Weekly Roundup: Azelis expands presence in South Korea, Alternative egg product debuts in Japan

02 Jul 2021 --- This week in industry news, Azelis diversified its presence in South Korea through the acquisition of food distributor MH. AAK entered a formal consultation process regarding production consolidation to optimize its European bakery business further, and Unibio completed a US$15 million bridge round financing. The Hershey Company completed its acquisition of Lily’s, and Conagra Brands accelerated its transition to 100 percent cage-free eggs.

In brief: Business news
Azelis has acquired MH in South Korea, a local distributor in the food ingredients market. As a result, Azelis’ already strong presence in the personal care market will complement MH’s foothold in these new market segments. With this acquisition, Azelis is broadening its offering in the highly attractive and expanding innovative food market of South Korea.

AAK has entered a formal consultation process with union delegates to carry out a production consolidation and subsequent closure of its site in Merksem, Belgium. The suggested initiative aligns with the company’s strategy to optimize performance within the Bakery segment to improve cost efficiency and increase competitiveness. The production site in Merksem, Belgium, which employs approximately 100 people, is predominantly a bakery fats plant, mainly producing margarine and shortenings for the industrial market in continental Europe. 

Left: The new Next Egg 1.0 Right: A Japanese dish “Oyako don” usually topped with chicken and egg, made with Next Meat’s plant-based Next Chicken and Next Egg.Unibio, a sustainable protein company, has completed a US$15 million bridge round financing, predominantly from existing shareholders. The bridge round, arranged by West Hill Capital, was increased due to significant investor demand. As a result, the valuation of Unibio is now above US$300 million. The capital raised will be used for general corporate purposes and to support the company’s future development plans.

The Hershey Company, Land O’Lakes and the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay have partnered to implement on-farm best management practices to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Initial funding for Sustainable Dairy PA comes from The Hershey Company’s US$300,000 commitment to support the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay and Land O’Lakes in helping install agricultural conservation practices on Land O’Lakes member dairy farms. The partnership includes 119 Land O’Lakes member-owners in Central Pennsylvania that ship 50 percent or more of their milk supply to Hershey. 

In brief: Acquisitions
The Hershey Company completed its acquisition of Lily’s, the maker of low-sugar, better-for-you confectionery products, for a purchase price of US$425 million. Launched last week with four chocolate-style bars in Whole Foods Market, the expanded line of bars, baking chips, and other confections can be found across key US retailers. 

In brief: Sustainability
RSPO Latin America has signed two key Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with the palm oil federations of Mexico and Guatemala, the Mexican Federation of Oil Palm Producers and the Guild of Palm Growers of Guatemala, are aiming to jointly align strategic efforts by defining common objectives, identifying high impact projects, and effectively fulfilling commitments. The two agreements will be effective until 2025. With these newly inked agreements, RSPO hopes to achieve specific objectives – certifying 40 percent of palm oil production in Mexico; and certifying 75 percent of palm oil production in Guatemala.

In brief: Plant-based highlights
Next Meats, the Japanese alternative meat venture, has developed a new alternative egg product, the Next Egg 1.0. The Next Egg is 100 percent plant-based and is expected to procure the needs of the vegan population and people with egg allergies in Japan, who have almost no commercial vegan egg options to choose from currently. The Next Egg is scheduled to be released in Japan first on a BtoB basis, followed by BtoC soon after, and then offered in other countries.

Smaller brands and independent businesses with food and drink products registered with The Vegan Society’s Vegan Trademark will benefit from a new collaboration with Artos. Described as a dating app for brands, Artos is a marketplace that works to match ethical brands, from organic vegan burgers to sustainable gin, with premium buyers. From this week, trademark holders within the food and drink sector can use Artos to reduce the cost and complexity of B2B trade deals. A collaboration between the John Innes Centre and the University of Hertfordshire will fast-track urgently needed solutions to the growing problem of crop diseases.

Ulrick & Short has launched a functional flour to improve viscosity, texture, and  structure in gluten-free bakery applications. Fazenda Nutrigel, is the latest addition to Ulrick & Short’s functional flour range launched last year. The ingredient acts as a viscosity regulator in bakery applications and is designed to improve the moisture, softness and structure in a range of products. Nutrigel provides functionality in sweet and savory bakery applications – from bread and bread products to cakes and muffins to gluten-free batters and coatings.

In brief: Other highlights
A collaboration between the John Innes Centre (JIC) and the University of Hertfordshire, UK, will fast-track urgently needed solutions to the growing problem of crop diseases. The project combines the expertise in Light Leaf Spot pathology at the University of Hertfordshire with oilseed rape genomic technology at JIC. Diseases are a significant limitation for the production of OSR, a problem exacerbated by climate change and restrictions on the use of agrochemicals for environmental reasons. Light leaf spot (LLS), caused by Pyrenopeziza brassicae, has become the most dangerous disease in the UK since 2012.

Conagra Brands plans to accelerate its transition to 100 percent cage-free eggs, converting 100 percent of its egg usage to cage-free by the end of fiscal year 2024, one year earlier than its original commitment to directly source 100 percent cage-free eggs by 2025. 

By Elizabeth Green