Key takeaways

• Novel food producers had a notable presence, with firms producing cocoa alternatives, such as Planet A Foods and Win-Win, being especially prominent due to substantial deforestation caused by cocoa cultivation. Additionally, other companies were focused on creating alternative animal feed derived from sources like methane (Unibio) as well as plant-based coffee substitutes that do not require coffee beans (Atomo Coffee).

• The first cell-cultured meat approvals in the US reignited the sector. UPSIDE Foods was among the first to get the green light to market cell-cultured meat in the US. The company's response? Invest in a factory capable of producing millions of pounds of cell-cultured meat per year. A similar focus on building capacity and pursuing partnerships was a common trend among other cell-cultured meat players, such as Steakholder Foods and Aleph Farms, while they also worked to gain regulatory approval.

• Supporting agriculture with smart farming was another recurring theme, with products such as high-precision sprayers (Ecorobotix), sensors for "data-driven" pollination (BeeHero), and laser-powered weed-killers (Carbon Robotics) emerging with the the common goal of improving crop yields.

SPEEDA Edge top picks for 2024

Source: SPEEDA Edge