Israeli foodtech startup Better Juice, Ltd has announced that it will collaborate with US company Ingredion, Inc. (NYSE: INGR), a provider of specialty ingredients to the food and beverage industry. Ingredion Ventures, Ingredion’s venture investment arm, will lead a Series A funding round for Better Juice, which the company says will fast-track penetration of its sugar reduction solution into the US juice market.
Better Juice’s innovative sugar reduction technology removes simple sugars in juice-based beverages, concentrates and other natural sugar-containing liquids. The company has developed an enzymatic technology, which converts sugars into non-digestible compounds, such as dietary fibers and non-digestible sugars, while maintaining the natural profile of vitamins, minerals and organic acids in the final product.
"This important partnership step is truly exciting," said Gali Yarom, co-founder and co-CEO of Better Juice. "It dovetails perfectly with the Better Juice strategy to penetrate the North American market. Ingredion was impressed by our non-GMO technology, and its uses in a wide variety of applications. This move will open doors to leading food and beverage companies seeking sugar-reduction solutions for their products."
"The Better Juice technology adds a completely new dimension to our portfolio of sugar reduction solutions for food and beverage brands on a mission to meet increased consumer demand for less sugar," said Nate Yates, Sugar Reduction Business Leader at Ingredion. "This technology also provides manufacturers with more options to successfully reduce sugar without compromising on great taste or nutrition."
Better Juice was founded in 2018 by a team of biochemists and microbiologists from industry and from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The company was initially funded and supported by The Kitchen Hub, Strauss Group’s food-tech incubator. It has raised $8 million in seed-round investment.
Better Juice’s process reduces sugar content by 30-80%. The company has the capacity to process 250 million liters of sugar reduced juice per year.
"Ingredion’s capital support will allow us to extend the technology to other liquids with natural sources of sugar, such as milk, beer, and wine," said Eran Blachinsky, co-founder and co-CEO of Better Juice.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on January 18, 2024.
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