Florida

A cultivated chicken sandwich

© UPSIDE Foods
Cultivated, Cell-Cultured & Biotechnology

Florida Senate Bans Sales of Cultivated Meat 

Yesterday, the Florida Senate approved a bill banning the sale of cultivated meat, making Florida the first state in the country to do so. As reported by local media, the Republican-controlled Senate voted 26-10 to pass the bill, which would make changes related to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. All the votes against the bill were from Democrats. R-Tampa representative Jay Collins, the bill’s sponsor, stated that although research over time may prove that cultivated meat is feasible, there is a need for more certainty on its safety. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a strong supporter of the ban, has previously called cultivated meat “fake meat.”  Research on cultivated meat continues to be allowed since NASA and other space researchers are developing the …

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Impossible Burger School Lunch

©Impossible Foods
Society

Florida School District Introduces Impossible Burgers and Meat-Free Nuggets in Plant-Based Menu Update

Manatee County School District in Florida has recently introduced plant-based lunch options in several of its schools. As reported by Your Observer, this initiative encompasses two high schools and three middle schools, where students now have access to plant-based items such as Impossible Burgers and plant-based chicken nuggets. The schools involved in this rollout include Mona Jain Middle, R. Dan Nolan, Buffalo Creek middle schools, as well as Braden River, Lakewood Ranch, and Parrish Community High Schools as part of the district’s goal to stay current with food trends and address the growing interest in plant-based diets among students. Skye Grundy, a registered dietitian and supervisor of student nutrition for the School District of Manatee County, emphasized the importance of meeting student demands and staying …

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The Florida state flag waving along with the national flag of the United States of America. In the background there is a clear sky.

© rarrarorro - stock.adobe.com

Politics & Law

Florida House Republican Introduces Bill to Ban Cultivated Meat in the State

Florida House Representative Tyler Sirois is making headlines after introducing a new bill prohibiting the production, selling, holding, and distributing of cultivated meat in Florida. The news comes only a few weeks after TIME magazine’s Best Inventions of 2023 included GOOD Meat’s cultivated chicken. As reported by Action News Jax, the proposed legislation states that anyone found in violation could face criminal penalties, including a misdemeanor of the second degree, accompanied by a fine ranging from $500 to $1,000. Restaurants or food service companies violating the law would see a license suspension or an immediate stop-sale order. If signed into law, this bill would come into effect in July 2024 and could have significant implications for the emerging cellular agriculture industry.  Florida legislation reportedly mandates that any …

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Chunk Foods Chunk plant-based steak

Supplied by Chunk Foods
Food Service

Chunk Foods’ Plant-Based Steak Expands Menu Presence in Florida Steakhouses and Seafood Restaurants

Chunk Foods, a producer of clean-label plant-based whole cuts, has extended its presence in Central Florida with the addition of its award-winning plant-based steaks at Vito’s Chop House, Fishbones, and a third Charley’s Steak House location. The new foodservice collaborations are a direct result of Chunk Foods’ partnership with the Talk of the Town Restaurant Group, enabling the company to reach a broader consumer base with its cholesterol-free Chunk steak, made from fermented soy and wheat. Major breakthrough for the category Amos Golan, founder and CEO of Chunk Foods, conveyed the significance of this expansion, stating, “This marks a major breakthrough for the whole category by greatly expanding the addressable market for plant-based meats. Steakhouses in the US sell over $14B of steak, and tapping …

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Vegan Volcano Rolls

©House of Vegano
Food Service

From Caviar to “Lobstah”, House of Vegano is Upgrading Seafood with Game-Changing Vegan Sushi

House of Vegano, a restaurant specializing in plant-based, Japanese-inspired cuisine, has officially expanded to a new, larger location in the Florida city of St. Petersburg. But what makes this eatery unusual is its show-stopping take on animal-free sushi – from vegan caviar and “lobstah” to mushroom-based crab, tomato tuna and eggplant eel – House of Vegano’s fearless reinvention of vegan sushi has attracted a cult-like following from near and far, and is overturning conventional ideas on what sushi can be.  House of Vegano was created by Thalia Tathum, a mother of five who decided to change her diet in an attempt to combat frequent pain from lupus, an autoimmune disease. Six months into a plant-based diet, she experienced significant improvement in her symptoms and began …

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Silk Creamer

©Silk
Investments & Finance

Danone North America Announces $65M Investment to Expand Key US Brands, Including Silk Coffee Creamers

Dairy giant Danone North America announces it will invest up to $65M over the next two years to build a new bottle production line in Jacksonville, Florida. According to the company, the investment will help expand production capabilities and scale several key US brands, including Silk plant-based coffee creamers.   Intended to support Danone NA’s long-term growth strategy, the new bottling plant will increase production of several of Danone’s coffee and creamer brands in the US, including Silk, International Delight,  and STok coffee, while also meeting consumer demand in these categories, Danone says. Creating jobs In addition to supporting Danone’s sustainability goals, the investment will reportedly advance its operational excellence, enable flexibility in bottle design, and drive more cost efficiencies. The Jacksonville plant will also create …

