Agriculture & Food Production

SHERIDAN, WYOMING - April 4, 2026 - Commercial-scale hydroponic feed production, next-generation gut health additives, and shifting grain supply chains are forcing livestock producers and feed procurement teams to revisit sourcing strategies, capital allocation, and supplier relationships across North America and global markets in 2026.

Hydroponic feed reaches commercial scale in California

Forever Feed Technologies has contracted a $15 million project with River Ranch Farms in Hanford, California, to install two full-scale FFT GrowSystems - the company's first commercial deployment following more than a year of pilot operations at the same site. The FFT Innovation Center, launched in late 2024, was used to refine automation, growing protocols, and feed rations, resulting in measurable improvements in feed efficiency and milk output for the dairy herd.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING - April 3, 2026 - Food manufacturers across Europe face tightening regulatory requirements on packaging reuse and climate-adaptive sourcing, pushing procurement and operations teams to evaluate equipment portfolios ahead of the next budget cycle. Sidel's presence at CFIA Rennes 2026 - held March 10-12 in Rennes, France - placed food-grade packaging technology directly in front of buyers navigating these structural shifts.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING - April 4, 2026 - Research teams and organizations working on animal feed and flour milling innovation now have a structured path to external financing through the Victam Foundation's 2026 Call for Funding, with final project selections and award decisions scheduled for completion by early June 2026 at Victam International in Utrecht, The Netherlands.

Funding cycle overview

The Victam Foundation opened its 2026 Call for Funding submission window on September 12, 2025, accepting project proposals through January 31, 2026. The call targets researchers, organizations, and innovators developing projects that advance the animal feed and flour milling industries. There are no submission fees, and proposals must be submitted via the foundation's online requesting form. Applications must include a detailed project description and an expected budget; the foundation reserves the right to request additional documentation where necessary.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING - December 19, 2025 - Merck Animal Health says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted conditional approval for EXZOLT™ CATTLE-CA1 (fluralaner topical solution), positioning the pour-on as a new systemic parasiticide option for U.S. beef operations and replacement dairy heifers facing New World screwworm (Cochliomyia hominivorax) larvae (myiasis) risk and cattle fever tick (Rhipicephalus microplus) pressure.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING - December 8, 2025 - Kellanova is using its "Cool Soil Critters" campaign in Australia to turn an often invisible topic-soil health-into a mainstream sustainability and supply-chain conversation, linking biodiversity beneath the surface directly to crop resilience, food security and long-term brand value.

From Iconic Foods to the Health of the Soil Behind Them

As a company that depends on crops to make the foods people know and love, Kellanova is positioning soil health as a strategic asset rather than a purely agronomic concern. Through its partnership with the Cool Soil Initiative, Kellanova Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) is supporting programs that help farmers increase organic carbon levels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions on Australian farms.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING - November 25, 2025 - Nestlé is piloting a novel, patented cocoa processing technique that uses up to 30% more of each cocoa fruit, aiming to boost farmer yields, reduce waste and create new product opportunities for the global food processing and ingredients industry. By turning traditionally underused parts of the cocoa pod into chocolate flakes, the company is testing a more resource-efficient model for chocolate production in the face of climate pressure on cocoa supply.

Turning more of each cocoa pod into value
Conventional chocolate production relies almost exclusively on cocoa beans, leaving pulp, placenta and husk largely underutilized. Nestlé's R&D organization has reframed that paradigm by developing a method that leverages all of the edible material inside the pod, not just the beans. In doing so, it directly addresses both raw material efficiency and the economic potential of each harvested fruit.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING - November 25, 2025 - Nestlé and its research partners have created a new cocoa core collection that captures more than 95% of the crop's global genetic diversity, laying a strategic foundation for a more resilient cocoa supply chain serving chocolate manufacturers and food producers worldwide. By consolidating genetic resources into a curated set of 96 varieties, the project aims to accelerate breeding of climate-resilient, higher-yield and quality-enhanced cocoa tailored to the needs of the global food and beverage industry.

A 'Noah's Ark' for cocoa genetics
The heart of the initiative is a core collection that condenses thousands of potential trees into a representative set of 96 cocoa varieties. This enables researchers and breeders to work on a manageable but comprehensive portfolio of genetic material, cutting time and complexity from pre-commercial research.