Beyond The Headlines: Climate-smart agriculture progress at COP29, Cultivated meat investments

This week in industry news, the USDA and FAO highlighted their climate-smart agriculture initiatives at the ongoing COP29 conference in Baku, Azerbaijan. Meatable propelled its Asian market entry with an investment from Betagro Ventures. Beverage company Refresco acquired Frías Nutrición, which formulates plant-based drinks in Spain. 

Business highlights

DSM-Firmenich AG sold all of its stake in Robertet S.A, a French flavor formulator, through its affiliate Firmenich International S.A. (“dsm-firmenich”). This includes 24,408 Robertet ordinary shares, representing c. 1% of Robertet share capital, through a bilateral sale to a long-term, non-institutional investor that will be subject to a 60-day lockup undertaking. Following the transaction, dsm-firmenich will no longer retain any ordinary shares in Robertet.

Thailand-based Betagro Ventures funded Dutch cultivated meat company Meatable with an undisclosed amount. The move makes it the first meat company in Asia to invest in Meatable, which leverages opti-ox, a proprietary stem cell technology to formulate real meat without harvesting animals, reducing environmental impact substantially.

Beverage company Refresco acquired Frías Nutrición, which formulates plant-based drinks in Spain, to strengthen its position in the rapidly growing plant-based beverage category. Frías is located in Burgos, Spain and specializes in producing private-label plant-based drinks, including almond, rice, hazelnut and soy options, for key retailers in the country and beyond.

The Wild Tide Seafoods-Foraged collaboration aims to facilitate easy sustainable seafood access for consumers (Image credit: Wild Tide Seafoods).US-based Wild Tide Seafoods partnered with Foraged.com, a marketplace platform connecting consumers with artisanal food producers. The collaboration aims to bring Wild Tide Seafoods’ wild-caught fish and shellfish offerings to a wider audience amid the holiday season.

DSM-Firmenich AG sold all of its stake in Robertet S.A, a French flavor formulator, through its affiliate Firmenich International S.A. (“dsm-firmenich”). This includes 24,408 Robertet ordinary shares, representing c. 1% of Robertet share capital, through a bilateral sale to a long-term, non-institutional investor that will be subject to a 60-day lockup undertaking. Following the transaction, dsm-firmenich will no longer retain any ordinary shares in Robertet.

Beyond Oil received C$1.77 million (US$1.27 million) in funding through warrant exercises, led by its strategic partner West Coast Reduction. The food tech company plans to use the amount toward global expansion. It focuses on reducing health risks associated with fried food while lowering operational costs, minimizing waste and enhancing sustainability.

Cereal Docks SPA, an Italian group producing ingredients from oilseeds and grains, collaborated with plant-based ingredients distributor Ceresal for distributing its products in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The company’s Heliapro sunflower protein contains approximately 50% protein and is claimed to be of EU origin. It is available in the native and pasta-grade sunflower protein variants.

Sustainability highlights

US agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack highlighted four years of progress and investments made by the USDA at the ongoing COP29 conference in Baku, Azerbaijan. He showcased the Biden-Harris Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, which nearly doubles support for voluntary conservation and climate-smart practices, forestlands and the USDA’s Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities initiative.

At the same event, the FAO launched the Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers, which aims to help farmers navigate the current network of agriculture-focused initiatives and programs in partnership with the Azerbaijan COP29 Presidency. The initiative is expected to bring together disparate initiatives, coalitions, networks and partnerships to empower farmers, villages and rural communities.

Rice miller and marketer Riceland Foods joined forces with Hill’s Pet Nutrition to incentivize Riceland farmer members to grow rice using climate-smart practices as part of the 2024 Riceland Carbon Ready program. The sustainable rice program supports Riceland farmer members in overcoming barriers to adopting environmentally-friendly practices. Meanwhile, Hill’s Pet Nutrition will receive Scope 3 greenhouse gas emission reductions that result from the updated farming practices by participating Riceland farmer-members.