Source: The Verge

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.

Big ag giants and startups are setting up carbon credits as Biden’s Green plan gains momentum. Environmental groups are calling it a scam. The agrifood tech sector as a whole raised a whopping $22.3 billion in funding in 2020.

Meanwhile, Beyond Meat has announced plans to launch its faux chicken this summer. Ezra Klein wrote an opinion piece calling for a moonshot for meatless meat – one that would put government money behind replacing animals for the betterment of our health and environment.

Last but not least, Epicurious is ditching beef recipes over concerns about climate change.

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

1. Beyond Meat Telling Customers Faux Chicken Is Coming This Summer – Bloomberg

After experimenting with faux chicken through trial runs with KFC, the company is ready to launch a chicken alternative this summer. The new and improved Beyond Burger will also hit supermarket shelves next week.

2. Agrifood Tech Companies Raised $22.3B in Funding in 2020 – Food Dive

From e-commerce and biotech crops to meal kits and the supply chain, this space has experienced a CAGR of 50% in investments during the last decade, and more are likely to come.

3. The Carbon Market Gold Rush in American Agriculture – Bloomberg

Agriculture accounts for 10% of US greenhouse gas emissions. Industry giants and startups are setting up carbon credits as Biden’s Green plan gains momentum.

4. Let’s Launch a Moonshot for Meatless Meat – New York Times

What we need is for government to put money and muscle behind the project — just as it’s doing for electric cars and weatherized homes and renewable energy — so that the future happens fast enough to save the present.

5. Israeli Startup BioMilk Becomes First Cell-Based Milk Maker to Go Public – Green Queen

The startup produces cow and breast milk from cells and plans to release its first samples over the next two years. It could be eyeing a US IPO on Nasdaq next.

11. Epicurious Has a Beef With Beef – New York Times

The popular cooking website will not publish new beef recipes over concerns about climate change.

11. Cava Restaurant Chain Nears $1.3B Value With New Funding – Bloomberg

The chain completed a $190m financing round that will hasten the company’s expansion. It plans to have 500+ outlets operating by 2025.

6. Indian Food Delivery Startup Zomato Files for $1.1B IPO – TechCrunch

A successful listing is poised to encourage nearly a dozen other unicorn Indian startups to accelerate their efforts to tap the public markets. Zomato has claimed a market-leading position in the Indian food delivery market.

8. Eat Just Debuts Plant-Based Egg Jianbing with Street Vendors Across Shanghai – Green Queen

The company is rolling out a guide showcasing street vendors who serve vegan versions of the popular breakfast food made with Just Egg.

10. Environmental Groups Call Biden’s Carbon Bank Plan a ‘Scam’ – Modern Farmer

The plan has major support from gigantic farmers who stand to profit from implementing carbon storage practices. Smaller organic farmers already doing it don’t have enough land to make much money in the credit market anyway.

7. Biden’s Climate Change Plan May Not Nix Cheeseburgers, but Science Says Beef Should Be on the Chopping Block – Washington Post

A GOP social media frenzy about Biden banning beef has no meat to it, but beef plays significant role in greenhouse gas emissions.

9. Cargill Enters JV with Vegan Fat and Blood Innovator Bflike for ‘Virtually Indistinguishable’ Plant-Based Meat and Fish Alternatives – Food Navigator

Financial terms were undisclosed. Bflike noted its formulations are able to produce finished products with similar cooked and raw visual appearance, texture, mouthfeel, melting behavior and cooking performance.

11. What 100 Days Means for Ag – Politico

The first 100 days of the Biden presidency clocks in this week, and Biden is expected to discuss climate initiatives, money for nutritional assistance, tax incentives to Black farmers and more.

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