Investments & Acquisitions

Upcycled Food Innovator Anina Launches Line of Ready Meals

Israeli food tech startup Anina announces the launch of its newly developed ready-to-go plant-based meals made with upcycled vegetables.

“We’re changing the way we eat, and we’re shaping the future for a meaningful culinary consumer experience”

The round was led by Strauss Group, The Kitchen Hub, Unovis, Unorthodox Ventures, AgFunder VC, Wordcreate Inc., and the Israeli Innovation Authority (IIA).

Anat Natan, Meydan Levy, and Esti Brantz founded Anina in 2020 to find new ways to improve efficiency, prevent waste, and reunite consumers with nutritious foods. The company claims it has developed a unique patented technology that forms flexible laminated sheets from fresh upcycled vegetables enabling them to create different shapes and, thus, culinary food art that consumers can add to the experience of eating a quick meal. 

Vegetable ready meals
© Yasmin & Arye Photographers

Earlier this year, Anina made news when it announced the development of its plant-based ready meals packaged in capsules made from upcycled vegetables, claiming to be disrupting the ready-meal market with the inspiring packaging format.

Anat Natan, Anina’s co-founder and CEO, says: “Anina is making a real impact on the food industry by mitigating food waste and turning it into innovative, plant-based products with an exciting look and feel. Anina is responding to a growing demand for making the most of unwanted veggies and turning them into something artistic that appeals to the eye and palette. 

“Following the successful product launch in Israel and the positive feedback we received from American millennials, we are set to bring our products to the US.”

ANINA recently secured USD3.3M in a seed round from Strauss Group by The Kitchen Hub, Unovis, Unorthodox ventures, AgFunder VC, Wordcreate Inc., and the Israeli Innovation Authority (IIA).

Laminates Vegetables
© Yasmin & Arye Photographers

The meal-in-a-pod

As described by the startup, the Anina’s pod is a complete meal made from rejected vegetables that don’t meet the market’s standards and would otherwise have gone to waste. These ‘ugly’ vegetables are laminated and shaped into a capsule or pod that will contain the food. 

Mor Wilk, Anina’s VP of R&D, comments: “The heart of our technology is the creation of the layers. “The heart of our technology is the creation of vegetable sheets. The flexibility of these sheets enables us to form any 3D structure and create any recipe in a decorative pod, each set to its unique controlled cooking time.”

Israeli Anina's Team
© Eyal Toueg, TheMarker

According to Anina, each pod is made with two full cups of vegetables containing 40% of an adult’s daily nutrition, is high in proteins and fibre, and is preservative and colorant free.  

“We’re changing the way we eat, and we’re shaping the future for a meaningful culinary consumer experience. The Anina meal capsule also addresses today’s fast-paced lifestyle, which too often forces consumers to compromise on the quality of the food they eat,” adds Anat Natan.

The Anina range of ready-to-go meals has three products, Pasta Primavera, Mediterranean Bowl, and Vietnamese Bowl, which were recently launched in Israel. The products are available online, at premium and boutique bakeries, and in co-working spaces.

Bookmark
ClosePlease login
See all bookmarks

Share