Scottish food and ag-tech company, Roslin Tech, has closed its Series A funding round led by Novo Holdings. The company secured £11 million during the raise, which will be used to accelerate the company's growth and its mission to become a leading provider of animal cell lines in the fast-paced cultivated meat sector. Roslin Tech has developed pluripotent animal stem cells that have the ability to "self-renew indefinitely and differentiate into desired end-tissues for meat". The company currently has customers in North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. The funds will be used to expand its cell line and further address the protocols for commercial scale-up of its cells for meat production. This will be carried out in collaboration with its customers, as well as the University of Edinburgh. The company says it will also invest in its insect venture, which focuses on "breeding better insects for the emerging insect protein sector, a promising regenerative agricultural technique". Other investors in the round include Kairos Capital Group, Nutreco, Future Planet Capital, Esco Lifesciences, Alchimia, and private investors. Ernst van Orsouw, CEO of Roslin Tech, said: “We are excited to welcome Novo Holdings and other investors on our journey to improve the food system. With the investment and strategic support, we can accelerate the development of better cells for the sector and focus on making our customers successful.” Nis Bak, principal of Novo Holdings and new board member, added: “We've been impressed with Roslin Technologies’ team and innovative technologies, which have the potential to materially improve the production of novel, sustainable proteins. We are excited to invest alongside a strong syndicate of investors whose joint vision for Roslin Technologies and complementary capabilities will be a great asset to the company in its continued development.”

General Mills has introduced mini-sized versions of its Trix, Reese's Puffs and Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal brands. All three bite-sized cereals come in a small, round shape. "Sometimes the best new innovation is the smallest one," said Mindy Murray, senior marketing communications manager at General Mills. "There's such a love right now for full-size things that have been shrunk into mini versions, and we realised we could do the same with our cereals." The bite-sized cereals will be available at select retailers nationwide for $3.99 in full-sized boxes.

GNC has teamed up with Girl Scouts of the USA to launch a new limited-edition protein shake flavour inspired by the Girl Scout cookie, Adventurefuls. Having worked together since 2020, GNC and Girl Scouts have created flavour-packed products with a Girl Scout cookie-inspired flavour palette. The new caramel brownie-flavoured protein shake is currently available in stores and online. Kevin Maloberti, VP of merchandising at GNC, said: "The addition of Adventurefuls-inspired products to our flavour lineup allows us to continue to bring consumers options that deliver on both performance and flavour. Coupling the great feedback we get from consumers on these flavours, with important mission of championing girls, this is a great continuation of our partnership, and we know these products will fly off the shelves at GNC." Wendy Lou, chief revenue officer of Girl Scouts, added: "We're excited that our continued partnership with GNC brings more of our celebrated Girl Scout flavours to consumers. With our shared values of empowering communities across the country to Live Well and to pursue their dreams, this collaboration provides consumers a unique opportunity to experience last season's breakout cookie, Adventurefuls, in an entirely new way." GNC Girl Scout Adventurefuls products are available in four product formulations, such as: GNC AMP Wheybolic Whey Protein; GNC Total Lean Layered Lean Bar; GNC Total Lean Lean Shake 25; and GNC Total Lean Lean Shake 25 RTD.

PepsiCo has appointed CD Glin, current VP of the PepsiCo Foundation and global head of philanthropy for PepsiCo, as the Foundation's president. Glin will remain head of philanthropy and will report to Roberto Azevedo, chairman of the Foundation and chief corporate affairs officer for PepsiCo. In his new role, Glin will oversee the Foundation's commitment towards a more sustainable food system, backed by its three core pillars: food security, safe water access and economic opportunity. "In recent years we've seen significant events including the pandemic, conflict and natural disasters, which have created an abundance of need across the globe," said Azevedo. "Through CD's leadership, the PepsiCo Foundation has helped the company meet these moments through a focus on impacting communities, engaging employees and driving corporate purpose and responsibility." Glin joined the PepsiCo Foundation in 2021 and has been involved in the launch and growth of various philanthropic initiatives. Under his leadership, the Foundation will also continue its expansion of the $18.2 million She Feeds the World project, which works directly with female farmers in Peru, Egypt and Uganda, with plans to expand to Thailand and Vietnam. Glin said: "During these challenging times, I've been energised and inspired by our incredible associates, our commitment to community as a global company operating locally to positively impact people and the planet. I look forward to continuing my work as president of the Foundation and ensuring we deliver lasting community impact as one of the world's leading food and beverage companies."

