Marley Spoon Announces IPO, HelloFresh Expands Meal Kits to 600 Stores + More

Image source: Forbes

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.

Meal kit companies continue to compete in the space with news of growth amongst big industry players this week. Meal delivery service Marley Spoon has announced IPO plans to raise $53m on the Australian Securities Exchange, while HelloFresh has expanded into 600 stop & shop stores.

AgriProtein has closed a $105 million funding round to fund the construction of new insect factories. The capital raise represents the largest on record for an insect farming company.

And finally, order-ahead app Ritual has closed a $70 million round to rethink the social office lunch break. A broader look at foodtech themes in the hospitality industry can be seen in The Mixing Bowl and TechTable’s 2018 Restaurant Tech Ecosystem map.

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. Marley Spoon, the Cook-at-Home Meal Kit Service, Announces IPO – TechCrunch

The Berlin-headquartered company is aiming to raise $53m on the Australian Securities Exchange. The IPO will give the company a market capitalization of $152m on listing.

2. AgriProtein Raises $105M for Insect Farms – AgFunder

Funding came from a corporate financial institution that could not be disclosed. It is the largest capital raise on record for an insect farming company. AgriProtein feeds black soldier flies with municipal waste and sells them as feed for the livestock industry.

3. HelloFresh to Sell Meal Kits in Giant Food, Stop & Shop Stores – Wall Street Journal

HelloFresh is putting its meal kits in 600 stores. It’s the widest launch to date of meal kits onto supermarket shelves.

4. Canada: Order-Ahead App Ritual Picks Up $70M to Rethink the Social Office Lunch Break – TechCrunch

The round was led by Georgian Partners, with existing investors Greylock Partners, Insight Ventures and Mistral Venture Partners all participating. It will go towards getting the experience right for a single office building.

5. 2018 Restaurant Tech EcoSystem: Power Shift Underway with Decrease of the Data Gap – Forbes

The Mixing Bowl and TechTable detail the most important foodtech themes impacting the hospitality industry, identifying areas ripe for investment and acquisition, plus opportunities and challenges for investors, operators and entrepreneurs.

6. The Trade War Continues: Mexico Imposes $3B Tariff on US Goods – Modern Farmer

Mexico is the US’s second-largest trading partner. It just announced a targeted tariff on pork, cheese, apples, bourbon and potatoes that will impact the agriculture industry in America.

7. A Working Capital Solution for the Next Generation of Brands – CircleUp

CircleUp has just launched its credit offering for direct-to-consumer, e-commerce and subscription companies.

8. Tyson to Sell Sara Lee, Three Other Non-Protein Brands – Reuters

The company would be selling Sara Lee Frozen Bakery and three other non-protein brands to private equity firm Kohlberg & Co as it sharpens its focus on its core business. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

9. Gates Foundation Invests in Dairy Tech Stellapps $14M Series B, First in India – AgFunder

The round was led by IndusAge Partners alongside the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Qualcomm Ventures and ABB Technology Ventures. Funding will go towards expanding Stellapps globally.

10. Self-Heating Can Company, HeatGenie Raises $6M – The Spoon

Financing was led by ARTIS Labs with Almanac Investments participating, and brings the total amount raised to $9.6m. HeatGenie will use funding to complete product development and bring it to market.

11. This $50K Prize for Immigrants in the Culinary Arts is Now Accepting Applications – Edible Manhattan

The Vilcek Foundation will award three prizes to immigrants born in 1980 or later, working as chefs and food preparers, beverage professionals and/or food writers. The application deadline is June 11, 2018.

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