🍫 Rich in (alt) chocolate

Everything starts with soil.

Yet, 50% of soil organic carbon has already been lost, which is essential for soil fertility, water retention, biodiversity and storing carbon.

That’s why startups around the world are working hard to restore this precious resource to reduce emissions, capture carbon and enable farmers to grow more nutritious foods.

Following on from yesterday’s World Soil Day, here’s a thread packed with sustainable soil startups from across the globe.

This week in FoodTech:
🌾 $350 million regen ag fund for LatAm
🇹🇭 2026 plans for cultivated beef steaks
👀 300 HackSummit Attendees revealed

The Digest

📉 What’s down? Cargill is cutting 5% of its global workforce, impacting around 8,000 employees, to streamline operations and adapt to shifting agricultural trends following a rare profit decline earlier this year.

🍭 Researchers at Fraunhofer IME, in collaboration with metaX Institut and candidum GmbH, are developing protein-based sweeteners that are 1,000x sweeter than table sugar.

🏭 The National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre has officially launched at the University of Leeds, following £15 million in government funding earlier this year to drive innovation and sustainability in the alternative protein sector.

👀 Good Read: Supply Change Capital released its report, ‘The Evolution of the Food & Ag Tech Ecosystem in Los Angeles, 2010-2024’. Check it out here.

Fundraises

💸 Toesca Asset Management and Astarte Capital Partners have partnered to launch a $350 million fund to support regenerative agriculture practices across Latin America.

🍫 Munich-based Planet A Foods secured $30 million Series B funding to scale production of its sustainable, cocoa-free chocolate alternative, ChoViva, from 2,000 to over 15,000 tons annually. It will also use the funds to expand internationally and establish its first US production facility. Here’s how the dream began and where they’re going next.

🏭 Celleste Bio, based in Israel, raised $4.5 million in a seed funding round led by Supply Change Capital to pilot and scale its cell-cultured cocoa ingredients. Plus here’s how they’re working with Mondelēz and join them for a fireside chat at the HackSummit next week.

🥗 British API and infrastructure provider Cerve raised €4.2 million seed funding to “digitise the global food supply chain”, enabling over 2,000 businesses to tackle inefficiencies, reduce waste, and improve food security through standardised data exchange.

💨 Netherlands-based Farmless secured a €1 million grant from the European Regional Development Fund to scale its innovative air-based fermentation process, which produces functional proteins for the F&B industry more efficiently than animal farming by utilising CO2, hydrogen, nitrogen, and renewable energy.

🇩🇰 Endless Food Co, a Danish startup, has raised €1M in pre-seed funding led by Nordic Foodtech VC, supported by EIFO and Rockstart. Alongside this funding, the company has announced a groundbreaking partnership with 7-Eleven Denmark to launch products featuring their chocolate alternative, THIC (This Isn’t Chocolate), in all 180 Danish stores by the end of the year.

💰 The US Department of Defense awarded biomanufacturing grants to several precision fermentation startups, including Perfect Day and Checkerspot, under the Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program, designed to bolster national fermentation capacity and advance domestic biotech infrastructure.

Startup Milestones

🍬 Oobli's sweet protein monellin secured GRAS status from the FDA, enabling the company to expand its platform of sugar alternatives for reducing sugar without compromising taste.

🇹🇭 Israeli startup Aleph Farms submitted Thailand's first application for cultivated meat approval, aiming to sell its Aleph Cuts cultivated beef steak there by mid-2026, leveraging what it sees as the country's culinary reputation and strategic position in the Asian market.

⚡️ Swiss startup Voltiris is addressing the energy challenge in greenhouse electrification with spectral filters that separate sunlight for plant growth and solar energy generation, enabling growers to reduce costs, decarbonise, and improve profitability.

Plant Based

🫧 University of Alberta researchers have enhanced pea protein's 3D printability for plant-based food applications using plasma-activated microbubble water, improving structural retention and stability to support customisable, sustainable meat and cheese alternatives.

🥛 The Turkish Food Codex introduced new regulations for vegan and vegetarian products, banning terms like "milk" for plant-based beverages and restricting traditional names tied to animal products to prevent misleading labeling and claims.

❌ A UK appeals court has ruled that Oatly cannot use the term "milk" on its packaging, overturning a previous decision and reinforcing EU regulations that reserve dairy-related terms exclusively for animal-derived products, marking a significant win for the dairy industry.

🇫🇮 The Finnish Food Authority’s updated dietary guidelines, its first since 2014, call for a shift from meat to plant-based proteins, aligning with Nordic efforts to promote public and planetary health by reducing red meat intake and increasing fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

Big Food

🍦 Barry Callebaut introduced upcycled cacao fruit, developed in collaboration with Cabosse Naturals, with which it will create sustainable, value-added ingredients for applications like confectionery, ice cream, drinks, dairy, and snacks.

🥕 Tesco UK reports that vegetable-centric dishes now make up 40% of its plant-based sales, reflecting a growing consumer interest in plant-rich options, and is responding with a festive vegan menu featuring dishes like butternut squash wellington and cranberry stars.

👎 Arla Foods has dismissed online misinformation about the safety of its EFSA-approved methane-reducing feed additive Bovaer, emphasising it is safe for consumers and animals, as it begins trials on 30 farms to cut cow methane emissions by 27%.

From the Community

Find your next role:

• Planetary are looking for an Industrial Plant Manager

• Planet A Foods are hiring a Brand Manager

• ProVeg are hiring a Communications Manager

🔬 What’s the real price tag on an unfocused experiment?

🤍 The purest of product strategy, summed up with… alt milk.

🌾 Meet the Future of Food Competition winner.

📅 Here’s where we’re hosting FoodHack Meetups this month.

🎈Daily life of a startup founder.

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Until next time - Stay Hungry