Nutrient

Hippo Harvest Announces $21 Million Series B Funding Led by Standard Investments to Scale Next-Generation Greenhouse Platform

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, February 14, 2024

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 14, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Hippo Harvest, a controlled environment agriculture (CEA) startup developing advanced greenhouse systems that produce sustainably-grown produce, today announced the close of its $21M Series B funding round led by Standard Investments. Congruent Ventures, Amazon's Climate Pledge Fund, Hawthorne Food Ventures, and Energy Impact Partners also participated in the round. The funding will be used to scale the company's greenhouse operations and to expand its product offerings into new categories of leafy greens.

Key Points: 
  • SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 14, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Hippo Harvest , a controlled environment agriculture (CEA) startup developing advanced greenhouse systems that produce sustainably-grown produce, today announced the close of its $21M Series B funding round led by Standard Investments .
  • The funding will be used to scale the company's greenhouse operations and to expand its product offerings into new categories of leafy greens.
  • Founded in 2019, Hippo Harvest operates a first-of-its-kind repurposed greenhouse facility in Pescadero, CA that out-competes traditional greenhouses in scalability and unit economics and is comparable to traditional outdoor-grown produce prices.
  • "We're excited by the opportunity to scale our production and reach more consumers with high-quality, sustainable produce," said Hippo Harvest CEO Eitan Marder-Eppstein.

S&W Announces Second Quarter Fiscal 2024 Financial Results

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, February 14, 2024

Revenue for the second quarter of fiscal 2024 was $10.9 million, a 16.0% decrease compared to the second quarter of fiscal 2023.

Key Points: 
  • Revenue for the second quarter of fiscal 2024 was $10.9 million, a 16.0% decrease compared to the second quarter of fiscal 2023.
  • Double TeamTM sorghum revenue was $4.0 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2024 compared to $1.2 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2023.
  • Gross profit margin for the second quarter of fiscal 2024 was 30.3%, an improvement from 21.3% in the second quarter of fiscal 2023.
  • Total revenue for the second quarter of fiscal 2024 was $10.9 million compared to total revenue for the second quarter of fiscal 2023 of $12.9 million.

Mill's Recycled Chicken Feed Ingredient Made From Household Food Scraps Approved for Distribution in Washington State

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, February 14, 2024

MUKILTEO, Wash., Feb. 14, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Award-winning food-recycling system Mill received formal approval last week from the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) to distribute their recycled chicken feed ingredient in Washington State, marking the first time a chicken feed ingredient made from recovered household food scraps has been approved for commercial distribution in the United States. Mill's breakthrough approach prevents food waste by closing the loop from fork to farm, making it easy for people at home to incorporate uneaten food scraps back into the food system. 

Key Points: 
  • MUKILTEO, Wash., Feb. 14, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Award-winning food-recycling system Mill received formal approval last week from the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) to distribute their recycled chicken feed ingredient in Washington State, marking the first time a chicken feed ingredient made from recovered household food scraps has been approved for commercial distribution in the United States.
  • Mill's breakthrough approach prevents food waste by closing the loop from fork to farm, making it easy for people at home to incorporate uneaten food scraps back into the food system.
  • Mill makes it easy for people at home to recycle food scraps back into the food system.
  • Today, Americans throw out over 44 million pounds of food annually while around 30% of the world's arable land is used to grow food for livestock .

The world’s coral reefs are bigger than we thought – but it took satellites, snorkels and machine learning to see them

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, February 14, 2024

By using satellite images, machine learning and on-ground knowledge from a global network of people living and working on coral reefs, we found an extra 64,000 square kilometres of coral reefs – an area the size of Ireland.

Key Points: 
  • By using satellite images, machine learning and on-ground knowledge from a global network of people living and working on coral reefs, we found an extra 64,000 square kilometres of coral reefs – an area the size of Ireland.
  • This figure represents whole coral reef ecosystems, ranging from sandy-bottomed lagoons with a little coral, to coral rubble flats, to living walls of coral.
  • The result: the world’s first comprehensive map of coral reefs extent, and their composition, produced through the Allen Coral Atlas.
  • We’ve already seen new efforts to conserve coral reefs in Indonesia, several Pacific island nations, Panama, Belize, Kenya and Australia, among others.

New logging rules in NSW put the greater glider closer to extinction. When will we start protecting these amazing animals?

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Forty years ago when my colleagues and I did spotlighting surveys, the southern greater glider was the most common animal we’d see.

