Image Credit: New York Times

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.

The proposed School Lunch Integrity Act of 2024 seeks to ban cultivated meat from school lunches, introducing restrictions under the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program. Meanwhile, the Indian Government is forging ahead with a groundbreaking partnership with Neat Meatt to pioneer the development of cell-cultured varieties of high-value fish species.

In other news, we’ve wrapped the first season of our podcast in partnership with AgFunder: New Food Order, a nuanced investigation into the business of tackling our climate and social crises through food and agriculture. Read all about why we launched the podcast, and be sure to subscribe and share!

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1. Proposed Legislation Would Ban Cultivated Meat From School Lunches – Food Business News

The bill, referred to as the School Lunch Integrity Act of 2024, would set restrictions under the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program.

2. Indian Government Body to Develop Cultivated Fish in Partnership with Neat Meatt – Green Queen

The partnership will initially focus on developing cell-cultured varieties of high-value fish species.

3. Biden Takes Aim at Grocery Chains Over Food Prices – New York Times

President Biden has begun to accuse stores of overcharging shoppers, as food costs remain a burden for consumers and a political problem for the president.

4. Takeaways From the AP’s Investigation Into How US Prison Labor Supports Many Popular Food Brands – Associated Press

The investigation found goods linked to US prisoners wind up in the supply chains of a dizzying array of products. They are on the shelves of most supermarkets, including Kroger, Target, Aldi and Whole Foods.

5. Seed Gene-Editing Startup Inari Valued at $1.65B Following $103M Fundraise – AFN

Inari has developed higher-yielding seeds for row crops using its multiplex gene-editing tech.

6. Leon Co-Founder Seeks “Better Ways to Feed the World” with New Venture Fund – FoodBev

Bramble Partners seeks to invest across the entire spectrum of food production and consumption, including new agriculture and fishing technologies, alternative production systems, and businesses specializing in waste reduction.

7. Israel: Remilk Receives No Objections Letter for Sale of Animal-Free Milk Protein, Heralding “New-Dairy Revolution” in Canada – Vegconomist

Remilk has become the first company to receive the green light in the country for a precision fermentation-derived protein.

8. Checkerspot Unveils “Breakthrough” for Baby Formula: Human Milk Fat Analog Made Using Microalgae Fermentation – Vegconomist

Checkerspot announced the development and large-scale production of fat analog that the company claims mimics the human milk fat known as OPO.