Sophie’s BioNutrients has partnered with Danish Technological Institute (DTI) to make a microalgae-based ice cream. A 1 oz serving of the new vegan-friendly creation has the potential to provide double the recommended daily intake of vitamin B12, according to Sophie’s BioNutrients. The ice cream is made using the food tech company’s protein concentrate derived from Chlorella vulgaris. “Microalgae is one of the most nutrient-rich and versatile resources on the planet,” said Sophie’s BioNutrients CEO and co-founder, Eugene Wang. “Today we have shown another facet of the unlimited possibilities this superfood can offer – a dairy- and lactose-free alternative to ice cream that, thanks to microalgae, offers a higher nutrition content than most available dairy-free alternatives. We are incredibly excited for this development in allergen-free foods and the prospect of more inclusive dining.” Alongside vitamin B12, Chlorella is said to be a good source of iron, which only exists at low levels in cow’s milk. Danish Technological Institute director of food technology, Anne Louise Dannesboe Nielsen, noted: “Microalgae is definitely part of the future. It is a sustainable ingredient with a lot of potential in multiple food applications. “At DTI, we are increasingly experiencing interest in microalgae and are eager to help grow, understand and explore its potential.”

Cannabis company Tilray Brands has acquired New York craft brewer, Montauk Brewing Company, for an undisclosed sum. Montauk Brewing offers a portfolio of craft beers, distributed through national retailers such as Target, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Walmart, 7-Eleven and Costco. The deal is expected to be accretive to Tilray's adjusted EBITDA. Montauk Brewing joins Tilray’s US alcohol segment, which already includes craft brewer SweetWater Brewing Company, alongside other brands. Tilray has also announced the appointment of Ty Gilmore as president of its US beer business. Gilmore joins the company from Glazer’s Beer and Beverage, where he was executive vice president, overseeing sales, marketing and operations across 11 distributors in the south. Prior to that, he spent the majority of his career at Diageo. Tilray chairman and CEO, Irwin Simon, said: "Tilray Brands continues to strengthen our US footprint and operations through investments in and growing our portfolio of leading lifestyle CPG brands that resonate powerfully with consumers. Montauk Brewing is an iconic brand with leading market share and distribution in the northeast.” He continued: “Tilray Brands intends to leverage SweetWater’s existing nationwide infrastructure and Montauk Brewing’s northeast influence to significantly expand our distribution network and drive profitable growth in our beverage-alcohol segment. This distribution network is part of Tilray’s strategy to leverage our growing portfolio of US CPG brands and ultimately to launch THC-based product adjacencies upon federal legalisation in the US. “We are excited to welcome Montauk Brewing’s founders Vaughan Cutillo and Eric Moss, as well as Terry Hopper, Montauk Brewing’s general manager, to the Tilray Brands family, and I look forward to working closely with Ty Gilmore to maximise the performance of our enormously powerful craft and lifestyle beverage brand portfolio.”

Chilean berries producer, Agroberries, has announced an around €40 million investment as it expands its farming operations into Morocco. Agroberries, which is said to be one of the largest berry marketers in the world, serves a diverse retail client base. The company supplies customers with berries from its own farming operations – which span more than 2,500 hectares worldwide – as well as from a vast network of third-party growers. The company announced this week that it had begun farming operations in Morocco, in a move that will support Agroberries' "fast-growing" European marketing platform by complementing its existing offering to clients across the UK and the EU. Agroberries says that the first phase of its strategy in Morocco includes the planting of around 300 hectares of blueberries in three different regions, representing a total investment of €40 million. Planting has already begun and will continue into next year. The company hopes to further expand its grower network in the coming years via licensing of its proprietary varieties, across a range of berry categories, to reach a total of around 1,000 hectares. Jorge Varela, co-founder and CEO of Agroberries, said: “Our investment in Morocco is a natural next step in our global expansion plan as a leading berry grower and marketer. This move leverages our deep agronomical expertise, partnership approach and will help us to continue supplying our European customers year-round with the highest quality berries.”

