bitewell

🚨 Big News: bitewell x Kroger We’re thrilled to share that bitewell and Kroger Health are bringing the FoodHealth Score to millions of shoppers nationwide! This exciting collaboration was unveiled at HLTH USA by our CEO Samantha Alexander and Kroger Health CCO James Kirby, PharmD, BCPS, FAPhA, marking the start of an initiative we believe will transform food and nutrition for the next 100 years. Live and available now, when you shop on Kroger.com or through the Kroger app, you’ll see the FoodHealth Score displayed on the products you’re browsing—empowering you to make healthier choices with ease. And it doesn’t stop there: with Kroger’s OptUp Nutrition Program, shoppers can also track their FoodHealth Score over time, gaining personalized insights to build better food habits. Gone are the days of standing in the protein bar aisle, overwhelmed by labels and nutrition facts. The FoodHealth Score simplifies the process—helping you pick the best options for you quickly and confidently. This is only the beginning. Stay tuned—more exciting developments are just around the corner! 🚀

Another Investment Profile: What’s on Your Thanksgiving Table? Kroger's New FoodHealth Score Might Surprise You Picture this: It’s Thanksgiving week, and you’re walking into Kroger armed with a list and a purpose. But instead of blindly grabbing that green bean casserole kit or the frozen pie crust that’s been calling your name, you pull out Kroger’s new secret weapon: bitewell’s FoodHealth Score. Announced just last month, Kroger became the first major grocer to integrate this groundbreaking tool—one that transforms the grocery aisle into a knowledge buffet for health-conscious shoppers. At LEAD's Lake Nona Fund, we saw this coming. Early last year, we invested in bitewell after meeting Samantha Alexander and her visionary team. What struck us wasn’t just their firm's mission—it was their innovative (yet common sense) method to NutritionTech. The FoodHealth Score is not about calories. Calories are to health what a compass is to GPS: basic, outdated, and often misleading. Calories measure energy, but they don’t tell you much about nutrition, ingredient quality, or how your choices stack up on the wellness scale. bitewell wanted to go deeper. Much like a bank uses FICO scores to decide who’s creditworthy, the FoodHealth Score grades your grocery cart with a scale of 0 to 100. High scores go to foods packed with whole grains, omega-3s, and protein. Low scores? Those belong to items bogged down by refined grains, added sugars, or artificial additives. Think of it as underwriting your holiday spread. Sweet potato casserole with marshmallows? That’s a junk bond. Roasted Brussels sprouts with olive oil? Blue-chip territory. It’s a revolution in transparency that hasn’t been seen since the Labeling and Education Act of 1990 first required nutrition labels on packaged foods. Now, with the FoodHealth Score, Kroger shoppers can easily make informed decisions about what they’re serving their families—not just for Thanksgiving, but every day. This innovation is why LEAD backed Bitewell: they’re reshaping the way we think about food, one score at a time. And as we head into the most indulgent season of the year, tools like this aren’t just helpful—they’re transformative. So, the next time you’re standing in Kroger’s aisle, remember: The FoodHealth Score might just save your waistline—and your wallet. Because whether you’re lending money or buying turkey stuffing, better data leads to better and healthier decisions. From our entire LEAD family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving, and may your cart be full of 90s and above! #WellnessJourney #Nutrition #HealthyEating #NutritionTips #ThanksgivingDinner #AthleteWellness #FoodScience #FutureGrocer #FoodScore

Why Numbers and Colors Matter in Healthy Eating At bitewell, we’ve made healthy choices easier with our FoodHealth Score—a system that combines a 1-100 scale and a 4-color scale (dark green, light green, yellow, red): 🔢 Higher numbers = more nutritious foods. 🧪 4 colors = more nuance and better guidance. Research shows that granularity improves clarity, making it easier for people to make healthier choices. Unlike traditional 3-color systems, our approach ensures you can differentiate between foods in the same category. For example, if two cereals are “yellow,” the numeric score helps you pick the healthier option. This system empowers you to make small, incremental changes that lead to healthier habits!