Government officials have announced that Pure Prairie Farms will receive a $6.9 million grant as part of a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Programme (MPPEP). Launched in 2021, the programme materialised in response to supply chain disruptions in recent years for meat and poultry products during the pandemic. The programme is designed to "encourage competition and sustainable growth in the US meat processing sector, and to help improve supply chain resiliency”. The MPPEP grant enables Pure Prairie Farms to “take the business to the next level” and achieve its vision of producing quality chicken. Part of a $51.7 million improvement project, the MPPEP grant will support the construction of an 18,000-square-foot warehouse and distribution centre and redesign its second processing area. CEO and president of Pure Prairie Farms, Brian Roelofs, said: "It wasn't so much that we matched our company to the grant, but that the grant was tailormade for smaller food companies like ours who are partnering in ownership with growers in a unique way for the industry". "It will allow us to reach our state-of-the-art processing plant's full potential much quicker and restore a market for area jobs and regional farmers." Pure Prairie Farms also received a $2.3 million training grant recently from the Iowa Economic Development Authority alongside a $38.7 million USDA-backed loan, designed to invest in smaller agriculture manufacturers.

Private equity firm Aurora Capital Partners has acquired Universal Pure Holdings, a provider of high-pressure processing (HPP) and related food safety and technical services, for an undisclosed price. Universal Pure is an HPP partner of food and beverage manufacturers in North America, and also offers a range of other services, including cold storage, bottling, kitting and assembly, dry aging, tempering and inventory management. HPP is a technology that uses water and pressure to inactivate food-borne pathogens without the use of chemicals or other additives, while extending product shelf life. Universal Pure operates eight facilities in the US across major shipping lanes and distribution centres. Partner at Aurora, Randy Moser, said: "Universal Pure has an exceptional track record of growth built around a culture of customer service. Best-in-class service and a long-tenured track record combined with the largest footprint in North America uniquely position Universal Pure in a rapidly growing industry.” Moser added: “We see significant opportunity to build on that position and the company's success and look forward to accelerating growth through organic expansion and its experienced acquisition programme”. Universal Pure CEO, Jeff Williams, remarked: "Aurora has a well-deserved reputation of partnering with management teams to help accelerate growth. We are confident they are the right partner for Universal Pure at this stage of its development, and with their partnership, we are excited to continue adding to the solutions we offer our customers and to execute on our many growth initiatives." Mark Rosenbaum, also a partner at Aurora, commented: "Jeff and his team have built an impressive platform, and we are excited to capitalise on the significant runway that the business has through new and existing relationships with blue chip customers. We are thrilled to be chosen as Universal Pure's partner at an exciting time in its evolution."

Private equity firm Olympus Partners has agreed to sell liquid packaging manufacturer, Liquibox, to packaging solutions company, Sealed Air Corporation. Liquibox provides bag-in-box solutions and fluid dispensing fitments to end markets including consumer products and food and beverage. Ken Swanson, CEO of Liquibox, commented: "Liquibox has thoroughly enjoyed having Olympus Partners as our financial sponsor, strategic sounding board, and trusted advisor. Their support for growth both through internal capital projects as well as acquisitions has been critical to our success.” Under the ownership of Olympus, Liquibox has grown significantly, including with the opening of a 140,000-square-foot facility in Madrid, Spain. The company employs around 1,300 people across North America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia. Manu Bettegowda, managing partner at Olympus, added: "We are happy for Liquibox to become part of the broader platform and believe this is a transaction where both organisations will benefit from the strategic combination". Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Cheesemaker Schuman Cheese has entered into the truffle category with the launch of new refrigerated confection, mascarpone bites. Delve Mascarpone Truffles are made with Italian-style cheese and wrapped in pure, sustainably sourced chocolate. The bites are available in four varieties, sea-salted caramel crème, raspberry, lemon and chocolate ganache. The company also launched a 36-piece sharing box containing sea-salted caramel crème, chocolate ganache and an exclusive tiramisu flavour. “At Schuman Cheese, we take immense pride in the craftsmanship of cheesemaking and have withheld a generations-long dedication to innovating across this category with only the highest quality ingredients,” said Allison Schuman, chief business development officer at Schuman Cheese. “Delve is the epitome of those efforts, bringing truffles off the shelf and to fresh, new heights with the richness of our award-winning mascarpone cheese, for an experience unlike any other. Think of us as your very own chocolatiers.” The individual boxes are priced at an RRP of $7.99 and are available online on Amazon Fresh or in-store in select retailers. The 36-piece box for an RRP of $15.99 and is available to buy at Costco stores.

