Weekly Roundup: Bunge achieves 80% traceability for Brazilian soybeans, Danone accelerates nutrition focus

10 Feb 2023 --- This week in industry news, Bunge ramped up its monitoring of soybeans sourced from its indirect supply chain in Brazil. Danone unveiled its international Daniel Carasso Research & Innovation Center to accelerate research on the future of nutrition. Meanwhile, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is scaling work to limit the spread of antimicrobial resistance in agri-food systems.

In brief: Business moves
Bunge achieved 80% traceability and monitoring of soybeans from its indirect supply chain in the Brazilian Cerrado. The pioneering, large-scale initiative to track indirect purchases in the biome is part of Bunge’s Sustainable Partnership Program and underscores the company’s performance in developing sustainable and responsible supply chains, particularly in areas at higher risk of deforestation. 

Danone unveiled its international Daniel Carasso Research & Innovation Center to accelerate research on the future of nutrition. Antoine de Saint-Affrique, CEO, inaugurated Danone’s new Research & Danone’s research center will develop and innovate Danone’s dairy and plant-based products and natural mineral water categories.Innovation Center on the Paris-Saclay campus. At the inauguration, Danone unveiled a new product, which is an exclusive development for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games: HiPRO Expert yogurt, a new product developed by on-site researchers in collaboration with athletes. This research center will be dedicated to the development and innovation of Danone’s fresh dairy and plant-based products and natural mineral water categories.

Aquaporin signed a deal with wine and beverage distributor E. & J. Gallo Winery in the US, which is poised to pave the way for innovations and more sustainable industry with Aquaporin Inside. Natural concentration is one of Aquaporin’s cornerstone technologies, with its ability to retain natural flavors, aromas and nutrients in the concentrate. The agreement works toward the commercialization of products that will positively impact the wine industry, making it more sustainable by utilizing innovative concentration methods.

Kenco Group, a third-party logistics (3PL) provider, unveiled the North Georgia Distribution Center for Kerry, in Calhoun, Georgia, US. The new distribution center is a 468,000-square-foot facility that provides Southeast US distribution for products developed in Kerry’s Calhoun and Rome, Georgia facilities. Together, Kerry and Kenco will deliver value to Kerry customers with efficient and timely product distribution across the Southeast. To celebrate the new site, Kenco and Kerry executives and Gordon County Chamber of Commerce representatives recently came together for a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Bluegrass Ingredients, an R&D-based specialty food ingredients manufacturer and supplier, opened The Agile Kitchen at Bluegrass, a product development center and resource hub for acting on consumer food trends in close collaboration with food manufacturers. 

Eurogerm completed the construction of its 100% French sourdough bio-fermentation plant. The 3,650 m² building will be built in the Dijon-Bourgogne eco-park, not far from its Saint-Apollinaire site. While the plant will be designed to produce an industrial quantity of 1,000 metric tons per year in the long term, it will be linked up with a pilot workshop, operational in March 2023, whose objective will be to test the sourdough on a pre-industrial scale.

In brief: Financing news
The Ugly Company, a farmer-led producer of upcycled dried fruit snacks, completed a US$9 million series A round of funding to expand its processing capacity. The funding round was led by Sun Valley Packing, a Reedley-based fruit grower and distributor, and Texas-based venture capital firm Value Creation Strategies. Musician Justin Timberlake and Valley Ag Capital Holdings also participated in the round. The Ugly Company completed a US$9 million series A round of funding.

In brief: Sustainability efforts
SuperIndo, the largest supermarket chain in Indonesia, set a timeline for switching all of its own-brand eggs to cage-free. The chain, a joint venture between Indonesian conglomerate Salim Group and Dutch retail giant Ahold Delhaize, operates over 200 supermarkets across the country. The new policy will see its own-brand eggs, which are marketed under the “365” brand and represent a significant portion of all eggs sold in-store, fully transitioned to cage-free within twelve years.

ÄIO, a biotechnology start-up, raised €1 million (US$1.07 million) from investors, including Nordic Foodtech, EAS and other partners, to replace the environmentally depleting oils currently used in the food industry with sustainable full-value alternatives. The company produces edible fats and oils from agricultural and wood industry side streams using results from years of biotech research.

In brief: Agri-food highlights
Agri-food systems play a crucial role in limiting the spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and the FAO is tackling what the UN lists as one of the top ten threats to global health. A recent meeting in Bridgetown, Barbados, was the first time that leaders and experts were able to gather in person due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Hosted by the Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Amor Mottley, the meeting covered critical AMR topics such as financing, research and development, integrated surveillance, the role of the private sector, and the environment and galvanizing political action to address AMR.

By Elizabeth Green