We are thrilled to announce our recent investment in bitewell, home of the FoodHealth Score. The company provides a simple scoring system that helps consumers understand the nutrient density and ingredient quality of food products at the grocery store so that they can make purchasing decisions that align with their dietary and health goals. Supply Change Capital is bullish about investing at the intersection of food and health. Why? It is a critical time for food-based healthcare. 42% of Americans today suffer from chronic health conditions like diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension. Many of these conditions are diet-related. And the costs of our healthcare system are overrunning our ability to treat patients—we need a more preventative approach to care, one that starts with food. What’s more, the market for nutrition-based health is large and growing. The global personalized nutrition market was $11.3 billion in 2022, and is expected to reach $23.3 billion by 2027, growing 15.5% annually. As such, the food industry is paying close attention and the FoodHealth Score is now available at Kroger nationwide. We expect to see rapid expansion to new grocery retailers across the US in the coming months. You can check out the FoodHealth Score online at Kroger, and join the waitlist for bitewell’s app on their website. We wrote more about why we invested in bitewell, linked below.

We get it—understanding how healthy a food is and how often it should fit into your day can be challenging. That’s where the FoodHealth Score comes in, making the healthy choice, the easy choice. Here’s a breakdown of how to use the FoodHealth Score as your guide next time you shop: 🥦 80-100: “Go For It” These foods are encouraged for frequent enjoyment throughout the day. 🥗 50-79: “Eat Often” Great staples for a balanced diet. These can be eaten daily, though maybe not at every single meal. 🍝 21-49: “Slow Down” These are foods to enjoy in moderation, with an eye on frequency and consumed mindfully. 🍰 Below 20: “Limit” These are the occasional treats—perfect for those moments of joy or celebration. Enjoy them guilt-free, but not every day or week. If you want to learn more about the FoodHealth Score, visit: https://lnkd.in/g8cSfVEd

This month's newsletter is a BIG one! In it, we: 🍎 Welcome Samantha Alexander and her company bitewell to the Supply Change Capital family as our latest investment 🗺️ Share two reports we published on the Food Tech Ecosystem in Illinois and in LA County, along with partners World Business Chicago, Annenberg Foundation, All Places, Citizens) 🏆 Report back from Noramay's Advocacy work at The White House 💪 This was a major collaborative effort --- sharing appreciation for our amazing team. Noramay Cadena, Rachel Stinebaugh, Sushmita Mukherjee, Lucy H., Nisha Patel, Armand Dawkins, Alan Cortez. Link in bio!

We were honored to co-host the American Diabetes Association's State of Diabetes event yesterday at our HQ! 🎉 The event sparked insightful discussions on the latest trends in diabetes care and prevention, as well as the financial impact diabetes has on workplaces and employees. These conversations are critical to driving awareness and action. Thank you to our incredible panelists and moderator— Neda Rasouli, Todd Mydler, MD, Colleen Grandis, Christine Oleksiuk, MPH, CHES, and Kent Green—for sharing your expertise, and to Beth Muehlethaler and the ADA Rocky Mountain Team for your collaboration. And a special shoutout to the sponsors—DaVita Kidney Care, HCA HealthONE, Eli Lilly and Company, and Cigna Healthcare—for making this event possible. Together, we’re building a healthier, more informed community! 🌟

Today we hosted our Inaugural State of Diabetes event in Denver on World Diabetes Day! Thank you to our Panelists and Moderator Christine Oleksiuk, MPH, CHES, Todd Mydler, MD , Neda Rasouli , Colleen Grandis, Kent Green for engaging in such a valuable discussion for our attendees and inspiring them to take ACTION to support a healthier future for all! Thanks to our Chair and Executive Leadership Team Samantha Alexander, Stacy Loewenberg, Abbey Miller, and Christine Oleksiuk, MPH, CHES for their Leadership and passion for our ADA mission! Thanks to our gracious Sponsors Eli Lilly and Company , bitewell , HCA HealthONE, DaVita Kidney Care, and Cigna Healthcare and lastly a huge THANKS to bitewell and team for hosting the event at their fabulous headquarters! Here’s to a HEALTHY future in our community! #American Diabetes Association #State of Diabetes

Kroger's OptUP nutrition program in collaboration with food data technology company bitewell implemented bitewell’s Food Health Score algorithm to help consumers make #healthier choices and strengthen shopper loyalty as reported by FoodNavigator-USA's Deputy Editor Deniz Ataman. https://lnkd.in/eYHsqejb #retail #data #nutrition #healthy

bitewell's FoodHealth Score will be available to Kroger customers while shopping online and in-store. The nutrition scoring system seeks to give customers a fast and reliable way to evaluate the healthfulness of their food. View more digital health startups partnering with Kroger: https://lnkd.in/d8grtU_b #DigitalHealth #HealthTech #Nutrition