Good Morning,
and good to have you on board for the Weekly Debrief for week 15 of 2021. Here’s the latest from the world of plant-based business, food, fashion, travel, and lifestyle, curated and contextualized for you.
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Today we cover lab-grown tuna, all the surprising things we can make out of mushrooms, the new Nike Refurbished initiative, 3-D printed salmon and the funniest company in the world, NUGGS, launching with US retailers.
Beyond Meat Expansion planned for Europe
Last June, the plant-based uber company announced the official opening of a co-manufacturing site in the Netherlands. Thanks to this European presence, Beyond now plans a massive retail expansion throughout the UK and Europe.
Lab-Grown Tuna Takeover
Bluefin tunas are pricy, up to a mesmerizing $3 million (!) for a single fish, a price tag in part caused by their status as endangered species. This Forbes article covers California-based biotech company Finless Foods, working on growing sought-after bluefin tuna in a lab.
Meanwhile, Gathered Foods, the parent company of plant-based tuna brand Good Catch Foods, has reeled in over $26m in a bridge financing round and is planning to spend the fresh capital on expanding the brand’s international retail footprint.
€1.5m raised for 3D-printed Salmon
And it doesn’t stop there: Austria-based Revo Foods announced their successful first funding round, enabling them to accelerate their 3D food printing process and launch several plant-based salmon products in Europe later this year.
Fossil and Lagerfeld with new Cactus Leather Items
Fossil, the watch & handbag brand founded in 1984, has seen the light and releases a ‘pro planet tote bag collection’ just in time for Earth Day next week.
Made in collaboration with Mexican company Desserto, the bags are crafted from organically grown cactus leaves. Seems like Fossil doesn’t want to live up to their name too much then, huh? (Can’t let an obvious pun like that get away, sorry.)
The Karl Lagerfeld team, in collaboration with Lagerfeld muse Amber Valetta, revisited a ‘consciously-made collaborative capsule’ the model had discussed with the designer before his death.
A house signature, the K/Kushion bag, has been remodeled in the very vegan cactus leather by Desserto mentioned above. The bag will also be available in a 90% recycled cotton version. Find out more on Vogue.com.
Nike launches Refurbished Program
A new program by sneaker giant Nike is the brand’s latest circular initiative in extending the effort made to eliminate waste. “This integrated offering of second-life products gives customers a chance to potentially pick up previous drops,” says ethical hype hub Futurevvorld. “But more importantly, it inspires a collective action to prolong the life and wear of our shoes.”
Nuggs to Launch in two Major US Retailers
The self-proclaimed ‘Tesla of Chicken’ — vegan chicken brand Nuggs — not only has the funniest social media presence known to man, but will now launch in nearly 400 Target locations across the US, following their debut in 800 Walmart stores all over the country.
All Things made from Mushroom
Bio-Tech company Evocative Design uses mycelium, the root structure of mushrooms, as building blocks for vegan bacon, leather and a Styrofoam-like packaging material — all made out of lab-grown mushrooms. See a mesmerizing and weirdly soothing video here.
Vegan Butcher Startups are inspiring meat-free Supermarket Counters
An interesting read in the Guardian about UK’s new vegan butcher shop craze and how it has inspired supermarkets to trial vegan butcher counters selling ‘facon’, jackfruit wings and bean burgers.
Last but not Least
If you haven’t yet, do check out this stop-motion animation short film featuring an all-star cast including Taika Waititi, Ricky Gervais and Zac Efron.
“Save Ralph” is part of a global campaign to ban animal testing for cosmetics and an absolute must-see.
As always, thanks for reading and have a great weekend. Read you next week!
Yours truly,
Eric Mirbach
(Editor in Chief)
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