Dairy giant Fonterra has announced the appointment of Neil Beaumont as its next chief financial officer, effective February 2023. Fonterra CEO, Miles Hurrell, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Neil to the team. He’s an experienced global finance leader whose expertise in strategic implementation will be a real asset to our management team.” Most recently, Beaumont was senior managing director, chief financial and risk officer at Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, with responsibility for leading the operations, finance and risk functions for the CAD 500 billion (approx. $371.5 billion) investment fund. Chris Rowe has covered the CFO position at Fonterra since the resignation of Marc Rivers earlier this year. Rowe will continue in the acting role until Beaumont joins the co-op early in 2023.

Carlsberg Marston’s Brewing Company (CMBC) has announced plans to sell the Bedford-based Eagle Brewery to its long-term partner, Spanish brewer S.A. Damm. Damm – best known in the UK as the brewer of Estrella Damm – will acquire its first brewery outside of mainland Europe through the deal and its second outside of Spain. Demetrio Carceller Arce, executive president at Damm, said: “This deal will strengthen our position in the UK market and help drive our brand in the UK, a key market for the company’s international growth. The British public can currently enjoy our products in more than 10,000 bars and restaurants, a figure we expect to continue to grow in the coming years.” As part of the agreement, the Eagle Brewery’s beers will continue to be sold as part of CMBC’s portfolio. All production staff at the Eagle Brewery will transfer over to Damm’s workforce. CMBC and Damm have been engaged in a long-term distribution partnership, with much of the activity taking place at the Eagle Brewery, where Estrella Damm has been packaged for the UK market since 2010. The sale is expected to be completed by the end of 2022. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. CMBC’s logistics operation in Bedford will continue at the site for the next 12 months before moving to a new location. Announced in 2020, CMBC is a 60:40 joint venture between Carlsberg UK and Marston's.

Scotland-based Eden Mill Distillery has teamed up with British chef Gordon Ramsay to launch a premium London Dry Gin named Ramsay’s Gin. The gin contains botanicals "selected from the wild coastline of Fife". The collaboration is said to reflect a significant investment from the whisky and gin distiller. Ramsay’s Gin blends London Dry Gin with Fife Mara seaweed, pink peppercorns, fennel seeds, lavender and lemon verbena, as well as sweet and juicy honeyberries. Eden Mill’s marketing director, Matthew Turner, said: “This partnership and collaboration between Eden Mill and Gordon has produced a very special, flavourful gin, which is uniquely Scottish in provenance, and we are incredibly proud to be working together”. Ramsay’s Gin is available in Harvey Nichols, Sainsbury’s, Scotmid, Filshill Wholesale, small independent farm shops, and delis and garden centres for an RRP of £28.

Mars Food has expanded its Ben's Original portfolio with the launch of a new range, called Risotto Ready Rice. Risotto Ready Rice is described as a creamy rice dish infused with "modern flavours". It includes two flavours: Ready Rice Cheese Risotto, which features white cheddar, parmesan and blue cheese, and Ready Rice Mushroom Risotto, contains parmesan and cheddar cheese. According to Ben's Original, consumers can heat the rice in the microwave for 90 seconds and serve it with their favourite recipe or enjoy it on its own. The range is made with 100% Italian-grown arborio rice and no artificial flavours or colouring.

Umami Meats has announced a research partnership with Waters Corporation, as it looks to speed up the development of an efficient process for producing cultivated seafood. Singapore-based Umami is working to provide a sustainable alternative to wild-caught fish – with a focus on species that are unsuitable for farming and endangered due to growing consumption. The food tech start-up is collaborating with food and nutrition scientists at speciality measurement company Waters to develop laboratory methods for cultivating fish. The Waters research lab in Singapore aims to expedite advancements in food and water safety by facilitating collaborations with industry and academic experts. Umami Meats is utilising the analytical technologies and food science expertise available within Waters to optimise production efficiency on the path to process scale-up. In addition, the partnership will provide the baseline for future work in the area of process control automation. “Over 2 trillion fish are caught every year for human consumption, and because most of these species cannot be farmed, many are being driven to extinction by overfishing,” said Mihir Pershad, CEO of Umami Meats. “Our collaboration with Waters Corporation is a significant step towards developing an efficient, cost-effective process for producing cultivated fish. We strongly believe in the value of analytical data from scientific research tools to advance our development process and product quality, and we are excited by what will be possible with the network and support of the food and nutrition scientists at Waters’ research laboratory in Singapore.” David Curtin, vice president Asia Pacific at Waters Corporation, added: “By collaborating with industry and academic experts we can help to expedite the efficient production of cultivated seafood for safe consumption and drive advancements in food and water safety research”. “Both Umami Meats and Waters share a common vision that innovative research is essential to the future safety and sustainability of our food and water supplies.”

