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.

Future Foods

Could AI Be the Solution for Cheap Cultivated Meat? This French Startup Is Betting On It

Anay Mridul Jun 26, 2025

French startup Gourmey, which is awaiting regulatory approval for cultivated meat in six markets, is betting on AI to solve the industry's greatest problem. Gourmey, the Parisian firm producing foie gras by cultivating duck cells in…
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Alt Protein

Plant-Based Startup Prot Targets India’s Protein Deficiency with Category-First Block

Anay Mridul Jun 26, 2025

Mumbai-based Prot has released Prot Block, a shelf-stable ingredient offering health-conscious Indians a new format of plant-based protein. Walk into metropolitan India right now, and you might begin wondering whether you have a protein…
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Cell-Based News

Avant’s Cultivated Marine Peptide Earns C-Label Certification in Industry-First

Anay Mridul Jun 25, 2025

Asian biotech startup Avant has received the C-Label accreditation for its ZelluGen peptide complex, a first for a non-food product. Aiming to clean up both our skin and the marine peptide industry, Avant's ZelluGen peptide complex –…
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Policy & Regulation

Make American Biotech Accelerate: Is RFK Jr’s Latest Promise Good News for Food Tech?

Anay Mridul Jun 25, 2025

US health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has pledged to cut red tape and maintain the country's biotech leadership, despite the rollback of a Biden-era biomanufacturing mandate. From MAHA to MABA, the current US administration sure loves…
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Future Foods

Future Food Quick Bites: Supreme Cheddarton, Vegan Dog Food & Nestlé Layoffs

Anay Mridul Jun 25, 2025

Our weekly column rounds up the latest sustainable food innovation news. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers Violife's protein-packed Cheddar alternative, Petaluma's plant-based dehydrated dog food, and the EU's vegan labelling war. …
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Vegan

Denny’s Add Full Vegan Breakfast to Permanent Menu at All 1,300 US Locations

Anay Mridul Jun 25, 2025

Diner-style chain Denny's has rolled out a Plant-Based Breakfast Slam at all its locations in the US, bucking the trend of the wider restaurant industry. Denny's has reiterated its commitment to plant-based food with a new dairy- and…
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Cell-Based News

Texas, America’s Largest Beef Producer, Becomes Seventh State to Ban Cultivated Meat

Anay Mridul Jun 24, 2025

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has made the state the seventh in the US to ban the sale of cultivated meat. He has also ordered an investigation into ultra-processed foods. Despite two more companies receiving regulatory approval to sell…
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Alt Protein

Plant-Based Collab: NotCo Unveils Flamin’ Hot Nuggets & Doritos Mayo

Anay Mridul Jun 24, 2025

Snack giant Doritos has teamed up with food tech startup NotCo to launch co-branded vegan products with the iconic Flamin' Hot flavour in Chile. Known for its vegan versions of iconic foodstuffs like Kraft Mac & Cheese and for…
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Beauty

Denmark’s Cellugy Gets €8M EU Funding for Fossil-Free Skincare Materials

Anay Mridul Jun 24, 2025

Danish biotech firm Cellugy has secured €8.1M via an EU grant to scale up its bio-based alternative to fossil-based skincare ingredients. To rid the cosmetics industry of its fossil fuel dependence, Danish startup Cellugy has received…
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Fermentation-Based Alt Protein

Exclusive: Mycelium Meat Startup Libre Foods Acquired by Biomanufacturer Firm Planetary

Anay Mridul Jun 24, 2025

Spanish mycelium meat firm Libre Foods has sold its brand, IP, and key assets to Swiss fermentation manufacturer Planetary. Libre Foods, the startup known for its mushroom bacon, has been acquired by Swiss biomanufacturing platform…
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Food & Nutrition

Scientists Develop Alternative to Nova Classification with ‘Nuanced’ Approach to UPFs