Key Points: 
  • Forty years ago when my colleagues and I did spotlighting surveys, the southern greater glider was the most common animal we’d see.
  • In many areas it is hard to find; in others it has been lost altogether.
  • That’s why ecologists were shocked by a recent announcement by New South Wales environment authorities that we believe loosens protections for southern greater gliders in logging areas.

A marsupial to cherish

  • The southern greater glider is an iconic marsupial.
  • It was listed as vulnerable to extinction under national environment law in 2016, then uplisted to endangered in 2022.
  • Yet they are the world’s largest gliding marsupial, weighing up to 1.3 kg and capable of gliding up to 100m through a forest.
  • Southern greater gliders have white bellies and thick back fur that ranges from pure white to jet black.

What the changes mean

  • The NSW Environment Protection Authority this month announced changes to rules in logging operations.
  • But many ecologists, us included, believe the changes are designed to make logging easier and will leave the species at greater risk.
  • They must retain eight of these trees per hectare but can log right up to the tree base.
  • If the authority is serious about protecting greater gliders, it will move to strengthen not weaken protections for greater glider habitat.

Logging glider habitat is nonsensical


Since the southern greater glider was listed as vulnerable in 2016, its habitat continued to be destroyed. This is poor management for many reasons:
gliders often die on site when their habitat is disturbed
young forests recovering after disturbances tend to be hotter and drier, which is bad for gliders because they are heat-sensitive
removing hollow-bearing trees not only destroys a key part of glider habitat immediately, but it can take decades (if not centuries) for forest to become suitable again
logging makes forests more flammable and gliders are particularly sensitive to fire
logging can change the composition of tree species in a forest, reducing the availability of quality food for gliders.

Read more:
Australia has failed greater gliders: since they were listed as 'vulnerable' we’ve destroyed more of their habitat

The choice is ours

  • Human activity has left few remaining refuges for the southern greater glider.
  • Any remaining habitat should be subject to the highest protections.
  • Logging those refuges is nonsensical given the large body of scientific work demonstrating its negative effects.


David Lindenmayer receives funding from the Australian and Victorian Governments and the Australian Research Council. He is a member of the Biodiversity Council and Birdlife Australia. Kita Ashman works for WWF Australia and is an Ambassador for Paddy Pallin.

A patch a day? Why the vitamin skin patches spruiked on social media might not be for you

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Vitamin patches are trending on social media and advertised in posts and podcasts.

Key Points: 
  • Vitamin patches are trending on social media and advertised in posts and podcasts.
  • With patches marketed for sleep, detox, immunity and hangovers, they are being talked up as near magical fix-all stickers.

What are vitamin patches?

  • Vitamin patches are adhesives designed to deliver vitamins or nutrients to your bloodstream directly through the skin.
  • Patches promising an energy boost offer caffeine, taurine, gluconolactone, green tea extract and vitamins B3, B5 and B6.

Do they work and are they safe?

  • Vitamins are generally approved as listed medicines, meaning the ingredients have been assessed for safety but not for efficacy (whether they do what they promise).
  • However, there are no items listed as vitamin patches on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods.
  • Ordinarily, to be absorbed through the skin a chemical needs to be lipophilic, meaning it likes fats and oils more than water.
  • So, the form in which the vitamins have been produced and supplied will dictate whether they will get into the skin.
  • The health condition called scurvy is thought to occur when daily vitamin C intake drops lower than 7 milligrams per day.
  • The recommended daily intake of vitamin C is around 45 milligrams per day – more if a woman is breastfeeding.


Read more:
Is TikTok right – will eating three carrots a day really give me a natural tan?

Why not just take a tablet?

  • One selling point used by the marketers is that patches are a “cleaner” form of vitamins.
  • A vitamin in tablet or gummy form will contain inactive ingredients called excipients.
  • But many patches don’t list all their ingredients – just the active vitamins – so this claim can not be tested.

Should you buy them?


As there are no vitamin patches approved by the TGA in Australia, you should not buy them. If at some point in the future they become listed medicines, it will be important to remember that they may not have been assessed for efficacy. If you remain curious about vitamin patches, you should discuss them with your doctor or local pharmacist.

  • He is a Fellow of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute, a member of the Australasian Pharmaceutical Science Association, and a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
  • Nial regularly consults to industry on issues to do with medicine risk assessments, manufacturing, design, and testing.

