🤿 Deal Dive: The Humble Seed and Wedderspoon

The M&A market for CPGs may not be red hot with strategic eyes at the moment, but two recent deals have shown us there are avenues to seed growth if you look in the right spot. Today we are running down the deal details behind two very different companies – two-year old cracker brand The Humble Seed and 25-year-old Manuka honey producer Wedderspoon. Let’s dive in:

Last week, Canadian hemp producer Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods acquired The Humble Seed, which included the startups’ assets such as IP, brand and formulations. According to co-founder and CEO Sarah Meis, the deal conversation actually began as a partnership discussion, but quickly evolved into a dialogue about how Manitoba could put more resources into “shepherding” the business into a “new phase of growth.” 

Nosh Insiders can read our full coverage of both deals and gain a complete understanding of the growth initiatives and synergies that are top of mind for these companies' new teams.

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Consumer demand for protein snacks continues to rise in the U.S., with the market expected to reach $8.2 billion by 2030. Plant-based brands especially are taking now with both Herbalife and Beyond Meat rolling out new products this week. Here’s the 411:

🌱Health and wellness company Herbalife has introduced Protein Chips in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Each 1.31 oz. bag of the toasted, mild barbecue-flavored chips is packed with 8 grams of plant-based pea protein and is free of cholesterol. 

🌭 Beyond Meat has expanded its portfolio of plant-based meat products with the introduction of Beyond Sun Sausage. Available in three flavors – Cajun, Pesto and Pineapple Jalapeño – the new offering is filled with “whole food” ingredients like spinach, bell peppers, yellow peas and brown rice. Beyond Sun contains 12 grams of protein per link and zero cholesterol. 

Go Deeper: Check out our latest new product roundup on Nosh.

Miguel Leal, the co-founder and CEO of modern Mexican food brand Somos Foods, talks about how the company adjusted its positioning to resonate with a broader audience; mistakes that, in hindsight, were avoidable; how Somos identified areas for improvement in how the products tasted and were named; and how his timeline for an potential acquisition has changed significantly.

Listen to the full episode now.

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