Author

Anay Mridul 3144 posts 0 comments

Anay is Green Queen's resident news reporter. Originally from India, he worked as a vegan food writer and editor in London, and is now travelling and reporting from across Asia. He's passionate about coffee, plant-based milk, cooking, eating, veganism, food tech, writing about all that, profiling people, and the Oxford comma.

Alt Protein

Prolific Machines Nabs $55M to Create Cultivated Meat & Novel Proteins by Harnessing Light

Anay Mridul Jun 6, 2024

Californian biotech startup Prolific Machines has closed a $55M Series B1 round for its photomolecular platform, which leverages light to create novel proteins at significantly lower costs. The $55M investment represents the first close…
Read More...

Food & Nutrition

Sprout Organic Outlines UK Launch Plans & Why There’s A Lack of Vegan Infant Formula

Anay Mridul Jun 6, 2024

Nadia Schilling, director and chief marketing officer of Australian infant nutrition brand Sprout Organic, talks the lack of vegan formula, seed oils, policy barriers, carbon neutrality, and its UK launch. As plant-based infant formula…
Read More...

Cell-Based News

Cultivated Meat Startup Aleph Farms Lays Off 30% of Staff As Part of ‘Asset-Light’ Growth Strategy

Anay Mridul Jun 6, 2024

Israeli cultivated meat producer Aleph Farms has let go of 30% of its domestic workforce, reportedly due to difficulties in securing capital amid its scale-up process. Aleph Farms, one of only four companies cleared to sell cultivated…
Read More...

Cell-Based News

Myocopia: Can Cell Metabolism Be the Catalyst for Cost-Effective Cultivated Meat?

Anay Mridul Jun 6, 2024

Finnish researchers have come up with a way to make cultivated meat without expensive growth factors, relying on stem cell metabolism instead. As the race to produce cost-effective cuts of cultivated meat continues, researchers at the…
Read More...

Green Business

Wicked Kitchen Acquired by Ahimsa Companies in Latest Plant-Based Consolidation Move

Anay Mridul Jun 5, 2024

Global plant-based food leader Wicked Kitchen has been acquired by the newly formed Ahimsa Companies, which seeks to lead an "industry-wide consolidation effort". Ahimsa Companies, a newly formed holding company by the Ahimsa…
Read More...

Future Foods

Future Food Quick Bites: Non-Dairy Starbucks, Vegan Flights & A Bezos Protein Centre

Anay Mridul Jun 5, 2024

In our weekly column, we round up the latest news and developments in the alternative protein and sustainable food industry. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers Starbucks' upcoming Oatly collaboration, a vegan certification for…
Read More...

Alt Protein

Forsea Foods Hosts Cultivated Eel Tasting in Israel, Aims for 2026 Rollout

Anay Mridul Jun 5, 2024

Israeli alternative protein startup Forsea Foods held an intimate tasting event for its cultivated unagi in Tel Aviv, with plans to launch the eel meat in Japan by 2026. Investors, journalists, food manufacturers, opinion leaders and…
Read More...

Climate Change

UK University to Create Climate-Resilient Crops in £3M AI-Powered Plant Lab

Anay Mridul Jun 5, 2024

The University of Essex has built a new facility to develop crops that can adapt to a hotter and drier planet, which features a vertical farm and is backed by AI-assisted research. Researchers at the University of Essex will leverage…
Read More...

Chocolate

With $750,000 in Funding, Kokomodo Emerges as Latest Cell-Based Chocolate Player

Anay Mridul Jun 4, 2024

Israeli startup Kokomodo has emerged from stealth with a $750,000 investment to produce cocoa and chocolate products via cellular agriculture. As the future of chocolate becomes increasingly uncertain, Kokomodo is the latest startup…
Read More...

Alt Protein

Eat Just Reformulates Vegan Just Egg with ‘Biggest’ Improvement in Taste & Texture Since Launch

Anay Mridul Jun 4, 2024

Californian alternative protein leader Eat Just has debuted the fifth iteration of its vegan Just Egg, made from mung beans, which further closes the gap in taste and functionality with conventional eggs. It's five years, five versions…
Read More...

