Author

Anay Mridul 3136 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 Dairy

Oatly Invests $16M in Swedish Factory to Boost Capacity Amid ‘Growing Demand’ for Oat Milk

Anay Mridul Mar 9, 2026

Swedish oat milk pioneer Oatly is pumping $16M into its Landskrona facility to expand capacity by over 33% and meet the accelerating demand for its products, while lowering its climate impact. After a milestone year in 2025, when it…
Read More...

Alt Protein

Spanish Plant-Based Startup Novameat Takes Beef Alternative to Blended Meat Category

Anay Mridul Mar 9, 2026

Novameat, a Spanish startup known for its pulled plant-based meat products, is expanding its horizons by offering its beef alternative for blended meat applications. As blended meat takes over European supermarket shelves, plant-based…
Read More...

Consumer Trends & Insights

Protein, UPFs & GLP-1: How Health is Dictating Americans’ Food Habits in 2026

Anay Mridul Mar 9, 2026

For Americans, nothing influences food purchases more than health this year, according to a new survey shedding light on protein preferences, GLP-1 users, sugar alternatives, and ultra-processed foods. In the MAHA era, health truly does…
Read More...

Future Foods

Brazil’s Cellva Brews Up $4M in Funding to Turn Coffee Waste Into Cocoa-Free Chocolate

Anay Mridul Mar 6, 2026

Brazilian food tech startup Cellva Ingredients has raised R$20M ($3.8M) in pre-Series A funding to scale up its chocolate alternative made from coffee husks. Cellva Ingredients, a startup producing cocoa-free chocolate from coffee…
Read More...

Chocolate

Nestlé, the World’s Largest Food Company, Adopts Climate-Friendly Cocoa-Free Chocolate

Anay Mridul Mar 6, 2026

Nestlé has launched a new Snack Vibes line under its Choco Crossies brand with ChoViva, a cocoa-free chocolate alternative by German food tech startup Planet A Foods. If there were ever any uncertainty about the potential of chocolate…
Read More...

Funding News

Those Vegan Cowboys Completes $14M Raise After Record-Breaking Crowdfunding Round

Anay Mridul Mar 6, 2026

Dutch food tech startup Those Vegan Cowboys has raised €12.25M ($14.2M) in its latest investment round, following a record-breaking crowdfunding campaign for its animal-free casein. It took just 10 days for Those Vegan Cowboys to…
Read More...

Funding News

Exclusive: All G Awarded NSW Govt Grant to Scale Recombinant Breast Milk Protein for Infant Formula

Anay Mridul Mar 6, 2026

Australian precision fermentation startup All G has received an A$1.1M ($775,000) grant from the New South Wales government to expand production of its human beta-casein protein. Amid calls for greater public investment in the…
Read More...

Policy & Regulation

EU Bans 31 Meat Names on Plant-Based & Cultivated Products, But ‘Veggie Burger’ Saved

Anay Mridul Mar 6, 2026

The European Union has agreed to ban 31 meat-like names from being used on plant-based product labels, but common terms like 'veggie burger' have been exempted. After months of back and forth, the EU has dealt an enormous blow to the…
Read More...

Women & Gender Rights

How Food Tech Startups Are Revolutionizing Women’s Health & Wellness

Anay Mridul Mar 5, 2026

These female-led future food startups are using technology to supercharge the women's health and wellness category. It's appalling that, even today, women spend 25% more time in poor health compared to men, the result of a cocktail of…
Read More...

Future Foods

Exclusive: Upcycled Plant Power Rolls Out Broccoli-Waste Fibre Ingredient Ahead of £5M Raise

Anay Mridul Mar 5, 2026

As it gears up for a £5M funding round, Upcycled Plant Power, a startup turning waste broccoli stems into high-value ingredients, has introduced its fibre product, Fiba, to the UK foodservice sector. To meet the UK's protein and fibre…
Read More...

