Cutting the sugar from your morning juice

Ashdod-based foodtech startup Better Juice, which has been working to reduce all types of sugars in fruit juices, has struck up a new collaboration with Brazil’s Citrosuco, one of the largest orange juice producers in the world.

Together, the companies will open a pilot plant to reduce the sugar content of orange juice.

Citrosuco is providing some of the funding, along with technical and operational expertise.

Better Juice says the sugar reduction technology it developed naturally transforms all types of fruit sugars into prebiotic and other non-digestible fibers and sugars — while still retaining the full flavour of the beverage.

NHS signs up to Israeli diabetes device

Medtech company DarioHealth  has developed a device for diabetes management and monitoring that allows users track their blood-glucose levels in real time using their smartphone — and it could be coming to a health service near you.

The device uses a machine learning algorithm to provide personalised information and guidance on nutrition, behaviour and medication to the patient, together with easy-to-use safety features.

The NHS has joined forces with the Israeli company to create DigitalHealth.London, which will bring some of the services to outpatients.

Tel Aviv is set to become a vegan paradise

Already one one of the most vegan-friendly cities in the world, Tel Aviv will soon also be the origin of the world’s first vegan ecosystem.  

Israeli company VeganNation is ready for the global launch of its one-stop vegan shop concept: its use of blockchain technology will ensure a transparent supply chain.

There are also plans for a digital wallet, and social marketplace where vegan products and food can be shared.

And it’s already proving popular: four Brazilian football teams and Game of Thrones star Jerome Flynn are already signed up.

ClickSoftware is latest US tech acquisition

Israeli-founded ClickSoftware, which helps hundreds of utilities, airlines and emergency departments prioritise work orders and responses, has been acquired by Salesforce, the US cloud computing giant, in a £1.1 billion deal.

The originally Petah Tikvah-based company was taken private in 2015 when purchased by California-based investment firm, Francisco Partners Management, for £360 million. It is now headquartered in Massachusetts.

Plans to enlarge Israel’s parliamentary estate

Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, is set to double its floorspace after Jerusalem’s Local Planning and Building Commission granted permission for it to enlarge to 102,270 square metres.

The new area, to the south of the existing structure, will include an administrative division, kitchens and dining rooms, committee rooms, a motel and offices for the Central Election Committee.

The approved plans also make provision for the Knesset chamber to be enlarged by 20 to 140 members, should such a decision be taken in future.

IzBiz is compiled every fortnight for the JC by Jeremy Seeff, partner at ERM, a cross-border law firm based in Tel Aviv for corporate, finance and real estate matters. Read previous editions of IzBiz here.