Weekly Roundup: Mondelez invests €12M in German production site, UK ramps up animal welfare

20 Aug 2021 --- This week in industry news, Mondelēz International invested around €12 million (US$14 million) in its largest food factory for dairy products and delicatessen in Europe. Apeel, a food system innovation company, raised US$250 million in series E funding to tackle food waste in the US and Europe, while Starbucks Coffee opened its first Farmer Support Center in Brazil. Meanwhile, new animal welfare measures are being brought to the UK as Tesco and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) join forces to feed livestock sustainably.

In brief: Business moves
Mondelēz’s latest investment of €12 million (US$14 million) will be used to expand production capacities and optimize the energy supply to achieve the sustainability goals at its German site. Since 1957, the Bad Fallingbostel location in Lower Saxony has housed the production of brands like Philadelphia and Miracel Whip. The plant produces more than 250 items for the entire European market, Middle East and Africa. Around 40 percent of production is intended for the German market.

Apeel will use its funding to co-create supply networks with produce suppliers to increase the availability of longer-lasting produce.Apeel, a food system innovation company, has raised US$250 million in series E funding led by returning investor Temasek. The company’s total funding now exceeds US$635 million, with a valuation of over US$2 billion. This latest investment will be used in part to accelerate Apeel’s partnerships and plant-based products that aim to prevent food waste at every step of the fresh food supply chain, including for in-house consumption in the US where approximately 25 percent of produce purchased goes to waste. Apeel will also use its new funding to co-create new supply networks with produce suppliers and retailers to increase the availability of longer-lasting produce, including avocados, limes, mangoes, cucumbers and apples, for consumers across the US, the UK and Europe. 

Nespresso has begun a collaboration with the Swedish company Bower, allowing customers to collect points when they recycle their used coffee capsules. By scanning Nespresso’s recycling bags in the Bower app, coffee drinkers can use their earned points for various offers or donate them to the Nespresso Farmer Future Program. Recyclers can also donate to Nespresso’s Future Farmer Program.

Starbucks Coffee has opened its first Farmer Support Center in Brazil, its tenth globally. Located in Varginha, Minas Gerais state, the center extends Starbucks’ presence in the key coffee-producing region. It aims to provide resources to local coffee communities as part of its commitment to source coffee responsibly. The Farmer Support Center will enable the coffee giant to work alongside local producers, suppliers and agencies to learn more about the unique environmental and social challenges facing the region, while learning about growing techniques and collaborating on solutions to best support its farmers.

Cox Enterprises has acquired BrightFarms, an indoor farming company and provider of locally grown packaged salads. The move solidifies BrightFarms’ leadership in the indoor agriculture space and provides a strong, stable foundation committed to accelerating growth with partner retailers. The relationship between BrightFarms and Cox dates back to 2018, and Cox has held a majority stake in the company since 2020. 

In brief: Certifications 
Nature’s Path – a North American certified organic breakfast and snack food company – has released its limited-edition Regenerative Organic Certified (ROC) Oatmeal. All the ROC oats are grown using certified ROC farming practices on a farm owned by the company’s founders in Saskatchewan, Canada. Regenerative Organic Agricultures is deeply rooted in organic farming practices, including eliminating fossil-fuel-based fertilizers and chemical pesticides, both of which, on their own, are critical solutions to addressing climate impacts in the agricultural sector. 

In brief: Other highlights A trial to offer UK dairy farmers attractive subsidies that support growing feed more sustainably for their livestock has been launched by Tesco and WWF.
Higher welfare standards for farm animals being transported – including shorter journey times, more headroom, and stricter rules on being moved in extreme temperatures – will be brought in by the UK Government under new animal welfare measures. These new rules are being developed in partnership with the farming industry, and will apply to animals being transported within England and Wales. They come alongside the introduction of a ban on live animal exports for slaughter and fattening, which is currently going through Parliament as part of the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill. EU rules had previously prevented any changes to animal welfare rules. However, the UK is building upon a  series of reforms to improve standards, as set out in the Action Plan for Animal Welfare.

A trial to offer UK dairy farmers attractive subsidies that support growing feed more sustainably for their livestock has been launched by Tesco and WWF. The scheme was created to help reduce the environmental impact of the average shopping basket. Fifteen farmers in Tesco’s Sustainable Dairy Group (TSDG) have been given an 80 percent seed subsidy to plant herbal leys – a soil-enriching grass mix of plants, legumes and herbs that is used as feed for dairy cows. The seed mix has several benefits over conventional grass fields, including increased on-farm biodiversity, a reduced carbon footprint, improved soil health, water quality and animal health. 

AHDB has launched a Farm Business Review service to help 4,000 farmers and growers in England. The free, independent service offers an online self-assessment tool while sharing expert advice and peer support to help businesses prepare for what is dubbed as “the biggest agricultural policy shift in a generation.” The easy-to-use tool illustrates how the loss of direct payments will impact on individual farms, while allowing users to evaluate both their business resilience and performance.

By Elizabeth Green