere. This will reportedly provide higher product availability at different times of the year. #functionalbeverages #US #sustainability #LycoRed #plantbased

Gathered Foods, maker of Good Catch plant-based seafood, has appointed Christine Mei as its new CEO. Christine Mei Mei succeeds Chris Kerr, who also co-founded the company. Kerr will remain in his role as executive chair. According to Gathered Foods, Mei has over 30 years of consumer packaged goods industry experience and has worked in positions spanning marketing, strategy, sales, and operations. She has held roles with multinationals including The Coca-Cola Company, Beiersdorf, and Nike. Most recently, Mei has been an investor and mentor for Texas-based consumer products accelerator SKU, where she advised start-ups. Gathered Foods produces vegan tuna, which it claims replicates the taste, texture and nutrition of seafood, under its Good Catch brand. The company also recently launched a line of frozen entrees and appetisers, including fish cakes and burgers. In the last year, Gathered Foods closed a $36.8 million Series B funding round, with backing from General Mills’ venture arm and Maple Leaf Foods subsidiary, Greenleaf Foods. The company has since expanded its distribution footprint through forming a joint distribution venture with US-based seafood company Bumble Bee Foods and by launching in Tesco in the UK. “We’re beyond excited to have been able to attract someone like Christine to lead our enterprise,” said Gathered Foods co-founder and executive chair, Chris Kerr. “She brings such a wealth of experience in the consumer packaged goods space, with a focus on catapulting brands to their full potential. The future of our brand is bright and we are excited for what’s to come with Christine at the helm.” Newly appointed CEO, Christine Mei, added: “I’m so energised about the tremendous potential for the Good Catch brand. In fact, the future of the entire plant-based food industry is on a trajectory of positive disruption. “I’m really looking forward to collaborating with co-founders Chris Kerr, Chad and Derek Sarno to set Good Catch onto its next curve of growth.” #GatheredFoods #GoodCatch #US

Ingredients manufacturer Lycored has more than doubled its production of lycopene following a three-year multi-million-dollar investment. The investment – in new lines, equipment, and process and supply optimisation strategies – enables the company to harvest record volumes of tomato annually for its colour and health ingredient portfolio. Lycopene is a form of carotenoid found in tomatoes and other red fruits and vegetables which has been said to have a range of health benefits. The company says that supplementation can ensure people are getting lycopene on a regular basis. Lycored has also inaugurated a new formulation facility in Branchburg, New Jersey which will contribute to increased colour formulation capabilities, reduce its carbon footprint, as well as support expansion and supply into additional markets in Asia and the Middle East. Rony Patishi-Chilim, CEO at Lycored said: “The expansion of our lycopene production follows a period of strategic equipment investments and improvements in tomato usage during key harvest periods. “These changes ensure that we have the expertise and the capacity to meet the needs of our customers across the food, beverage and health ingredient industries looking for natural colour, active health ingredients and taste-enhancing solutions.” The expansion intends to meet ‘unprecedented’ demand for its lycopene and will enable opportunities in colour applications across a variety of emerging food segments including vegan products and functional beverages. Rony added: “The demand for natural colour ingredients is higher than ever and continues to grow as clean label, traceable, vertically integrated pigments that are plant-based grow in popularity, alongside the plant-based movement towards a more sustainable future. “As manufacturers and developers look to capitalise on this trend, we are ready with our portfolio to support their projects. Our new Branchburg facility will also be the location for an application laboratory to support colour application and proof of stability initiatives.” According to Lycored, it will continue to invest further and has revealed plans to further expand to its seasonal capacity in collaboration with a third party in the Southern hemisphere. This will reportedly provide higher product availability at different times of the year.