Anay Mridul Jun 23, 2025

Researchers have created a new scoring system to classify ultra-processed foods, describing it as a "nuanced" alternative to the existing Nova classification. It has been over 15 years since Dr Carlos Monteiro spearheaded the…
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Alt Fats

No Palm, No Problem: Food Innovators Create Non-Dairy Whipped Cream with Carbon

Anay Mridul Jun 23, 2025

Three companies have partnered on a project to create a first-of-its-kind whipping cream that does away with palm oil and relies on air, literally. US food innovators Alamance Foods and Savor have teamed up with Italy-headquartered…
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Alt Protein

Dutch Retailer Albert Heijn Joins Blended Protein Push with Hybrid Meat & Milk Range

Anay Mridul Jun 23, 2025

Dutch supermarket Albert Heijn has introduced 15 products combining meat and dairy with plant-based ingredients in the largest such rollout of blended proteins yet. The Netherlands really is going big on blends. After Lidl and Aldi,…
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Climate Change

Agriculture: The Planet’s Biggest Resource Drain, And Our Most Untapped Solution

Anay Mridul Jun 23, 2025

A new map by RA Capital Management and the Nature Conservancy uncovers 'the true impact' of agriculture on Earth's systems, and why it's the most overlooked opportunity to improve public and planetary health. Despite the food system…
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Alt Dairy

Malaysian Startup Opens Southeast Asia’s First Innovation Hub for Plant-Based Milk

Anay Mridul Jun 20, 2025

Pure Mylk, a Malaysian plant-based dairy firm, has opened an innovation hub to help companies bring dairy-free beverages to market. Malaysia's Pure Mylk has opened The Mylky Way in Selangor, described as Southeast Asia's first dedicated…
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Alt Protein

Canada’s New School Foods Expands Into Plant-Based Beef Under New Entity

Anay Mridul Jun 20, 2025

Canadian whole-cut plant-based meat maker New School Foods has expanded its business structure and diversified from salmon to beef. Following months of aggressive expansion for its plant-based whole-cut salmon in Canada, New School…
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Cell-Based News

Cultivated Meat Firm Hoxton Farms Goes All-In On Asia’s Biomanufacturing Prowess

Anay Mridul Jun 20, 2025

British cultivated pork startup Hoxton Farms has teamed up with Japan's Mitsui Chemicals in its latest move, spotlighting Asia's biomanufacturing leadership. When it comes to cultivated meat, Europe is still playing catch-up thanks to…
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Alt Dairy

Mighty Drinks: UK Plant-Based Milk Startup Seeks Rescue Deal After Entering Administration

Anay Mridul Jun 20, 2025

British plant-based milk firm Mighty Drinks has entered administration amid rising costs and fundraising challenges, with its future now hanging on a rescue deal. Mighty Drinks, the brand that introduced pea milk to the British…
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Funding News

Rival Foods: Plant-Based Meat Startup Lands $11.5M for Clean-Label Whole Cuts

Anay Mridul Jun 19, 2025

Dutch food tech firm Rival Foods has secured €10M ($11.5M) in funding to scale up its suite of whole-cut plant-based meats, which contain minimal ingredients and high amounts of protein. If there are three things consumers want from…
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Cell-Based News

Exclusive: Clever Carnivore Plans 2026 Cultivated Pork Launch with Industry-First $0.07/L Media Cost

Anay Mridul Jun 19, 2025

US food tech startup Clever Carnivore has achieved industry-leading cost reductions for its cultivated pork, which it hopes to begin selling in the country next year. As companies scramble to lower the production costs of cultivated…
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Cell-Based News

Vow Makes History As First Startup to Serve Cultivated Meat at Australian Restaurants

Anay Mridul Jun 19, 2025

Sydney-based Vow received regulatory approval to sell cultivated meat in Australia and New Zealand, which will begin appearing on restaurant menus in the coming weeks. Australians will soon be able to order cultivated meat from…
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