Applied Food Sciences Inc. (AFS) announced the expansion of its strategic partnership with KÄÄPÄ Biotech, marked by the opening of a new state-of-the-art cultivation facility in Finland. This expansion comes as a response to the growing global demand for premium functional mushrooms and demonstrates the companies’ shared commitment to producing the highest quality Nordic-origin mushrooms, the company says. The new facility will support a range of cultivation practices and will be complemented by advanced laboratory and office space, allowing for enhanced operational capabilities. As the demand for functional mushrooms continues to rise, the facility’s innovations in environmental control and quality assurance ensure that KÄÄPÄ Biotech will meet the increasing market needs while adhering to the highest standards of purity, bioactivity, and sustainability, it says. “By investing in this new cultivation facility, we are positioning ourselves to continue to deliver even more top-tier mushroom products,” said Loretta Zapp, CEO of AFS, in a statement. “This expansion speaks to our dedication to transparency and traceability in the supply chain and reinforces our long-term commitment to advancing the science behind functional mushroom ingredients.”

Batory Foods, a national distributor of food and fine ingredients, announced the expansion of its Wilmington, Ill., facility with the addition of a new Batory Foods Innovation Center. The 16,000-square-foot space includes a dedicated upstairs lab area and a blending facility, significantly enhancing the company’s capabilities in applications development, custom blending and packaging services. Batory Foods hosted a ribbon-cutting event Sept. 12 to mark this milestone, providing customers and vendors with an experiential tour of the newly upgraded site. Batory’s Wilmington facility underwent substantial upgrades to accommodate the new lab and blending spaces, which offer a range of high-value services, including testing, one-pack solution creation, sourcing well-researched ingredients, and comprehensive documentation, the company says. Additionally, the site also allows for advanced blending capabilities, including micro dosing and custom labeling, allowing Batory Foods to deliver tailored solutions to meet customer needs. “The new lab and blending capabilities at our Wilmington facility represent our ongoing commitment to innovation and service excellence. This expansion allows us to enhance our technical and solution-based acumen, delivering even greater value to our customers and partners,” said Jessica Zielinski, vice president of strategic growth and marketing at Batory Foods, in a statement. “The Wilmington site is designed to be a dynamic, evolving space that will continue to adapt to the needs of the product categories we serve, such as beverages, confectionery, bakery and nutrition.”

NutriLeads BV announced the expansion of its distribution network for its precision prebiotic, Benicaros, through a new agreement with 1-2-Taste. This online B2B food ingredient marketplace caters to Europe and India, streamlining the supply chain for food and beverage companies, it says. 1-2-Taste focuses on simplifying and digitizing complex supply chains of ingredients, making it easier for food and beverage companies to identify and order ingredients, the company says. The company’s goal is to make ingredient sourcing as simple as any other online shopping service. “1-2-Taste takes an innovative approach to sourcing ingredients, much like how Benicaros is disrupting the market for gut and immune health,” said Joana Carneiro-Wakefield, Ph.D., NutriLeads CEO, in a statement. “This partnership complements our existing collaboration with the LEHVOSS Group, which represents Benicaros in the EMEA region for dietary supplement formulators.” Benicaros is a clinically proven precision prebiotic that offers robust and predictable gut health benefits and trains faster, smarter and strong immune responses, according to the company. This low-dose, multifunctional ingredient, sourced from upcycled carrot pomace, is driving innovation for foods, beverages and dietary supplements, it adds.