Gathered Foods, maker of Good Catch plant-based seafood, has appointed Christine Mei as its new CEO. Mei succeeds Chris Kerr, who also co-founded the company. Kerr will remain in his role as executive chair. According to Gathered Foods, Mei has over 30 years of consumer packaged goods industry experience and has worked in positions spanning marketing, strategy, sales, and operations. She has held roles with multinationals including The Coca-Cola Company, Beiersdorf, and Nike. Most recently, Mei has been an investor and mentor for Texas-based consumer products accelerator SKU, where she advised start-ups. Gathered Foods produces vegan tuna, which it claims replicates the taste, texture and nutrition of seafood, under its Good Catch brand. The company also recently launched a line of frozen entrees and appetisers, including fish cakes and burgers. In the last year, Gathered Foods closed a $36.8 million Series B funding round, with backing from General Mills’ venture arm and Maple Leaf Foods subsidiary, Greenleaf Foods. The company has since expanded its distribution footprint through forming a joint distribution venture with US-based seafood company Bumble Bee Foods and by launching in Tesco in the UK. “We're beyond excited to have been able to attract someone like Christine to lead our enterprise,” said Gathered Foods co-founder and executive chair, Chris Kerr. “She brings such a wealth of experience in the consumer packaged goods space, with a focus on catapulting brands to their full potential. The future of our brand is bright and we are excited for what's to come with Christine at the helm.” Newly appointed CEO, Christine Mei, added: “I'm so energised about the tremendous potential for the Good Catch brand. In fact, the future of the entire plant-based food industry is on a trajectory of positive disruption. “I'm really looking forward to collaborating with co-founders Chris Kerr, Chad and Derek Sarno to set Good Catch onto its next curve of growth.”

Swiss retailer Migros has launched a new line of dairy-free yogurts incorporating InnovoPro’s chickpea protein, CP Pro 70. Israel-based food tech firm InnovoPro claims to be the first company in the world to launch a 70% chickpea protein concentrate. The start-up says that its ‘innovative’ plant protein is suitable for a wide range of applications, spanning the dairy alternatives, meat analogues, bakery and sports nutrition categories. The new collaboration with Migros, which went on sale last month, features three flavours: natural, vanilla, and tropical fruits. The yogurts also contain oats and are said to be free from gluten and lactose. The companies are reportedly working to launch additional yogurt lines in several European countries later this year. “Our customers are looking for high quality, innovative, healthy and tasty options,” said Matthew Robin, CEO of ELSA-Mifroma, a group of manufacturing companies in the Migros Group. “The collaboration with InnovoPro on the chickpea protein CP Pro 70, opens for us the opportunity to create new solutions for unmet consumer needs. The chickpea protein with its high functionality, neutral taste and clean label profile enables us to offer consumers new and exciting products.” Nechushtan, CEO of InnovoPro, added: “This launch marks a new height in our continued growth strategy and will enable InnovoPro to gain further traction in the European market. “We believe that InnovoPro will lead the new alternative protein category and with partners like ELSA-Mifroma, introduce products with added health and nutritional values to customers. As part of our sustainable growth strategy, we are exploring production collaboration options for our protein, to expand our EU supply chain.” Earlier this year, InnovoPro raised $15 million in a Series B financing round, funds which the company said would be used to expand its production capacity and for establishing business development and marketing joint ventures. #InnovoPro #Migros #plantbasedprotein #Israel #Switzerland

