MOSCOW, RUSSIA SEPTEMBER 27, 2019: Producing cultured meat in a lab at the Ochakov Food Ingredients … [+] Plant (OKPI). Vyacheslav Prokofyev/TASS (Photo by Vyacheslav ProkofyevTASS via Getty Images)
Vyacheslav Prokofyev/TASS
Eat Beyond Global, Canada’s latest investment fund that was launched in February to focus on helping grow meat, seafood, eggs, and dairy alternative companies, expects the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic to further reduce consumer confidence in animal-based foods.
Animal-based products are being hard-hit by meat- and dairy-free alternatives, which have experienced meteoritic rise in value over the past decade, prompting a massive industry makeover not only by entrepreneurial brands such as Beyond Meat, but also traditional food giants including Tyson Foods and Danone.
Patrick Morris, CEO and director of Eat Beyond Global, believes the unabated trend will only attract more entrepreneurs to the plant-based space, and his company is looking to help them scale as a fundraising partner.
“Eat Beyond is the first investment fund of its kind in Canada, offering retail investors the opportunity to participate in the alternative, plant-based, and food [technology] space,” Morris, who has taken a number of companies public over the past decade as an entrepreneur and capital markets executive, wrote me via email.
The company has rallied a team of CPG and retail experts, including the co-founder of Choices Market, Lloyd Lockhart; CPG industry veteran with 29 years of experience, Diane Jang; and Alan Linder, who has expertise in food distribution, to evaluate about 100 companies globally for potential investment targets.
“We decided to create [Eat Beyond Global] because we realized that… the alternative food space is growing tremendously,” Morris said, citing a report from The Good Food Institute reveals over $17 billion has been invested in the sector to date, with 2018 seeing a 39% increase in the number of deals versus 2017.
Investment funds and incubators that are focused on plant-based foods are becoming increasingly common across North America, with Mark Rampolla co-founding PowerPlant Ventures in 2015, and meal kit company Purple Carrot launching The Garden Incubator this past December.
“This is driven by many factors, beyond just animal welfare,” Morris explained. “This includes the attractive health, environmental, and food security benefits related to plant-based alternatives.”
Patrick Morris is the CEO of Eat Beyond Global investment fund.
Eat Beyond Global.
These benefits are expected to become more evident following the coronavirus outbreak, as the disease has shed light on “zoonosis,” he believes.
“Zoonosis describes the transfer of [a] disease from livestock and other animals to humans,” Morris said. “Most of our common diseases are of animal origin. For example, bird flu coms from domestic chickens and influenza originated in horses and pigs.”
What differentiates Eat Beyond Global from the rest of plant-focused funds lies in its ability of allowing retail investors to directly engage with brands.
“Many of the companies that are getting attention on the store shelves are privately held,” Morris said. “The average investor has very little opportunity to participate in the capital raises taking place in the sector at this point.
“This is where Eat Beyond Global comes in — our team of advisors and analysts vet and perform due diligence on each company so the retail investor can get involved in the growth with less of a risk factor.”
While the firm is still assessing all types of food alternatives, two areas that stand out include cellular agriculture, which only requires a single cell, instead of live animals, to produce meat, and the innovative uses of traditional plant-based ingredients to create new products, such as eggs made out of mung beans.
“There are many compelling new companies … [but] we look at companies on a case-by-case basis” when it comes to investments, Morris told me, noting Eat Beyond Global is generally targeting companies with run rates between $20 million to $200 million, and several companies developing cultured meat are still in the R&D process.
Eat Beyond Global is expected to invest in approximately 10 companies in the first six months since launch, and will likely double that number by the end of 2020.
Morris predicts the plant-based category will eventually consolidate through both private equity investments and M&A by large CPG companies.
“PE is currently very active in the space, but we are slowing seeing more IPOs and M&As,” he said.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was down more than 200 points in late-morning trading, weighed down by losses in the technology, base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets also fell.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 239.24 points at 22,749.04.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 312.36 points at 40,443.39. The S&P 500 index was down 80.94 points at 5,422.47, while the Nasdaq composite was down 380.17 points at 16,747.49.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.80 cents US compared with 74.00 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down US$1.07 at US$68.08 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.26 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$2.10 at US$2,541.00 an ounce and the December copper contract was down four cents at US$4.10 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in technology, financial and energy stocks, while U.S. stock markets also pushed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 171.41 points at 23,298.39.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 278.37 points at 41,369.79. The S&P 500 index was up 38.17 points at 5,630.35, while the Nasdaq composite was up 177.15 points at 17,733.18.
The Canadian dollar traded for 74.19 cents US compared with 74.23 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up US$1.75 at US$76.27 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.10 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$18.70 at US$2,556.50 an ounce and the December copper contract was down less than a penny at US$4.22 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 29, 2024.
The crypto market has recently experienced a significant downturn, mirroring broader risk asset sell-offs. Over the past week, Bitcoin’s price dropped by 24%, reaching $53,000, while Ethereum plummeted nearly a third to $2,340. Major altcoins also suffered, with Cardano down 27.7%, Solana 36.2%, Dogecoin 34.6%, XRP 23.1%, Shiba Inu 30.1%, and BNB 25.7%.
The severe downturn in the crypto market appears to be part of a broader flight to safety, triggered by disappointing economic data. A worse-than-expected unemployment report on Friday marked the beginning of a technical recession, as defined by the Sahm Rule. This rule identifies a recession when the three-month average unemployment rate rises by at least half a percentage point from its lowest point in the past year.
Friday’s figures met this threshold, signaling an abrupt economic downshift. Consequently, investors sought safer assets, leading to declines in major stock indices: the S&P 500 dropped 2%, the Nasdaq 2.5%, and the Dow 1.5%. This trend continued into Monday with further sell-offs overseas.
The crypto market’s rapid decline raises questions about its role as either a speculative asset or a hedge against inflation and recession. Despite hopes that crypto could act as a risk hedge, the recent crash suggests it remains a speculative investment.
Since the downturn, the crypto market has seen its largest three-day sell-off in nearly a year, losing over $500 billion in market value. According to CoinGlass data, this bloodbath wiped out more than $1 billion in leveraged positions within the last 24 hours, including $365 million in Bitcoin and $348 million in Ether.
Khushboo Khullar of Lightning Ventures, speaking to Bloomberg, argued that the crypto sell-off is part of a broader liquidity panic as traders rush to cover margin calls. Khullar views this as a temporary sell-off, presenting a potential buying opportunity.
Josh Gilbert, an eToro market analyst, supports Khullar’s perspective, suggesting that the expected Federal Reserve rate cuts could benefit crypto assets. “Crypto assets have sold off, but many investors will see an opportunity. We see Federal Reserve rate cuts, which are now likely to come sharper than expected, as hugely positive for crypto assets,” Gilbert told Coindesk.
Despite the recent volatility, crypto continues to make strides toward mainstream acceptance. Notably, Morgan Stanley will allow its advisors to offer Bitcoin ETFs starting Wednesday. This follows more than half a year after the introduction of the first Bitcoin ETF. The investment bank will enable over 15,000 of its financial advisors to sell BlackRock’s IBIT and Fidelity’s FBTC. This move is seen as a significant step toward the “mainstreamization” of crypto, given the lengthy regulatory and company processes in major investment banks.
The recent crypto market downturn highlights its volatility and the broader economic concerns affecting all risk assets. While some analysts see the current situation as a temporary sell-off and a buying opportunity, others caution against the speculative nature of crypto. As the market evolves, its role as a mainstream alternative asset continues to grow, marked by increasing institutional acceptance and new investment opportunities.
