Tender Food

We’re excited to welcome Mike Messersmith as the new CEO of Tender Food! Mike brings extensive experience from his time as President of Oatly, as well as growth-focused roles at The Nature's Bounty Co., Chobani, and Frito-Lay. Under his leadership and expertise, we’re looking forward to expanding our patented technology platform, which powers the production of unique plant-based products. In Mike's words: "The food industry is in desperate need of innovative and pioneering approaches across the value chain, and the next phase of breakthrough products are not going to be created on machines invented in the 1800s. The technology developed at Tender Food has the opportunity to create exciting new products to delight consumers and spark breakthrough products. We are at a critical inflection point of building off a successful manufacturing scale-up and launching into a new phase of market impact and development. I could not be more grateful for the opportunity to join the founders and team to steward this next chapter of the company’s growth.” Jon Chesto at Boston Globe Media highlighted Mike’s vision and this exciting leadership update. Check out the feature to learn more!

We care deeply about building a new generation of even more delicious meat alternatives for the well-being of our planet, and we're rapidly scaling our technologies to enable more people to enjoy it! Thank you vegconomist - the vegan business magazine for speaking with our CEO and co-founder Christophe Chantre. https://lnkd.in/eUhM2hZy

Excited to chat about our food city with these changemakers--there's a reason we were originally called Boston Meats! Boston Globe Media, Janelle Nanos, Lauren Abda, Adam Melonas, Chew, Branchfood

The plant-based, alt protein sector is taking root right here in Boston, and we have advocacy group Food Solutions Action and state policy director, Noa Dalzell, to thank for it! Your work raising awareness of the alt protein industry's potential for economic development unlocked $10 million from lawmakers for MA to invest in scaling alt protein production and consumer adoption. We are proud to have contributed to these efforts with tastings of Tender™ plant-based products and to help make MA ripe for even more alt protein investors, companies, and entrepreneurs. Special thanks to Stella Tannenbaum for the coverage! https://lnkd.in/geJxqUuT

The plant-based, alt protein sector is taking root right here in Boston, and we have advocacy group Food Solutions Action and state policy director, Noa Dalzell, to thank for it! Your work raising awareness of the alt protein industry's potential for economic development unlocked $10 million from lawmakers for MA to invest in scaling alt protein production and consumer adoption. We are proud to have contributed to these efforts with tastings of Tender™ plant-based products and to help make MA ripe for even more alt protein investors, companies, and entrepreneurs. Special thanks to Stella Tannenbaum for the coverage! https://lnkd.in/geJxqUuT

Come join us! We're looking for a Process Engineering Lead to define, develop, and scale Tender’s technology and products to commercial scale. Are you a good fit? https://lnkd.in/evT4Hc4b

Tender is #hiring! We are looking for a driven, scrappy Foodservice Sales Manager to join our team and get their hands dirty while leading the charge to expand our sales footprint across all segments in the Boston area and beyond. Want to join in on the action? https://lnkd.in/ezfd68yD

Hello, Series A! It's been quite a year for the market and the alt protein industry, but we're still wholeheartedly working towards a future of less factory farming and more sustainable, accessible, delicious alternatives. We've been scaling our unique technologies for whole-cut plant-based meat texture, partnering with more local restaurants to eat Tender™, including Clover Food Lab, and building even bigger ways to make a change in our commercial food systems. We can't wait for what's to come. Thank you to our incredible Tender team for making our goals a reality! Thank you Rhapsody Venture Partners for leading this round; Chris Sacca's Lowercarbon Capital, Safar Partners, and new investors Claridge Ventures and Nor'easter Ventures for supporting us; Mike Messersmith, formerly Oatly, for joining our board; and Christine Hall of TechCrunch for covering us. https://lnkd.in/eE2vPC9f

"About a year and a half ago, at an open-to-the-public food development meeting at Clover Food Lab, we blind taste-tested a new plant-based pulled pork...we tend to get a lot of samples of plant-based everything...One bite in, and it was clear this pulled pork was special. It was smoky and succulent, with just the right mix of textures, including those delectable crunchy bits you get from perfect caramelization. Whoa. Even the carnivores among us were going back for seconds, thirds, and fourths... We discovered these plant-based meats were made right down the street by a company called Tender...We’ve been testing them out at a few restaurants for the last few months, and the reaction has been amazing...Tender is finally available at all locations!" - Kiernan Schmitt, CMO of Clover Food Lab   What a journey! After successful trials, we’re ecstatic to announce that you can now eat Tender™ plant-based chicken and pork at all 11 Clover restaurants throughout the Boston metro area. The best part is thinking about how many new families, students, and communities we'll get to feed as far as Burlington, Newton, and downtown from our roots in Somerville. It's an exciting and important time to eat local and with care for the planet. We're proud to join forces with Clover to share even more dream-worthy meals to your table. Come give the powered-up bowls a try and have a picnic outside!

There's going to be a lot of kibitz at the new Mamaleh's Kibitz Corner from Big Dipper Hospitality Group ! Featuring rotating lunch pop-ups, events, and a test kitchen space, Kendall Square is about to get even more fun. We're pumped to be part of their inaugural pop-up, Vegan Mamaleh's! Enjoy classic delicatessen favorites, made from plants: matzah ball soup, Reubens and Rachels, and a Tender™ chicken schnitzel sandwich on challah, with zhoug mayo and half-sour pickles.