Recess Bags $30M, Supergut Expands at Walmart 👀

Welcome back to This Week in CPG, folks. Here’s what we’re covering this morning:

• B&G sells another brand 🥫

• KDP lines up $7B for acquisition ☕️

• BelliWelli launches fiber gummies 💩

• Joyburst expands into soda 🥤

• Levels lands at H-E-B 💪

Deals 💰

Mergers & Acquisitions 

• B&G Foods is selling its Green Giant and Le Sieur brands in Canada. The buyer is Nortera Foods which is a leading manufactuer of canned and frozen vegetables in Canada. B&G has been on a divestment spree as it aims to turn its core business around and remedy its ailing share price. Recent divestments include Back to Nature (a legacy snack brand that Barilla Group turned around post-acquisition), Don Pepino, and Scaflani. Business Wire

Fundraising

• Functional beverage brand Recess raised $30M in Series B funding. CAVU Consumer Partners led the round and a number of other exisiting investors also participated. Ben Witte originally launched Recess as a CBD-infused sparkling water brand in 2018 before repositioning as a mood-enhancing beverage platform in 2021. CAVU first invested in Recess in 2021 (the same year it backed Poppi). Recess also added Kyle Thomas, the former CRO & CCO at Nutrabolt, as President & Co-CEO. BevNET

• Keurig Dr Pepper lined up $7B from Apollo and KKR to finance its $18B acquisition of European coffee giant JDE Peet’s. $4B will be directed toward a manufacturing joint venture that KDP will control, while the remaining $3B will be a convertible preferred stock invesmtent in KDP’s North American refreshment beverage business. The novel structure is intended to avoid overleveraging the business. Axios

• Functional beverage brand Odyssey Wellness secured $6.3M in equity funding from Ei Ventures. The South Florida-based beverage brand launched in 2020 and offers a mushroom-powered energy drink line and a non-caffeinated cognition support beverage. Odyssey retails at Albertsons, H-E-B, Kroger, Target, and a number of other chains. Twitter

• Austin-based HUNDY! raised $350K in fresh equity funding. The company is a purveyor of 100% organic frozen fruit pops and their retail partners include Harmons, Costco, Gelson’s, Lazy Acres Market, and others. SEC

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What’s New 🤩

Apparel, Cosmetics, and Wellness

• Gut health brand BelliWelli just launched a line of Daily Fiber Gummies. Each serving delivers 5g of fiber, 100mg of collagen, and probiotics. BelliWelli nixed its nutrition bar line earlier this year in order to focus on its core supplement business, and the fiber gummies are a nice compliment to its Daily Fiber + Probiotic drink mixes. The new line is available exclusively at Walmart. Instagram

• Jiggies is an all-in-one wellness drink mix that’s rooted in Ayurveda. The drink mix features 53 active ingredients that support energy, hydration, gut health, immunity, mental clarity, and long-term wellness. The full-sprectrum nutrition brand is plant-based, doctor-formulated, and tested by Eurofins. Jiggies

• Lemme launched Lemme Purr, the #1 vaginal probiotic gummy product in the U.S., in lollipop form. Active ingredients include SNZ 1969, a well-studied probiotic strain for women's wellness, along with vitamin C. The new SKU is available online and in-store at Target. PR Newswire

• Viral intimates brand Parade is sadly shutting down today. Cami Téllez and Jack DeFuria launched the brand in 2019 which thrived for a handful of years and hit a $200M valuation in 2022. Téllez stepped away from Parade in 2023 due to various financial difficulties after Ariela & Associates acquired the brand. Business of Fashion

• Sol de Janeiro named Jordan Saxemard as its Global Chief Marketing & Digital Officer. Saxemard recently served as President for the Americas and EMEA at Dyson. PR Newswire

• Lululemon is partnering with the NFL to release a 32-team apparel collection. Lulu’s share price sits at a 5-year low and the NFL collab not only feels off-brand, but a little desperate too. CNBC

Food, Beverage, and Alcohol

• Lifeway Foods collaborated with Joe & The Juice on a limited-edition smoothie called Trust Your Gut. The smoothie combines Lifeway’s flagship kefir with strawberries, banana, date purée, beetroot powder, and pea protein. PR Newswire

• Joyburst officially launched its better-for-you soda range. Joyburst Super Soda comes in four flavors: Cream Soda, Lemon Lime, Cherry Fizz, and Orange Splash. They’re currently only shipping in Canada. Instagram

• Vive Organic expanded its wellness shot portfolio with two new ones: Energy + Focus and Energy Extra Strength. The new SKUs are available storewide at Kroger. PR Newswire

• Boutique aperitif maker Veso is bringing back its Anchovy Vermouth collab with Fishwife. The limited-edition product will be available via Veso’s website today at 9am PST. Instagram

• GRADA is a new specialty-grade coffee liqueur brand from Melbourne. It’s a great-looking label but the production method précis above the logo is distracting and unnecessary IMO 👇 GRADA

Data 🖥️

• Lucky One Lemonade, a High Noon spinoff from Spirit of Gallo, is set to hit one million cases in roughly six months. This is particularly impressive feat given that Lucky One launched off-cycle. Lucky One is a non-carbonated vodka cocktail brand that Gallo launched alongside Dave Portnoy and his famous dog, Miss Peaches. LinkedIn

• According to a report from Fortune, Rare Beauty is reportedly now valued at $2.7B. The company launched in 2020, is profitable, and founder Selena Gomez says she’s not ready to sell. Fortune

Distribution News 🚚

• Clean supplement brand Levels launched at H-E-B.

• Supergut is now available nationwide at Walmart.

• Swedish beverage brand Good Idea launched at H-E-B.

• Daily Crunch hit shelves at Safeway.

• CauliPuffs launched two SKUs storewide at Wegmans.

• Koia Kids launched at Costco Canada.