Alt Dairy

Brevel Opens Microalgae Protein Factory to Create Superior Plant-Based Dairy Analogues

Anay Mridul Jun 4, 2024

Israeli startup Brevel's first commercial-scale facility will churn out hundreds of tons of microalgae protein powder to supply the plant-based dairy industry. Biomass fermentation player Brevel has opened a 27,000 sq ft commercial…
Read More...

Policy & Regulation

Meat & Dairy Industry Have Weakened & Stalled Key EU Climate Policies: Report

Anay Mridul Jun 4, 2024

Lobbying from the meat and dairy sector has helped weaken and delay crucial climate policies in the EU, a new report shows. Six key climate policies in the EU have been the target of intense lobbying by the meat and dairy industry,…
Read More...

Climate Change

Climate Finance Programme for Developing Nations is Funnelling Billions Back to Rich Countries

Anay Mridul Jun 3, 2024

Rich countries have been sending climate funds to developing nations via programmes that financially benefit themselves, a new investigation shows. In 2009, at COP15 in Copenhagen, developed nations pledged to send $100B a year to help…
Read More...

Consumer Trends & Insights

Is Hellmann’s Plant-Based Mayo Rebrand Proof That ‘Vegan’ Labels Hamper Sustainable Sales?

Anay Mridul Jun 3, 2024

Hellmann's has made a big splash by rebranding its vegan mayo to appeal to flexitarians, in a sign of the influence of labels on sustainable food purchases. In the UK, Hellmann's egg-free mayonnaise is no longer labelled 'vegan', with…
Read More...

Alt Protein

The Three Main Barriers Stopping Americans from Buying Plant-Based Food – and How to Fix Them

Anay Mridul Jun 3, 2024

A new consumer survey highlights the three key barriers to plant-based food purchases in the US, and the opportunities for brands to overcome them. Alternative protein finds itself at a bit of a crossroads in the US, where sales and…
Read More...

Climate Change

What Do You Eat at Europe’s Top Climate Tech Conference?

Anay Mridul Jun 3, 2024

The annual HackSummit is fast approaching. As one of Europe's best climate events, it must deliver a sustainable catering menu – and it has. We speak to the team who designed it. Later this month, food tech community FoodHack will…
Read More...

Climate Change

UEFA Champions League to Roll Out Carbon Labelling at Wembley & Other Sites for 2024 Final

Anay Mridul May 31, 2024

As part of its Champions Innovate initiative, UEFA has introduced a slew of sustainability measures for the 2024 Champions League final, which includes carbon labelling and plastic-free packaging. Fans watching Real Madrid and Borussia…
Read More...

Alt Protein

Switching to Meat Analogues Could Cut Emissions by 71%, Shows Analysis of 7,000 Households

Anay Mridul May 31, 2024

Making modest ingredient swaps could help cut food emissions by 26%, but larger switches – like replacing meat with plant-based analogues – can bring about a 71% reduction. The food system only trails behind the energy sector in terms…
Read More...

Cell-Based News

Pulmuone Signs R&D Deal with Robotics Company ABB to Advance Cultivated Seafood Plans

Anay Mridul May 31, 2024

South Korea's Pulmuone is making its move into cultivated seafood with an R&D partnership with robotics company ABB. Seoul-based plant protein giant Pulmuone has partnered with Swiss robotics company ABB to advance AI-assisted…
Read More...

Funding News

VC Firm Brinc to Host Alt-Protein Investor Network GlassWall Syndicate

Anay Mridul May 31, 2024

Alternative protein network GlassWall Syndicate will now be hosted by global venture capital and accelerator firm Brinc, expanding its realm in Asia-Pacific and towards other sub-verticals. Hong Kong-headquartered VC and accelerator…
Read More...

Fermentation-Based Alt Protein

Kynda is Building A Large-Scale Mycelium Facility to Turn Food Waste into Meat in 48 Hours

Anay Mridul May 30, 2024

Germany's Kynda has broken ground on a 6,200 sq m commercial facility that will allow it to produce 2,000 tonnes of mycelium meat each year. Hamburg-based biotech startup Kynda, which makes plug-and-play bioreactors, starter…
Read More...

Load More Posts