Swiss retailer Migros has launched a new line of dairy-free yogurts incorporating InnovoPro’s chickpea protein, CP Pro 70. Israel-based food tech firm InnovoPro claims to be the first company in the world to launch a 70% chickpea protein concentrate. The start-up says that its ‘innovative’ plant protein is suitable for a wide range of applications, spanning the dairy alternatives, meat analogues, bakery and sports nutrition categories. The new collaboration with Migros, which went on sale last month, features three flavours: natural, vanilla, and tropical fruits. The yogurts also contain oats and are said to be free from gluten and lactose. The companies are reportedly working to launch additional yogurt lines in several European countries later this year. “Our customers are looking for high quality, innovative, healthy and tasty options,” said Matthew Robin, CEO of ELSA-Mifroma, a group of manufacturing companies in the Migros Group. “The collaboration with InnovoPro on the chickpea protein CP Pro 70, opens for us the opportunity to create new solutions for unmet consumer needs. The chickpea protein with its high functionality, neutral taste and clean label profile enables us to offer consumers new and exciting products.” Nechushtan, CEO of InnovoPro, added: “This launch marks a new height in our continued growth strategy and will enable InnovoPro to gain further traction in the European market. “We believe that InnovoPro will lead the new alternative protein category and with partners like ELSA-Mifroma, introduce products with added health and nutritional values to customers. As part of our sustainable growth strategy, we are exploring production collaboration options for our protein, to expand our EU supply chain.” Earlier this year, InnovoPro raised $15 million in a Series B financing round, funds which the company said would be used to expand its production capacity and for establishing business development and marketing joint ventures.

Natural wheat ingredients specialist Loryma has developed a wheat-based binding system that allows the consistency and texture of meat alternatives to be individually adjusted. The Lory® Bind range includes binders with different properties that perfectly match the application and production process. Lory® Bind can be combined with other formulation components such as coatings, breadings or texturates, and is easy to process. An increasing number of consumers are looking to incorporate meat-free products into their diet, but still demand authentic taste, smell and mouthfeel. The Lory® Bind modular system offers optimum solutions for different applications. The functional starches help to create ready-to-eat products with the desired and expected texture. In order to ensure that products which are designed to be eaten both hot and cold have a consistent composition, the binder provides an irreversible internal structure. The wheat derivatives also help to reproduce the texture of raw meat for foods that need to be grilled or pan-cooked: These products only develop the expected final firmness and texture when prepared by the consumer. The Lory® Bind system is designed to meet various manufacturing and processing requirements. For pre-cooked products in the snack and convenience sector, the functional blends can be directly combined with the other ingredients in an “all-in” process. Gradual processing is also possible in order to achieve the cooking effect for vegetable burger patties or vegetarian minced meat at the final preparation stage. First, the dry Lory® Bind mixture is activated with water to create a binding matrix, after which the other ingredients are added. The advantage of this method is batchwise production using one mixing aperture. The binders are adapted to the requirements of various meatless applications: Vegetable cooked sausages in their own tender skin receive a strong inner bond through Lory® Bind. A film of water is actively formed, which allows the synthetic casing and sausage meat to be easily separated. The typical mouthfeel of a bratwurst, on the other hand, is achieved by optimally combining the vegan, edible casing and the plant-based sausage meat. In the production of coated/breaded products such as vegan cutlets or nuggets in tempura batter, Loryma’s binders not only create a stable inner structure, but also prevent the formation of a film of water between the surface of the product and the breading, which makes it stick better. In order to flexibly realise product ideas, the company offers synergistic modular systems made of wheat-based binders and coatings with special adhesive strengths. “Our binders offer the optimal symbiosis of functionality and the naturalness of wheat,” says Henrik Hetzer, managing director of Loryma. “Made from high-quality, regional raw materials, they are easy to use and promise effective results when it comes to creating successful products.” To find out more about the Lory® Bind range and Loryma’s range of binding, texture and stabilisation systems, click here. #bindingsystems #Loryma #partnercontent #ingredients #Germany

Loryma has developed a wheat-based binding system which allows the consistency and texture of meat alternatives to be individually adjusted.

