Our weekly column rounds up the latest sustainable food innovation news. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers Nutella Plant-Based’s UK launch, Oatly’s collab with Chris Parnell, and Nestlé’s new biotech centre.
New products and launches
Ferrero has announced that it will launch Nutella Plant-Based in the UK on May 25. It will be available at Sainsbury’s for £3.99 per 350g jar, before rolling out to other retailers next year. For context, the classic Nutella is 30p cheaper for the same size.
US startup Nature’s Bakery has released two new products: a gluten-free strawberry flavour of its flagship Fig Bar, and a raspberry and lemon oatmeal crumble bar. The plant-based treats are available at Target and on its website for $7 per six-pack.
Vegan snack brand Hippeas has rolled out Cheezy Cheddar Pops made from yellow peas and chickpeas. They contain 3g of protein and 2g of fibre per 1oz serving, and are available at Target, Walmart, and on Amazon and its website in various sizes.
French plant-based startup Hari&Co has launched Moroccan-inspired keftas, made from wheat and pea protein. They contain 20g of protein per 100g, have an A rating on the Nutri-Score scale, plus a 90/100 score on product-scanning app Yuka.I
Slovenia’s Juicy Marbles is bringing its plant-based whole cuts to Spain via a distribution deal with Zyrcular Foods.
Germany’s Veganz Group has signed a deal with Jindilli Beverages to export its Mililk line of oat and almond milks in Tetra Pak formats to North America, Australia and New Zealand. The agreement also includes a new non-dairy creamer called Mililk Drops.
Also in North America, Canadian vegan fast-food chain Odd Burger has secured its own distribution agreement with Dot Foods, which will see its retail and foodservice products expand their national grocery and restaurant chain footprint.
Vegan pizza maker Blackbird Foods has rolled out its frozen products at 88 Hy-Vee supermarket locations across the Midwest. They’re available in Margherita, Supreme, and Pepperoni flavours (the latetr features Beyond Meat).
And Indian startup Cosmix has launched No-Nonsense Plant Protein PRO, a yeast protein powder with the maximum protein digestibility score (akin to whey)
Company and finance updates
Speaking of India, New Delhi-based vegan egg startup Plantmade has ceased operations after four years.
As part of its Blind Love campaign, Oatly has launched a spoof ad with comedian and Saturday Night Live alum Chris Parnell to spread the word about what it has termed Dormant Oatmilk Condition: five times more Americans prefer oat milk in their coffee over dairy, but they don’t know it yet.
In Switzerland, Nestlé has opened a biotech centre to advance its nutritional solutions across a range of verticals, including early life, women’s health, and weight management. Among the hub’s credentials are enhanced capabilities in precision fermentation.
Meanwhile, Beyond Meat has amended its lease on its headquarters, giving up 61,000 sq ft of its office space back to HC Hornet Way for a one-time termination fee of $1M. It continues to rent 220,000 sq ft of space, but expects to incur $600,000 in modification costs. This comes after a disappointing Q1 for the plant-based meat maker.
Food tech startup High Time Foods, which makes ambient plant protein products, has raised $1.2M in a new funding round. Following the deal, it has relocated from the US to India, and is gearing up its product development and international expansion efforts.
Aussie firm Levur, which is working on a precision-fermentated alternative to palm oil, has also secured $1.2M in pre-seed funding.
Fellow Sydney-based startup Fable Food has posted a 50% year-on-year revenue growth, and projects an even better performance this year, thanks to its shiitake-mushroom-based products (which have taken the blended meat world by storm).
In New Zealand, Opo Bio – a B2B supplier of livestock cells for cultivated meat production – has secured investment from Epic Angels to expand its R&D efforts and patent portfolio.
Forbes has named Mrinali Kumar, co-founder and CEO of cauliflower ice cream brand EatKinda, and Emily McIsaac, co-founder and COO of precision fermentation firm Daisy Lab, on its 30 Under 30 list, under the Arts and Industry, Manufacturing & Energy categories, respectively.
Canada’s Lovingly Made Flour Mills and Botaneco are working with British firm Stars UK R&D and the University of Leeds to develop Canadian-grown legumes and sunflower ingredients to improve the juiciness of plant-based burgers.
California’s Eat Just has hired Kristie Middleton as its VP of foodservice sales. She was most recently the chief relationship officer at vegan chicken maker Rebellyous Foods.
Also in California, cultivated meat startup Omeat has appointed Eric Schulze as its CTO. He is a former regulator at the FDA who later spent seven years at Upside Foods.
Research, policy and events
In the UK, The Vegan Society will celebrate its 80th year with the Veganism: Past, Present and Future exhibition at the Library of Birmingham from May 17 to August 24.
Cellulaire Agricultuur Nederland and the Dutch Research Council (NWO) are preparing to open a €4M research call focused on scaling up the production and reducing costs of foods produced via precision fermentation and cell culture.
Retail sales of plant-based meat in the US fell by 7.5% to $1.13B in the year ending April 20, 2025, according to SPINS. Refrigerated burgers bore the burnt of the fall, with sales dipping by 26%.
The number one reason deterring people from plant-based milk is taste. At the Technical University of Denmark, researchers suggest the solution lies in the same microbes found in kimchi: lactic acid bacteria.
Finally, Argentinian gut health startup Future Biome has won this year’s FoodTech World Cup at the HackSummit for its new class of fungi-based prebiotic solutions.
Check out last week’s Future Food Quick Bites.
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