Vegan Lasagna

©Sunday Supper

Food & Beverage

Sunday Supper: On a Mission to Redefine Frozen Food with Premium Plant-Based Lasagna

While plant-based frozen foods continue to expand in number and diversity, few have entered the segment of premium, family-size entrees, and even fewer offer plant-based versions of popular Italian favorites, like lasagna.  Now, food startup Sunday Supper is working to change that by launching a gourmet line of authentic, ready-to-eat vegan Italian entrees, starting with its flagship frozen lasagnas.  Co-founded in 2021 by Richard Klein and Maleeda Wagner, Sunday Supper states it is on a mission to redefine the $38B frozen food category by providing healthy plant-based options that don’t compromise on taste or quality.  Chef made To create its first products, Three Cheese and Italian Sausage Lasagna, the company worked with award-winning Italian chef Celestino Drago, who added his culinary skill and family traditions …

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Wild_Earth_Dog_Food_Bags

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Pet Food

Wild Earth to Debut New Look and Pet Food Collection at SuperZoo 2022

Pet food company Wild Earth announces it is returning to SuperZoo 2022 to showcase its premium line of nutritionally complete, sustainable dog food and treats. The brand will also debut a new product design and preview its upcoming Core Collection, to be released in 2023.  New flavors At SuperZoo, North America’s largest pet retail show, Wild Earth co-founder and CEO Ryan Bethencourt will be on hand to unveil the brand’s new look and give attendees a peak at the Core Collection, which is set to hit shelves next year. The collection will feature limited ingredients and new flavors such as Rotisserie and Classic Roast, and will retail at a lower price point.  The company also plans to discuss its progress with cell-based meat development. Attendees …

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Wild Earth dog food

Ryan Bethancourt/©Wild Earth

Pet Food

BREAKING: Wild Earth Secures $23M & Reveals Plans for Cell-Based Pet Food 

Update Dec 2023: Wild Earth’s $23 million investment has substantially accelerated the company’s product innovation and expanded its reach over the last few years. In March 2022, Wild Earth secured a retail partnership with Walmart in the United States for its koji-based superfood dry kibble. Soon after, a study was released that revealed the healthiest and least hazardous dietary choices for dogs are nutritionally sound vegan diets. In response, Co-founder and CEO of Wild Earth, Ryan Bethencourt, commented, “This study is further proof that not only can dogs survive on a vegan diet, but thrive.”  In August 2022, Wild Earth debuted a new product design and previewed an upcoming product line at SuperZoo, North America’s largest pet retail show. However, in October 2022 the company …

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Renegade Foods salami

Renegade Foods Photo credit: Veronica Darrah

Food & Beverage

Renegade Foods’ Premium Organic Smoked Salamis Now Available to Members With Free Limited Releases

California’s Renegade Foods recently announced the launch of an exclusive subscription service called Renegade Nation. Subscribers to the new service will each month receive three smoked, European-style salamis made entirely from plants – the smoked Calabrian-style Soppressata, sweet Italian Toscana and spicy Spanish-style Chorizo – as well as a free limited release salami each season. “Renegade Nation isn’t just about the food, it’s about having a positive impact on our planet and all animals that call it home” Renegade Foods creates premium organic salamis entirely from plants. Chef made in Sonoma wine country, the recipes are influenced by the founders’ time living and working abroad in southern Europe. The mission of the two founders, sisters Iona Campbell and Kalie Marder, is to empower communities to …

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Investments & Finance

Evo Foods Celebrates One of Largest Ever Seed Funding Rounds by an Indian Food Startup With a Stellar List of Investors

Recent data from the PBFA and GFI revealed that plant-based eggs grew 168% in 2020, nearly ten times the rate of poultry eggs. India’s Evo Foods was thus clever and lucky enough to have selected the fastest-growing plant-based category, which saw dollar sales surging 192% between 2019 – 2020, outperforming both Oatly and Beyond Meat. Evo’s recent pre-seed round is reportedly one of the largest ever by an early-stage food startup in India.

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Ryan Bethencourt Wild Earth

©Wild Earth

Company News

Australian Provectus Algae Appoints Ryan Bethencourt, Raises $3.25M for “World’s Most Valuable Speciality Ingredients”

Provectus Algae, an Australian biotech company that optimises microalgae to produce a whole new range of natural products, in a process described as “Precision Photosynthesis™”, today announces a $3.25 million Seed round led by Hong Kong’s Vectr Ventures, and the appointment of Ryan Bethencourt as a director.

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EVO Foods

©EVO Foods

Company News

EVO Foods Receives Backing from Industry Giants for Liquid Egg Replacer Set to Disrupt Indian Market

Indian startup EVO Foods, producer of a vegan egg replacer on course to launch in July 2020, has received funding from alt protein venture capital fund Big Idea Ventures and also secured its first angel investment from Ryan Bethencourt, co-founder and CEO of revolutionary pet food company Wild Earth Inc.

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Ryan Bethencourt

Ryan Bethencourt

Interviews

Wild Earth: “We Believe Wild Earth Can be in the Pet Food Space, What Beyond Meat is in the Human Food Space”

Wild Earth is a sustainable pet food company with a mission is to make dog food better. A study released by UCLA calculated that the meat-based food eaten by Americans’ dogs and cats generates the equivalent of 64 million tons of carbon dioxide per year, which has about the same climate impact as a year’s worth of driving from 13.6 million cars.

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Wild_Earth_Dog_Food_Bags

©Wild Earth

Products & Launches

Mark Cuban-Backed Wild Earth Launches World’s First High-Protein, Meat-Free Dog Food

Wild Earth Inc, a startup using biotech to reinvent the pet food industry, has officially launched the industry’s first line of high-protein, meat-free dog food at this year’s SuperZoo Conference, the largest pet industry event in North America, taking place in Las Vegas.  Wild Earth says it is looking to change the conversation around sustainable and healthy dog food by utilising fungi-based proteins.

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