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Motif Foodworks cheese

©Motif Foodworks

Gastronomy & Food Service

Fast Casual Chain Coolgreens to Trial Motif FoodWorks’ Innovative Plant-Based Cheese

Healthy fast casual chain Coolgreens announces it is testing a groundbreaking plant-based cheese created by Boston-based Motif FoodWorks. The dairy-free cheese will be available exclusively at Coolgreens’ Delray Beach, FL location beginning Nov. 15th. Motif’s cheese will be offered on Coolgreen’s signature Avocado Crunch sandwich and Southwest salad, as well as the non-vegan Chicken Fresca sandwich. Motif’s innovation is said to offer the same creamy taste, stretch and melt of traditional dairy cheese.  Though it has not yet disclosed the product’s ingredients, Motif revealed in 2021 it had acquired exclusive access to new food technologies it said had “the potential to transform” consumers’ experience with plant-based meat and cheese.  For its cheese, Motif licensed prolamin technology from the University of Guelph, which uses plant-based ingredients to …

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Banana Wave pair

©Banana Wave

Investments & Finance

Eat Beyond Holdings to Acquire Florida Banana Milk Producer Banana Wave

Canadian investment issuer Eat Beyond Global Holdings, Inc. announced it has signed a letter of intent to acquire plant-based milk brand Banana Wave. The transaction would be part of an agreement to purchase all outstanding shares from Mylk Brands, Inc., which owns Banana Wave as a subsidiary.  Originally launched in 2013, Banana Wave was the first banana-based milk to hit the US market. Since then, other brands such as Mooala and Almond Breeze have also launched banana milk products, which – unlike oat, almond or soy milks – all blend whole fruit into the beverages. Earlier this year, Banana Wave was chosen as the “best-tasting alternative milk” in a blind taste test on NBC’s Today Show. Based in Boca Raton, Florida, Banana Wave’s plant-based milks are …

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Products & Launches

Orlando Startup VeganUs Launches Chicken and Beef as PB Meat Sales Skyrocket in US

Orlando-based newcomer VeganUs just launched its plant-based line of chicken and beef alternatives in the US. According to the Plant-Based Foods Association (PBFA) and the Good Food Institute (GFI), the growth rate for the US plant-based food market more than doubled in 2020, as sales rose 27% to $7 billion. The plant-based alt-meat category is emerging as the industry’s cash cow with plant-based frozen meat sales rising 30% and refrigerated plant-based meat sales increasing by 75% in 2020. In development since 2019, VeganUs was founded by two long time vegans, David K. Mao, PhD and Jessie J. Cheng. The first collection includes four frozen products – NoChicken Nuggets, NoChicken Burger, NoBeef Burger and NoBeef Crumbles –with all four VeganUs products being Non-GMO Project Verified and …

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Spread Instead

© Morini Brands Inc
Products & Launches

Florida: Morini Brands Launches ‘Spread Instead’ Vegan Pâtés Created with Risofu

Morini Brands announces that following more than a year of delays to its market entrance, its ‘Spread Instead‘ line of vegan pâté products are now available via KeHE. The pâtés are created with the brand’s flagship rice-based Risofu – the world’s first rice curd based meat alternative, and are perfect for wraps and quesadillas. Five award-winning flavors are now sold frozen or refrigerated: Traditional Sweet Relish & Mustard; Roasty Garlic with Rosemary; Basil and Peppadew; Bar-B-Q Sweet n’ Smokey; Cilantro Lime Bold & Zesty; and Bangin’ Buffalo Tangy & Spicy. Risofu is a 100% soy & gluten-free meat alternative created with rice which debuted in 2009 in the award-winning Bahama Rice Burger, and is produced using a proprietary gentle blending and fermentation method. Risofu is …

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Vegan Fine Foods

©Vegan Fine Foods
Company News

Retail Franchise Opportunity: “The Vegan Whole Foods” Vegan Fine Foods

In Fort Lauderdale Florida, Vegan Fine Foods continues its impressive growth with an equity crowdfunding campaign to bring its gourmet grocery experience to every major US city by 2024. The brand has been previously backed by vegan entrepreneur Heather Mills, and now presents a new standard of sustainability and ethical accountability. 

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get-it-across-gmbh-gia-logo-678x381

© Get It Across GmbH & Co. KG.
Marketing & Media

Vegan Vacations Boom: Travel Agency Offers Vegan Boutique Accommodation on the Florida Keys

The vegan travel industry has been booming for some time, and more and more holiday providers are focusing on catering to vegans and sustainable people. An example is the travel agency Get It Across GmbH & Co. KG, which is providing visitors to the Florida Keys & Key West new eco-friendly accommodation with a vegan menu and sustainable amenities in the coming autumn and winter months.

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