©Tyson / Raised and Rooted

Meat- and Fish Alternatives

From Beef to Beans: When Big Meat Enters Plant-Based in the Americas, Part 2

Following the first part as published yesterday, this is part two of a series on meat companies that entered the plant-based category, some that tried and failed, with the products no longer listed, and others that succeeded and are still on the market today. This second installment focuses on the USA and Canada, where smaller plant-based startups have struggled over the course of 2023 with many having to sadly close doors, including Hooray Foods, Nowadays, and The Very Good Food Co., and many others reducing operations and laying off staff to try and achieve profitability. Does the dominance of large multinationals hinder the success of startups in the space? Or does their presence help to bring awareness of plant-based and bring vegan products into the …

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Tyson cuts chicken slaughter capacity

© Tyson

Company News

Tyson Foods to Cut US Chicken Slaughter Capacity by 10% as Sales Decline

Meatpacker Tyson Foods has announced plans to close four US facilities, representing around 10% of its chicken slaughter capacity, following a drop in sales. Operations will cease at the sites in Arkansas, Indiana, and Missouri by the beginning of next year at the latest. The closures are also expected to affect local chicken farmers and feed producers. The news comes just months after Tyson closed two other US chicken plants, leading to the loss of almost 1,700 jobs. The company also announced it would be eliminating 10% of corporate jobs and 15% of senior leadership roles earlier this year.  While the pandemic saw Tyson’s sales increase as meat prices rose, this trend now appears to have been reversed, as the company reported an operational loss …

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Vegan chicken nuggets by Tyson

©Tyson Foods

Products & Launches

Amid Weakening Meat Sales, Tyson Quietly Launches New Plant-Based Nuggets

Tyson Foods, the world’s second-largest meat processor, has released a new line of plant-based nuggets under its famed logo for the first time. The new Tyson Nuggets have appeared in US Target stores, along with a new variety of plant-based chicken by Raised and Rooted, the company’s meat-free spinoff. The surprise launch comes as Tyson grapples with a drop in share price, flattening sales, and lower margins due to increased operational costs. In May, Tyson posted a second-quarter loss of $97M and downgraded its annual sales forecast.  While the company’s second-quarter sales were $13.13Bn, compared to $13.11Bn a year before, adjusted operating income for the first half of the fiscal year dropped 80% to $518M. First-time challenges The company said the results were “weaker than …

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alternative protein market company Upside Foods serves a cultivated chicken burger

© UPSIDE Foods

Business Wire

Global Cultured Meat Markets Report – By 2040, a Projected 60% of Meat will be Created from Cells Grown Within Bioreactors and Sold Across Grocery Stores and Restaurants Worldwide

DUBLIN–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The “The Global Market for Cultured Meat – Market Size, Trends, Competitors, and Forecasts (2022)” report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com’s offering. By 2040, a projected 60% of the meat will be created from cells grown within bioreactors and sold across grocery stores and restaurants worldwide. The rise of the cultured meat market will be supported by the sustainability of the process, as well as the industry’s ability to provide “tailor-made nutrition” through its meat and seafood products. Recent surveys indicate that nearly 50% of the consumers do not have any reservations about cultured meat. Over the next 10 to 20 years, the cultured meat market is projected to act as a major disruptor to the conventional meat market. The number of startups focused …

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© Shiru

Company News

Ex Tyson Foods CEO Joins Former Impossible Foods’ Rachel Konrad at California’s Shiru

Shiru, a biotech startup that creates novel plant-based ingredients for the global food industry, appoints three new advisors including former president and CEO of Tyson Foods Dean Banks. Banks joins a list of industry veterans at the company including Rachel Konrad, ex-Chief Communications Officer of Impossible Foods. Founded in 2019 and based in Emeryville, California, Shiru aims to reduce the world’s reliance on animals for food by providing sustainable, plant-based alternatives. The company is currently developing ingredients for gelation, egg replacement, and structured fats functions. Shiru raised $17 million in a Series A round last October and was previously named winner of the DSM Meat Replacement Innovation Challenge. The three additions as announced today will comprise the Shiru advisory board, while Rachel Konrad along with …

