Plant-Based

This past week Alphabet, the parent company of Google, announced that its DeepMind group has solved a long-standing grand challenge in the scientific community around protein structure prediction. To get a feel for what the impact of this milestone might be, The Spoon asked Sudeep Agarwala, a synthetic microbiologist for Gingko Bioworks, what he thought DeepMind’s work could possibly mean for food.

Plant-based food company Upton’s Naturals and the Plant Based Foods Association took their case to the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals after an Oklahoma judge declined to put a hold on a state law requiring plant-based meat products to have a plant-based claim on their products that is the same size as the brand name.

Gathered Foods, makers of Good Catch Plant-Based Seafood, today announced international retail distribution across multiple European markets, including the Netherlands and Spain. This is Gathered Foods’ largest retail expansion since the brand’s inception, a major milestone for the innovative food company. As the European and UK markets continue to be advantageous for plant-based products, with plant-based alternatives expected to be worth €7.5 billion by 2025, the timing is ideal for Gathered Foods to grow their international footprint.

France aims to raise the area sown with protein-rich crops by 40% from 2022 as it seeks to cut the country’s heavy reliance on soybean imports from South America, Agriculture Minister Julien Denormandie said on Tuesday. France and other European Union countries import millions of tonnes of soybean and soymeal each year, mainly from Brazil and Argentina, to feed livestock, making them dependent on world prices, trade relations and environmental practices overseas.

Modern Meat, a manufacturer of plant-based products and sauces in Canada, has marked its entry to Australia with a co-packing and distribution agreement in the country.