All PFN ARTICLES

Australia’s cult chilli oil brand UmamiPapi has officially hit shelves in Malaysia’s retail giant AEON, and for Ethan, it’s not just a business move, it’s a spicy homecoming. The founder and CEO, who grew up on Chinese-Malaysian flavours, called the moment “surreal” as he wandered through AEON and spotted his own creation among the aisles.

A world-first circular bioprocessing system developed by Powered by Plants (PbP) and backed by the New Zealand Food Innovation Network (NZFIN) is upcycling the ugly underbelly of our horticulture sector, think discarded onions, surplus carrots, bruised blueberries, into high-value powders, extracts, and concentrates for the food, nutraceutical, and supplement industries.

Mark your calendars, future foodies. On 14 October, the Sofitel Wentworth in Sydney will become the unofficial HQ for bold moves, big questions, and even bigger protein ambitions as AltProteins 25 swings into town.

In a country that once worshipped the bacon butty, the New Zealand alt-meat awards has delivered the once unthinkable - a plant-based bacon has taken the crown. That’s right - Let Them Eat Vegan’s ‘Not Bacon’ has been named Supreme Winner at this year’s Vegan Sausage and Deli Meats Awards, leaving sausages, patties, and even pastrami in its crispy, umami-drenched dust.

A now-viral LinkedIn thread by former Alibaba ANZ boss Pier Smulders summed up the mood - ‘grubby, transactional, and embarrassingly one-sided’. While PM Christopher Luxon was busy snapping selfies and talking up “hundreds of millions” in dairy and education deals, innovation leaders back home were asking a simple question - where the hell were our FoodTech companies in the China trade dialogue?

Australia could be on the brink of a bioeconomy revolution, if it plays its cards right. A new blueprint from Queensland University of Technology (QUT) lays out a five-point plan to unlock billions in value from Australia’s natural and scientific resources. Titled, Growing Australia’s Bioeconomy, the report warns Australia risks falling behind as global competitors surge ahead in renewable fuel, precision fermentation, bio-based materials, and food-tech innovation.

Yep. Woolworths has finally given in to the pistachio mob, officially rolling out Pistachio Papi in over 1,000 stores across Australia this week, with both the smooth and crunchy jars available for just $12. That’s a steal compared to the usual $20+ Shopify hustle.

Speaking at Bridge2Food Europe in The Hague, TiNDLE Foods co-founder and former CEO, Andre Menezes didn’t just suggest a rethink. He 'key-noted' the event by detonating a few myths that have quietly haunted the plant-based alt-protein industry since its 2019 peak.

Move over oyster. Slide aside shiitake. There’s a new shaggy contender coming for your sauté pan and TESCO is betting big British shoppers are finally ready to meet the mane event: Hericium erinaceus, better known as Lion’s Mane.

15 years after launching one of New Zealand’s most beloved plant-based brands, Little Island Creamery, the makers of dairy-free ice cream,

Thanks to two sauce-obsessed Kentish upstarts - Kier and Jen, better known as Condimaniac - the tomato sauce gap on Britain's pub plates is about to be filled. Their newest creation? A 100% British tomato sauce. Bottled. Labelled. Real. Official. And possibly on its way to Clarkson’s table as we speak.

Just when you thought “plant-based” had peaked, Redefine Meat has quietly dropped a second-gen bombshell across European chillers in the form of a newly engineered New-Meat range with less fat, more protein, and a squeaky clean Nutri-Score.