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Cows Greenpeace

Image Source: Greenpeace.org

Sustainability / Environment

$52 Trillion Investor Group FAIRR Warns of “Apollo-13” Moment for Meat and Dairy 

FAIRR has called the recent IPCC Assessment Report a “red flag to investors”, following its scathing figures on climate change impact for the meat and dairy industry. The FAIRR Initiative, a collaborative investor network with $52 trillion assets, has warned the destructive industry of its “Apollo-13” moment, with investors shifting capital in the food industry’s much-needed low-carbon transition.  The Apollo-13 moment refers to the meat industry’s necessity to broadly embrace innovative alt proteins in order to avert disaster like the Apollo 13 astronauts of 52 years ago. Not only is livestock the main source of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, but also warming temperatures are jeopardizing the cruel industry’s profits. Predictions show how the beef sector could lose over 20% value due to heat stress in …

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UPSIDE Foods Chicken Taco

© UPSIDE Foods

Cultivated Meat

UPSIDE Foods Achieves Unicorn Status Following Largest Ever Fund Round in Cultivated Meat

UPSIDE Foods (previously Memphis Meats) announces a $400 million Series C round which included returning investors Cargill, Tyson Foods, and Bill Gates. UPSIDE says this is the largest round in the industry to date and brings its valuation to over $1 billion, thus achieving Unicorn status. The news closely follows Upside’s acquisition of Culture Decadence, producer of cultivated lobster. Pending regulatory approval, which is slated to take place in 2022, UPSIDE Foods says it intends to initially launch on the US market. The fresh funds will be utilised to expedite commercialisation, build a commercial-scale facility with a planned annual capacity of tens of millions of pounds of cultivated meat, and develop the supply chain for ACF Cell Feed – a cell media that the company …

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Beyond Meat CEO

Ethan Brown © Beyond Meat

People

Beyond Meat Announces Tyson Foods Exec Hires in Fascinating Turn of Events

In a highly interesting turn of events, Beyond Meat announces Tyson Foods veterans Doug Ramsey and Bernie Adcock will be joining the company as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Supply Chain Officer, respectively. The move marks a stunning reversal for Beyond Meat, which famously cut ties with Tyson just before the company’s 2019 IPO.  Though the reasons for the companies’ initial split remain unclear, the executive hires signal Beyond Meat is ready to begin a new chapter, and possibly rebuild some form of relationship with Tyson, the world’s second-largest meat processor. Beyond Meat states it is preparing to intensively scale up production of plant-based meat across the US, EU and China. As new members of Beyond Meat’s executive team, Ramsey and Adcock each bring decades …

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Raised & Rooted grounds Tyson Foods

© Tyson Foods, Inc.

Products & Launches

Meat Processing Giant Tyson Foods Introduces New Plant-Based Products Amid Greenwashing Concerns 

Raised & Rooted, the plant-based brand produced by Tyson Foods – the second biggest animal meat company in the world after Brazil’s JBS – is expanding its range with three new products. Tyson this week enters the market with new plant-based burger patties, vegan ground beef, and two types of sausage, meaning serious business – with a rollout into an incredible 10,000 US retail locations.

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PopcornShrimp New Wave Foods

©New Wave Foods

Products & Launches

Tyson-Backed New Wave Foods Launches Its Seaweed Based Shrimp in the USA

Following its recent $18M series A round, alternative seafood producer New Wave Foods announces today the official distribution of its plant-based shrimp to foodservice and restaurant companies in the USA. New Wave Shrimp, made from seaweed and plant protein, is New Wave’s first offering, with further plant-based shellfish to follow in 2022 to include lobster, scallops and crab.

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