Beavertown Brewery has launched an edible glitter-infused beer, called Frozen Neck, just in time for the festive season. The "glittery, zingy, hazy IPA" is said to create a "sparkling snowball effect in your glass" and has an ABV of 4.3%. Frozen Neck is a twist on Beavertown's Neck Oil beer, and features ice hops that have been frozen immediately after being picked to create a fresh and zesty flavour. It also features notes of grapefruit combined with mango. RRP £2.30.

ADM has announced the opening of its new North American microbiology laboratory at its speciality manufacturing facility in Decatur, Illinois. The new lab expands ADM's research, development and testing capabilities, as well as its footprint in the Decatur community. Veronica Braker, senior vice president, global operations at ADM, said: "The expansion of ADM's speciality manufacturing facility demonstrates our commitment to growing our in-house testing capabilities and also our continued investment in the Decatur community". She added: "This new facility will drive productivity and collaboration, accelerate innovation and bring even more high-level science and research employment opportunities to Decatur". The new laboratory will be responsible for testing finished products in the North American region, prior to their release to market. It will provide testing services to more than 25 ADM manufacturing facilities throughout the region. The site features testing equipment and technology, enabling ADM to conduct advanced in-house testing such as kill-step validations for processing plants, including automation applications. Lee Perry, vice president of quality and food safety at ADM, commented: "We are very excited for this expansion because it enables greater innovation to unlock the power of nature in order to enrich the quality of life". He continued: "The development of this state-of-the-art laboratory directly aligns with our mission and vision to strive for operational excellence, partner with operations to provide testing solutions and drive analytical performance". You may also like to read: ADM opens extrusion facility extending non-GMO soy protein production ADM and PepsiCo announce agreement to support regenerative agriculture ADM to ramp up soy protein concentrate production capacity in US

Butlers Farmhouse Cheeses has announced the acquisition of the Parlick brand from Singletons & Co, which ceased trading in September. The acquisition of Parlick will bring sheep's milk cheese into Butlers Farmhouse's portfolio. According to the company, the deal has ensured no break in supply to retailers such as Sainsbury's and Waitrose. Matthew Hall, owner of Butlers Farmhouse Cheeses, said: “Bringing Parlick to Butlers Farmhouse Cheeses puts sheep’s milk cheese back into our range and supports a key part of the local Lancashire supply chain after Singletons very sadly cease trading". "Parlick is a great British cheese with a strong UK brand that complements our range of premium, British farmhouse cheeses made in rural Lancashire. It's really important to us that we keep the British cheese renaissance going, and Parlick will be part of that.”

Instant noodle brand Kabuto has entered the pasta aisle with a line of mac n'cheese pasta pots. Available in two flavours – Original and Sriracha Chill – the pots are designed for mac n-cheese lovers and busy consumers looking for a quick meal. To prepare, simply add cold water and microwave for four minutes. The pots contain 12g of protein, are made with no additives, preservatives or artificial colours, and are 100% vegetarian. Kabuto's mac n'cheese pots are 100% recyclable and the business is carbon neutral. Crispin Busk, founder of Kabuto, said: “For far too long the instant mac and cheese at the supermarket has meant crunchy pasta, bland sauces and no taste at all, we knew it was time to revitalise and reinvent this delicious dish. We’ve nailed noodles and it was time to perfect pot pasta, and we think we’ve smashed it with our new range." He added: "Easy peasy Mac and Cheesy is our new direction and we can’t wait for the nation’s pasta fans, busy families and possibly even the odd hungover foodie to enjoy our latest range of deliciousness”. The pots are now available at Sainsbury's stores and Amazon. RRP £1.50.