Funding News

Bill Gates Awards $7M Grant to Belgian Startup Using AI to Develop Climate-Resilient Crops

Anay Mridul Mar 5, 2026

Belgian agtech firm Rainbow Crops has been awarded a $7M grant from the Gates Foundation to advance its AI-driven tech to create crops that are climate-resistant and high-yielding. Bill Gates may have ruffled some feathers with his…
Read More...

Funding News

Mezcla Raises the Plant-Based Protein Bar with $9.5M in Series B Funding

Anay Mridul Mar 5, 2026

US plant-based protein bar maker Mezcla has closed a $9.5M Series B funding round to develop new products and expand its distribution. Protein's hold on the food industry shows no signs of stopping, and investors are taking note. New…
Read More...

Future Food Quick Bites

Future Food Quick Bites: Yeast Protein Bar, Baftas & Milan Fashion Week

Anay Mridul Mar 4, 2026

Our weekly column rounds up the latest sustainable food innovation news. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers Yeastup and Weena's yeast protein bar, Forager Project's Greek yoghurt expansion, and Oatly's Milan Fashion Week appearance.…
Read More...

Funding News

From Coffee to Wine, Amatera Raises $7M to Expand AI-Led Tech for Climate-Resilient Crops

Anay Mridul Mar 4, 2026

French agtech startup Amatera has closed a €6M ($7M) seed funding round to expand its AI-powered plant cell biology platform for climate-resilient crops, starting with coffee and wine grapes. Two of the world's favourite beverages are…
Read More...

Sugar

MycoTechnology Cleared to Sell Honey Truffle Protein 2,500 Times Sweeter Than Sugar

Anay Mridul Mar 4, 2026

US food tech startup MycoTechnology has secured self-affirmed GRAS status for Zukora, its precision-fermented sweet protein from honey truffles, and has scaled up to commercial batches. With companies in the US scrambling to reformulate…
Read More...

Cell-Based News

IntegriCulture Teams Up with Sumitomo Riko & Seeks Singapore Approval for Cultivated Meat

Anay Mridul Mar 4, 2026

Japanese cellular agriculture leader IntegriCulture has partnered with Sumitomo Riko to demo production of its cultivated meat in Singapore, and aims to file for approval this year. On the back of its first profitable year, Japan's…
Read More...

Funding News

Aqua Theon Nets $13M to Expand OoMee’s Seaweed-Based Functional Drinks

Anay Mridul Mar 3, 2026

Californian seaweed tech startup Aqua Theon has secured $13M in a seed funding round, $5M of which is earmarked for the expansion of its OoMee line of functional marine beverages. Would you drink seaweed? One Japanese company is betting…
Read More...

Vegan

From Salsiccia to Salame, Italians Embrace Plant-Based Food with 11% Growth Since 2023

Anay Mridul Mar 3, 2026

Italy's consumer base for plant-based meat, dairy and other products has expanded by nearly 11% in the last three years, with health at the forefront of the shift. Italians love their polpette, salsicce and salame – and not just the…
Read More...

Green Business

Pinky Cole, Owner of Plant-Based Restaurant Chain Slutty Vegan, Files for Bankruptcy

Anay Mridul Mar 3, 2026

Months after buying back Slutty Vegan, her cult-favourite plant-based burger chain, Pinky Cole has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. US fast-food chain Slutty Vegan is under the gun again. Following a highly turbulent…
Read More...

Policy & Regulation

FAO Asks Countries to Simplify Regulation for Cultivated Meat & Precision Fermentation

Anay Mridul Mar 3, 2026

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization is calling on governments to streamline their regulatory frameworks for cultivated proteins and precision-fermented foods. As novel foods like cultivated meat and precision-fermented ingredients…
Read More...

Alt Dairy

Sweden’s Largest Retailer Is Now Selling Hybrid Dairy Cheese in Nearly 500 Stores

Anay Mridul Mar 2, 2026

PlanetDairy has gained a listing for its hybrid cheeses at nearly 500 ICA Gruppen locations in Sweden, months after the national dietary guidelines placed plant-based milk on par with dairy. As new policies and research expand awareness…
Read More...

Load More Posts