Source: Agriland

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.

There were a number of interesting reports released this week. Soil Wealth, a report published by Croatan Institute, finds that 70 investments in U.S.-based regenerative agriculture-related projects have been made worth $47.5 billion. The Good Food Institute and Plant Based Foods Association’s most recent figures found plant-based food market value to hit $4.5 billion, with sales growing 11% in the past year. The World Resources Institute released Creating A Sustainable Food Future, which proposes a 22-part plan on how we can feed the world by 2050.

MIT Solve has launched an investment fund to back small, for profit ventures taking on global issues. Perfect Day’s $20 cultured ice cream sold all 3,000 units in a matter of hours. Beyond Meat has partnered with Blue Apron, causing its shares to surge as much as 78%. The world’s first underground micro-fulfillment center has been built in Tel Aviv by CommonSense Robotics.

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. Regenerative Agriculture Is Having a Moment and 70 Investments Worth $47.5B Are in It – AgFunder

A new report called Soil Wealth details the level of investment in regenerative agriculture-related projects.

2. Plant-Based Food Market Value Hits $4.5B, with Sales Growing 11% in the Past Year – Food Dive

Sales of plant-based yogurt saw the highest growth at 39%, while conventional yogurt sales fell 3%. Refrigerated plant-based meat increased 37%, while sales in the conventional meat category grew by 2%.

3. This 22-Part Plan Is How We Can Feed the World by 2050 – Fast Company

We need to slash emissions from agriculture while at the same time feeding billions more people. It’s a difficult task, but there’s a path forward to make it work.

4. Why MIT’s Social Tech Incubator Is Launching an Investment Fund – Fast Company

MIT Solve is now going to start backing small, for-profit ventures taking on global issues, from access to clean water to the need for a circular economy.

5. This $20 Ice Cream Is Made with Dairy Grown in Lab – and It Sold Out Immediately – CNBC

Perfect Day Foods debuted its cow-free real dairy ice cream online and 3k pints sold out within hours.

6. Blue Apron Surges Most Since IPO on Beyond Meat Partnership – Bloomberg

Blue Apron will begin introducing products from Beyond Meat on its menus in August. Shares rose as much as 78% on Tuesday.

7. Sweetgreen, Pointing to Its Own Past, Hatches New Model – Wall Street Journal

The company says it’s so much more than salad—and wants to change the way it serves up both food and new ideas, its three founders say. Inside their “Sweetgreen 3.0” project.

8. Israel: AquaMaof Fishes New Markets After $230M Investment – Food Navigator

The company is currently constructing the world’s largest indoor salmon farm in Canada. It plans to build more than a dozen aquaculture facilities in locations including Japan, Russia, Norway, Germany and Poland.

9. Months After Significant Layoffs, Joule Cooking Device Maker ChefSteps Acquired by Breville – GeekWire

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

10. Health-Ade Lands $20M Coke Equity Investment – BevNet

Along with Coke, Health-Ade investors included CAVU Venture Partners.

11. Everytable Raises Fresh Funds to Make Healthy Fast Food Affordable – Bloomberg

The restaurant chain bringing healthy meals to underserved communities has closed a $7m round to expand its subscription service and SmartFridge business and open 13 new stores by the end of the year.

12. 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.

13. China Produces Loads of “Black Gold,” But Will Caviar Lovers Bite? – Quartz

By 2020, China is projected to consume 100 tons of caviar every year. The global caviar market will be worth $1.55b by 2021, up almost 75% from 2016.

14. Israel: CommonSense Robotics Announces ‘World’s First’ Underground Micro-Fulfillment Center – VentureBeat

The center will be a full-service grocery site with three temperature zones, supporting on-demand fulfillment that will allow CommonSense’s grocery partner to fulfill delivery orders in less than an hour.

15. City Pantry, the UK Corporate Catering Marketplace, Has Been Acquired by Just Eat for £16M – TechCrunch

The premise of the acquisition is to enable Just Eat to further expand into the UK corporate catering market by leveraging City Pantry’s brand, technology and sector knowledge.

16. 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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