Source: Michelob

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Anheuser Busch’s Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold launched an initiative called ‘Contract for Change’ to help to help barley farmers transition to organic by paying a premium price for transitional barley.

Bay area startup Perfect Day has unveiled its animal-free cultured ice cream after five years in the making. A 19-year-old tech entrepreneur, Ben Pasternak, has just closed $7 million for his plant-based chicken startup Nuggs led by McCain Foods.

In agriculture news, vertical farming startup Aerofarms has closed a $100 million round to expand its warehouse facilities. Horizons Ventures has led a $50 million funding round for Demetrix for isolating and brewing cannabinoids.

Lastly, a recent hearing held by the FDA aimed to dispel the wellness claims of CBD as some kind of miracle drug.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

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1. Michelob ULTRA Supports Farmers’ Transition to Organic – AGDAILY

Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold launched a new initiative called ‘Contract for Change‘ that supports American barley farmers who want to transition conventional fields to try organic production for the first time.

2. Taste Testing the Ice Cream That Cost $60M to Create in a Lab – New Food Economy

Biotech startup Perfect Day has taken five years to create animal-free dairy products. Is there a real consumer market for their ice cream? More importantly: How does it taste?

3. AeroFarms Raises $100M As Investors Rush to Indoor Farms – Financial Times

The vertical farming startup has raised a $100m Series E round to expand its warehouse facilities that hold massive indoor farms, and explore new types of produce it can grow in those facilities.

4. The Newest Plant-Based Meat Brand Comes from a 19-Year Old Founder – Fast Company

Nuggs just raised $7m in funding led by McCain Foods, who will manufacture the foods. The products are now sold DTC from the company’s website.

5. 2018 U.S. Food & Beverage Startup Investment Report

Over $1.45B was invested across 247 deals in 2018, according to the research in our second annual investment report produced in partnership with Ryan Willams.  Check out the report for a deep dive into the investor and investment trends. We also share a complete list of deals and acquisitions.

6. Demetrix Raises $50M to Brew Cannabis – TechCrunch

Horizons Ventures led the round. The company plans to continue its pursuit of isolating and brewing cannabinoids.

7. New Index Helps Countries Boost Food Systems Sustainability – Food Tank

By tracking how sustainably countries use their agricultural biodiversity—or agrobiodiversity—the Agrobiodiversity Index supports actors within food systems to make better decisions to achieve sustainability and resilience.

8. Digital Health Startup Livongo Files for $200M Public Offering – Wall Street Journal

The company could raise up to $200m in its public debut, valuing the company at more than $2b.

9. Food Delivery Apps Will Have 44M US Users by 2020 – The Spoon

By 2023, that number is expected to jump to 60m US users.

10. China: A Vegetable Startup Wants to Raise at Least $500M, Sources Say – Bloomberg

Meicai, a Chinese startup that connects vegetable farmers with restaurants, is seeking at least $500m in funding to try and grab a larger slice of a fragmented food sourcing market.

11. The USDA Is Lowering Nutritional Standards for School Meals – and Undermining the Health of Millions of Kids – Fast Company

Just as school food was getting healthier, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is allowing cafeterias to once again serve more sodium, refined grains and sugary, flavored milk. Sweetgreen cofounder Nicolas Jammet thinks kids deserve better.

12. Marijuana or Hemp: FDA Says Beware of CBD for These Reasons​ – Forbes

The agency recently published a consumer update on its website that addresses some of the many claims surrounding this prevalent cannabinoid and attempts to dispel the notion that it is some kind of risk-free miracle drug.

13. Women, Women of Color & Gender Non-Conforming Innovator Database

We created this open-source list to increase representation, support and investment in women, women of color & gender-nonconforming innovators in food. Join the list & help us spread the word using #womxninfood

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