Nature Made® Introduces Advanced Multivitamin Gummies with a Unique Combination of 20 Essential Nutrients to Help Consumers Get the Daily Nutritional Support They Need

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Key Points: 
  • View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240213383432/en/
    Nature Made® Introduces Advanced Multivitamin Gummies with a Unique Combination of 20 Essential Nutrients to Help Consumers Get the Daily Nutritional Support They Need (Photo: Business Wire)
    Key vitamins and minerals play vital and unique roles in the body to support good health but, even as consumers continue to prioritize their health and wellness, many American adults still need to consume more essential nutrients in their daily diet 1.
  • Recognizing the challenges that come along with understanding and maintaining individual nutrient requirements, scientists at Nature Made formulated Nature Made Advanced Multivitamins with a unique ingredient combination that isn’t found in other gummy multivitamins from top broadline brands.
  • Nature Made Advanced Multivitamin Gummies are available now at NatureMade.com/Multivitamins and Walmart, with Amazon, Target, and other major retailers nationwide rolling out the assortment in the coming weeks and months.
  • To check availability and learn more about Nature Made, please visit NatureMade.com.

Millions of older people don’t get enough nutrients – how to spot it and what to do about it

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

With this in mind, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has put “healthy ageing” on its agenda.

Key Points: 
  • With this in mind, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has put “healthy ageing” on its agenda.
  • However, there is a difference between energy requirements and nutrient requirements, and nutrient requirements actually remain the same, if not increase, as we get older.
  • This means we need to get more nutrients into less energy which can be tricky as older adults often have lower appetites.

How to spot when someone isn’t eating enough?

  • However, it affects five in ten older people living in nursing homes, and seven in ten older people in hospital.
  • And when older adults lose weight, they lose muscle, meaning that they are more likely to lose their abilities to do daily tasks.
  • But clothing that’s too loose or a watchstrap that floats on the wrist are all warning signs of undernourishment.

Getting more nutrients into less food

  • If people are eating small amounts of food, it is important to think about how to add more nutrients into it.
  • A very effective technique, “fortification” is commonly done with pre-made products such as breakfast cereals, plant-based milk and bread in the UK.
  • This versatile ingredient can be mixed into porridge before cooking or used it as a substitute for other powdered ingredients in baking.

Importance of physical activity and strength exercises


Physical activity and nutrition go hand-in-hand – both are equally important. As we age, being physically active becomes even more essential as it helps to prevent disease, maintains independence, decreases risk of falls, improves cognitive function, mental health and sleep.

  • Often strength training gets ignored when we think of being active but to keep independence and prevent falls, older adults should do varied physical activity that emphasises balance and strength training at moderate or greater intensity on three or more days a week.
  • Ultimately, it’s essential to contact a doctor or dietician with any worries or concerns about malnutrition or unintentional weight loss.
  • Miriam Clegg receives funding from the Medical Research Council, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, EIT Food, Horizon 2020, Apetito, and Tanita Healthy Weight Community Trust.
  • She is affiliated with Association for Nutrition.

Life Extension Updates Optimized Broccoli Supplement

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

To help people access sulforaphane’s health-promoting benefits, Life Extension has reformulated its Optimized Broccoli with Myrosinase supplement to offer increased bioavailability of this antioxidant.

Key Points: 
  • To help people access sulforaphane’s health-promoting benefits, Life Extension has reformulated its Optimized Broccoli with Myrosinase supplement to offer increased bioavailability of this antioxidant.
  • “We actively look for opportunities for improvement, and sometimes that includes reformulating our products to provide our customers with the highest-quality formulas we can,” explained Asha Jaja-Chimedza, PhD , Innovation Team Leader for Life Extension .
  • According to Dr. Michael A. Smith, MD , Life Extension’s Director of Education, sulforaphane is one of broccoli’s nutrients that help quench free radical activity.
  • “Broccoli is a rich source of sulforaphane, a powerful antioxidant, but it’s not always easy to get,” he explained.

Offshore Greens Unveils Revolutionary Kelp-Based Superfood

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Offshore Greens' latest offering harnesses the natural abundance of kelp, a superfood known for its high content of iodine, calcium, and antioxidants.

Key Points: 
  • Offshore Greens' latest offering harnesses the natural abundance of kelp, a superfood known for its high content of iodine, calcium, and antioxidants.
  • Sourced from pristine waters, the kelp used in Offshore Greens' product is harvested with eco-friendly methods, ensuring minimal impact on marine ecosystems.
  • The kelp used by Offshore Greens™ has significant human and planetary health benefits.
  • For more information about Offshore Greens and its new kelp-based nutrition product, visit offshoregreens.com .