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Is Jeff Bezos Eyeing The Buildout of an Underground Delivery Network?
Today, Wendy’s announced they will trial an underground delivery system later this year in partnership with Pipedream Labs. According to the announcement, the system will deliver orders to customers via a carside pick-up portal using “autonomous robots” that traverse an underground pipe system. Spoon readers might remember...
The Spoon Weekly: Heinz Freestyles Condiments, Cana Shuts Down
Cana, the company which was building an appliance that they claimed could create and customize virtually any beverage, shut down last week, The Spoon has learned. According to numerous Linkedin posts from previous employees, the company could not secure funding and laid off all of its employees last week. Cana, which had raised $30 million in January last year, promised to have the product ready to ship sometime this year. But despite having a working prototype and brand partners in place, Cana could not raise the “funding necessary to build a production line for manufacturing and shipping devices.”
Plenty’s New Vertical Farm To Produce 4.5M Pounds of Leafy Greens From a Single City Block
Today indoor ag startup Plenty announced what it claims is the world’s most advanced vertical farm. Located in Compton, California, the company says the farm is designed to yield up to 4.5 million pounds of leafy greens annually, occupying just a city block’s worth of space. Using a...
ADM Partners With Air Protein to Make ‘Landless’ Protein From CO2
Today ADM announced a partnership with Air Protein, a company developing technology to make protein out of thin air, using carbon dioxide as a feedstock. According to the announcement, the two companies have entered a Strategic Development Agreement (SDA) to advance the development and production of this protein that can be developed without arable land. The agreement leverages ADM’s expertise in nutrition and research and Air Protein’s protein production technology to expand the protein ecosystem and deliver sustainable, cost-effective ingredients for meat substitutes. The two companies will collaborate to build the first commercial-scale production facility for air protein.
Heinz Introduces REMIX, a Coca-Cola Freestyle for Condiments
I have to admit I was not expecting to write about Heinz condiment product today, but a big company surprises you every now and then. No, it’s not MayoChup or Wasabioli, but the Heinz REMIX, a vending-machine-sized sauce dispenser that lets customers to create personalized sauce mixes. The new...
Dispatches from Israel Food Tech Ecosystem: Anat Natan, CEO and Cofounder of Anina
I talked to Anat Natan, the co-founder and CEO of Anina. Anina is an Israeli startup that takes imperfect food and transforms it into ready-made meals in pods. Food waste has significant economic and environmental implications, and it is estimated that the greenhouse gas emissions from food contribute to 7% of the overall greenhouse gasses emitted globally. We talked about the technology that powers Anina, operating in markets outside of Israel, and what she believes sets Israeli founders apart.
New Study Claims Cultivated Meat’s Current Path Is Significantly Worse for Environment Than Beef
A new life-cycle analysis by researchers at UC Davis has concluded that the current path of the cultivated meat industry’s commercialization process is potentially orders of magnitude worse for the environment than beef produced through animal agriculture, potentially producing anywhere from 4 to 25 times more CO2 than traditionally produced beef.
Pairwise Rolls Out First CRISPR-Edited Produce to U.S. Restaurants
Pairwise, a startup specializing in developing gene-edited produce, today announced the launch of its first product, a CRISPR-developed mustard green. The new product, the Conscious Greens Purple Power Baby Greens Blend, will launch into the restaurant/food service channel in partnership with the food service specialist Performance Food Group. The launch...
Japan Vertical Farm Pioneer Spread Hits 100 Million Lettuce Serving Milestone
While the vertical farming industry in the US continues to struggle, longtime Japanese precision agriculture pioneer Spread continues to pump out heads of lettuce in its fifteen years in operation, hitting the 100 million pack milestone this year. The company, which raised $30 million in funding last year, sells its produce in approximately 5,000 retail stores, as well as food service and ready-made meal operators across Japan, according to a release sent to The Spoon.
Two Years After Buying Spyce, Sweetgreen Launches Infinite Kitchen Robotic Restaurant
Last week, Sweetgreen opened the company’s first robotic restaurant in Naperville, Ill, a suburb of Chicago. The new automated restaurant, which the company calls Infinite Kitchen, comes almost two years after the company acquired Spyce Kitchen, a startup building automated robotic makelines. The Infinite Kitchen name is not new;...