Fulham Shore has announced the strategic expansion of its pizza business, Franco Manca, into retail stores across the UK. The company has launched its debut range of five premium Franco Manca Chef’s Selection cook-at-home pizzas. The products were developed through a licensing partnership with Italian food business Rondanini and were created alongside Franco Manca executive chef, Alfonso Marseglia. To recreate an authentic experience, the range is made with ingredients of the same quality and is inspired by the daily specials available at Franco Manca restaurants. Each pizza is hand-stretched and stone baked in a traditional wood-fired oven before heading to the supermarket shelves. The five options are quattro formaggi with balsamic glaze, spicy salami with fried onion and chilli-infused honey, spiced beef meatball with red onion and pecorino, butternut squash with stilton and pumpkin seeds and fennel sausage with chargrilled red peppers and mozzarella. Fulham Shore executive chairman, David Page, commented: “After many months of careful development we are thrilled to launch our debut range of Franco Manca cook-at-home sourdough pizzas which are now available in over 500 supermarkets”. He added: “This is a very exciting new strategic development for Franco Manca and The Fulham Shore, which complements the appeal and success of our consistently busy and growing portfolio of restaurants, and we are looking forward to seeing it develop”.

US bakery company Hostess Brands has introduced four new holiday snacks for the Christmas season. Making their seasonal debut, Holiday HoHos are chocolate snack cakes packed with creamy filling. In addition, the limited-edition treats also include three returning fan favourites – Holiday CupCakes, Mint Chocolate-flavoured Twinkies and Hot Cocoa & Marshmallow-flavoured Donettes. Christopher Balach, general manager of Hostess Brands, said: "With the holiday season right around the corner, consumers are anticipating the return of special flavours that capture the joy, delight and traditions of the season. From the classic chocolate sponge cake and refreshing mint flavour of our Mint Chocolate-flavoured Twinkies to the rich and creamy hot chocolate flavour of our Hot Cocoa & Marshmallow-flavoured Donettes, we think consumers will love our holiday snacks". The seasonal snacks are available for a limited time in multi-packs at grocery retailers nationwide.

Kellogg Company has raised its full-year outlook after posting a 9% increase in reported net revenue for its third quarter, driven by demand for its snacks, noodles and cereal. The company now expects organic net sales growth of over 10% for the full year, up from its prior forecast of a 7% to 8% increase. Kellogg says that overall average selling prices rose 15.7% in the quarter. However, volumes fell by 2.3%. The company posted Q3 reported net sales of $3.95 billion, while reported operating profit fell by nearly 18% in the quarter to $368 million. In North America, the business reported 14% growth in net sales due in part to an acceleration in cereal, while sales volumes fell in overseas markets. Meanwhile, Kellogg Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa posted an increase in net sales of 12% for Q3. Kellogg Company’s chairman and CEO, Steve Cahillane, said: "We're pleased to report another quarter of better-than-expected financial performance and an increase to our outlook for the year". Cahillane added: “This required navigating effectively through global supply challenges and working to offset cost pressures with productivity and revenue growth management, all while sustaining momentum in snacks and emerging markets, and continuing to recover inventory and share in North America cereal”.

Standing Ovation has received €1.83 million in financing from French public investment bank, Bpifrance, to support its Ferment2From project. Founded in 2020, Standing Ovation creates non-animal, lactose-free products based on casein produced using precision fermentation. The company's aim for its Ferment2From project is to develop its knowledge around the use of precision fermentation-made casein in cheese applications. Standing Ovation is looking to diversify its offering and move towards new product ranges with higher added value. Frédéric Pâques, president of Standing Ovation, commented: "At Standing Ovation, we contribute to the dynamics of the food transition towards more resilience and sustainability". "We are proud of the trust placed in us by Bpifrance, whose support is a true recognition of our know-how and of our potential for innovation in the food transition field."