Plant-based chicken brand Daring has announced that it is expanding its portfolio with the launch of two new flavours. According to Daring, its new Cajun and Lemon & Herb pieces contain 14g of plant-based protein and 90kcal per serving. They are made with natural ingredients, including soy protein-concentrate, sunflower oil, and spices. The ‘versatile’ offering is reportedly suitable for sautéing, grilling and frying and can be added to meals including salads, tacos, and sandwiches. The US brand claims that its plant-based pieces look and taste like real chicken and have a ‘unique’ texture which makes them similarly easy to cook and pull apart. “Chicken is the most consumed animal protein on the planet, with many Americans eating it up to three times each week,” said Ross Mackay, co-founder and CEO of Daring. “We see the introduction of Daring’s two new flavours – which are based on the popular Cajun and Lemon & Herb seasonings – as an opportunity to create an entry point for plant-curious consumers looking for more sustainable, delicious, and nutritious protein options, as well as to offer variety to our pre-existing customers.” Daring’s Cajun and Lemon & Herb pieces are available via the company’s website, as well as from Sprouts Farmers Market. #Daring #plantbasedmeat #US

UK start-up Insane Grain has released its first range of nutritious snacks made from sorghum, an ancient African supergrain, to the market. The vegan-friendly snack is initially available in three flavours: cheese, salt and vinegar, and salted caramel. According to the start-up, sorghum offers gut-health benefits and contains more potassium than a banana and 1.8 times more iron than spinach. Each 24g pack of “crispy and melty puffs” is gluten-free and contains under 100 calories. Described as “probiotic puffs”, the new snack claims to be high in B-vitamins, dietary fibre and folic acid. Insane Grain was founded by ex P&G manager Rushina Shah, who joined forces with Nigel Parrott, who has over 30 years FMCG experience and started his own company Ape Snacks. “I am thrilled to begin a new journey with Rushina Shah on the development of this new powerhouse of a snack brand – Insane Grain. We have carefully built the brand to appeal to as many people as possible so all can benefit from the benefits of sorghum,” said Parrott. Packets of Insane Grain are available to purchase in Wholefoods and Selfridges across the UK with more retailers to be announced. #guthealth #Supergrains #UK #InsaneGrain #healthysnacks

Plant-based chicken brand Daring has announced that it is expanding its portfolio with the launch of two new flavours. According to Daring, its new Cajun and Lemon & Herb pieces contain 14g of plant-based protein and 90kcal per serving. They are made with natural ingredients, including soy protein-concentrate, sunflower oil, and spices. The ‘versatile’ offering is reportedly suitable for sautéing, grilling and frying and can be added to meals including salads, tacos, and sandwiches. The US brand claims that its plant-based pieces look and taste like real chicken and have a ‘unique’ texture which makes them similarly easy to cook and pull apart. “Chicken is the most consumed animal protein on the planet, with many Americans eating it up to three times each week,” said Ross Mackay, co-founder and CEO of Daring. “We see the introduction of Daring's two new flavours – which are based on the popular Cajun and Lemon & Herb seasonings – as an opportunity to create an entry point for plant-curious consumers looking for more sustainable, delicious, and nutritious protein options, as well as to offer variety to our pre-existing customers.” Daring's Cajun and Lemon & Herb pieces are available via the company’s website, as well as from Sprouts Farmers Market.

UK start-up Insane Grain has released its first range of nutritious snacks made from sorghum, an ancient African supergrain, to the market. The vegan-friendly snack is initially available in three flavours: cheese, salt and vinegar, and salted caramel. According to the start-up, sorghum offers gut-health benefits and contains more potassium than a banana and 1.8 times more iron than spinach. Each 24g pack of “crispy and melty puffs” is gluten-free and contains under 100 calories. Described as "probiotic puffs", the new snack claims to be high in B-vitamins, dietary fibre and folic acid. Insane Grain was founded by ex P&G manager Rushina Shah, who joined forces with Nigel Parrott, who has over 30 years FMCG experience and started his own company Ape Snacks. "I am thrilled to begin a new journey with Rushina Shah on the development of this new powerhouse of a snack brand - Insane Grain. We have carefully built the brand to appeal to as many people as possible so all can benefit from the benefits of sorghum," said Parrott. Packets of Insane Grain are available to purchase in Wholefoods and Selfridges across the UK with more retailers to be announced.