Cana, The Startup Building a Make-Any-Drink Beverage Printer, Shuts Down
Cana, the company which was building an appliance that they claimed could create and customize virtually any beverage, shut down last week, The Spoon has learned. According to numerous Linkedin posts from previous employees, the company could not secure funding and laid off all of its employees last week. Cana, which had raised $30 million in January last year, promised to have the product ready to ship sometime this year. But despite having a working prototype and brand partners in place, Cana could not raise the “funding necessary to build a production line for manufacturing and shipping devices.”
Podcast: 3D Food Printing & Cooking with Lasers!
Close your eyes and imagine the kitchen of the future. Not 100 years into the future, more like 10 or 20. Does that kitchen you’re envisioning include a 3D food printer whipping up a dinner or a snack? And if so, are those printed creations being cooked with lasers?
Recipe for Disaster? ChatGPT is Tasked to Create Unique, Tasty Dishes and Fails Miserably
So you think your newfound ability to prompt ChatGPT for AI-generated recipes could result in a culinary masterpiece?. Hold that thought, advises the World of Vegan, a popular wellness website focused on vegan living. The site recently undertook an intriguing experiment powered by generative AI, where they prompted ChatGPT to conjure over a hundred diverse recipes. The group prompted the AI bot to whip up new and innovative recipes for a variety of occasions ranging from date night dishes to brunch and dessert ideas. From there, the site’s chef team tested each recipe to see how they tasted.
Washington State University Receives First-Ever FDA Approval for Gene-Edited Pigs for Human Consumption
Earlier this month, Washington State University (WSU) received the first-ever approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for gene-edited pigs for human consumption. That consumption will be delivered in the form of German-style sausage, which will be used in on-campus catering services that raise funds for the WSU meat judging team. The pigs were processed at the WSU Meat Lab – WSU is a land-grant university, and much of the research on campus is focused on agriculture and nature sciences – and during the processing of the meat, the U.S. Department of Agriculture inspected the meat.
XPRIZE Announces Finalists For $15M Competition to Develop More Sustainable Protein
XPRIZE, an organization that hosts competitions to seek out solutions to global challenges, announced the six finalists of its $15 million XPRIZE Feed the Next Billion (FTNB) competition. The contest, kicked off in 2020, seeks to stimulate the development of more sustainable and accessible chicken breast and fish filet alternatives that can satisfy the rising demand for meat products amid a growing global population.
Amazon Now Lets You Buy Physical Goods in Virtual Worlds. Could It Work For Food?
This week, Amazon announced a new platform called Amazon Anywhere that enables the discovery and purchase of physical products from within virtual environments such as virtual and augmented reality and video games. The platform, which the company showed off through an integration with an augmented reality pet game called Peridot...
Motif Continues Finished Product Expansion With Launch of Portfolio at NRA Show
Motif Foodworks, a company that develops plant-based meat alternative ingredients, has continued its expansion into finished product formats with the debut of its food service portfolio later this month at the National Restaurant Association show. The company says the portfolio, which includes alt pork (PorkWorks), beef (Plant-Based Ground and Motif...
Wendy’s Announces FreshAI, a Generative AI for Drive-Thrus Powered by Google Cloud
Today Wendy’s announced it is working with Google Cloud to develop a generative AI solution for drive-thrus called Wendy’s Fresh AI. The new solution, which is powered by Google Cloud’s generative AI and large language model technology, will go into a pilot test next month at a Wendy’s company-operated store in Columbus, Ohio. According to the announcement, the new tool will be able to have conversations with customers, the ability to understand made-to-order requests, and generate responses to frequently asked questions.
Dispatches from Israel Food Tech Ecosystem: Roee Nir, CEO and Cofounder of Forsea
I had the opportunity to talk to Roee Nir, CEO and co-founder of Forsea. Forsea is producing cultivated seafood, starting with cultivated eel. Prior to Forsea, Nir headed the business development for a biopharmaceutical company in immunology. We chatted about the differences between cultivated meat and cultivated seafood, customer preferences, navigating the regulatory environment, the foodtech ecosystem in Israel, and how startups raise money in Israel.
The Spoon Weekly: Beverage Printing Becomes a Trend & The Breadbot Rises After CES Success
We Now Can Officially Call Beverage “Printing” a Trend. While folks often wait to have three of a thing before declaring a trend, I’m gonna go ahead and call it in the case of beverage printing after two. And as of last month, we officially had our...
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