Every month, for now, we are sharing what we found interesting to know in terms of investments, trends, M&A, startups, tech in China, Asia, and in the rest of the World for everything related to Food, F&B and Restaurant Tech, because it's kind of the only thing we do at NextStepStudio.co.

This list is in no way exhaustive and the original purpose was for our team to remain on top of everything that is happening in our industry in link with our existing portfolio companies, and the area we are exploring for future projects.

We just decided to share it with anyone who could be interested.

01 - Yum China announces financial results

The company opened 312 new stores in the third quarter 2020, mainly driven by development of the KFC brand. It also remodeled 301 stores in the third quarter 2020.

https://retailinasia.com/in-trends/yum-china-announces-financial-results

2 - Bits x Bites invests US$30m to ramp up agri-food tech in China

By backing early-stage Chinese and international founders, Bits x Bites aims to advance bioscience, data science, and processing technology to tackle challenges along the Chinese food supply chain, from precision agriculture, crop and animal health to protein alternatives and nutrition.

The firm is investing exclusively in the agri-food tech sector with a focus on the Chinese market.

https://www.foodingredientsfirst.com/news/bits-x-bites-announces-us30m-investment-to-ramp-up-agri-food-tech-in-china.html

3 - Serviceplan Shanghai Launches The Bud-Meal Slot Machine for Budweiser & Eleme

In recent years the business of food delivery has boomed in China, however, Beer made up only 0.3% of total home delivery orders. So Serviceplan Shanghai collaborated with Budweiser and food delivery company Eleme to cultivate consumer behavior to order beer alongside cuisine. Serviceplan Shanghai found an interesting insight, that people always struggle to decide what to eat when they make food delivery orders. In order to solve this everyday problem, Serviceplan partnered Budweiser with the Chinese food delivery giant Eleme to create a digital campaign.

https://www.brandinginasia.com/serviceplan-shanghai-launches-the-bud-meal-slot-machine-for-budweiser-eleme/

4 - Fast food deliveries to Daxing airport gates

[Beijing] Airport authorities said customers can order food from 21 restaurants at the airport via the airport's app or food delivery app Eleme.

http://www.ecns.cn/news/society/2020-11-05/detail-ihacnaey6713148.shtml

5 - Chinese Delivery Platform Meituan-Dianping Trials Its First-Ever Smart AI Retail Store

After an order has been submitted, the MAI Shop will send instructions to its AI platform to arrange and process the order, where the robots will travel between the intelligent sorting shelves to collect the ordered goods before offloading at the handover spot [...]. The store aims to deliver within 17 minutes and a verification code is given to access the AGV upon arriving to the destination. As tested, Meituan had achieved 95% of success rate with unmanned deliveries trialling over National Day on October 1^st during peak time.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tiffanylung/2020/10/20/chinese-delivery-platform-meituan-dianping-trials-first-ever-smart-ai-retail-store/?sh=ceb64d31a3d5

6 - Foodpanda adds 2500 7-Eleven stores across Asia to its app

7 - Starbucks to enter Laos

Starbucks stores in Laos will be operated by Coffee Concepts (Laos) Limited, part of Maxim’s Caterers Limited, building on the longstanding partnership between the brands across the region. The new licensing agreement leverages Maxim’s industry expertise and deep understanding of the Starbucks brand, Mission and Values to deliver the unparalleled Starbucks Experience to customers in Laos.

https://retailinasia.com/in-markets/starbucks-to-enter-laos/

8 - 'Revenge dining' trend props up Singapore restaurants, but will it last?

According to official statistics for June, total retail sales – excluding motor vehicles – jumped 42.8 per cent from the previous month, while food and beverage sales increased by 19.9 per cent.

The food-sales trend continued in July, going up by 29.2 per cent, with a slight dip of 3.4 per cent in August.

https://www.asiaone.com/singapore/revenge-dining-trend-props-singapore-restaurants-will-it-last

9 - Why Singapore Is Fast-Becoming Food Tech’s New Superpower

Arguably the biggest driver is that, at the moment, Singapore imports 90 percent of its food. That’s a precarious position to be in during the best of times, never mind during a pandemic that’s disrupted the global food supply chain. In response, the Singapore government launched a $21 million grant fund this year as part of its 30×30 initiative, which aims to have 30 percent of Singapore’s food produced locally by 2030.

https://thespoon.tech/sks-2020-why-singapore-is-fast-becoming-food-techs-new-superpower/

10 - Egg substitute maker Eat Just to build first Asia factory in Singapore, eyes takeoff in Q1 2021

San Francisco-based food tech startup Eat Just announced on Tuesday that it had partnered with a consortium led by Proterra Investment Partners Asia to build and operate the first plant-based protein production facility in Singapore.

https://kr-asia.com/egg-substitute-maker-eat-just-to-build-first-asia-factory-in-singapore-eyes-takeoff-in-q1-2021

Shuk Shuka: Your One-Stop Online Marketplace For All Things Middle Eastern Cuisine

Since the pandemic struck, Tzadok has pivoted from the convivial, lively pop-up events that garnered Shuk Shuka popularity in 2019 to a conceptualized online marketplace featuring a group of chefs showcasing their creations in 2020.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/chelseadavis/2020/11/05/shuk-shuka-your-one-stop-online-marketplace-for-all-things-middle-eastern-cuisine/

Ghost kitchen provider Reef raises $700M

Reef converts underutilized city space, like parking lots, into hubs for ghost restaurants turning shipping containers into kitchens with the support of its software and digital infrastructure. This investment reflects growing investor confidence in the ghost kitchen market, which has gained traction amid pandemic-fueled spikes in delivery demand.

https://www.restaurantdive.com/news/ghost-kitchen-provider-reef-raises-700m/588375/

Bombay Sapphire is leading the pack in gin innovation

Unlike many distilleries, where all the ingredients are mixed together at the bottom of the still and left to boil, Bombay Sapphire uses a technique known as ‘vapour infusion’.

https://www.newfoodmagazine.com/article/123472/bombay-sapphire-is-leading-the-pack-in-gin-innovation/

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