CHICAGO — Mondelez International, Inc. is seeking to engage early-stage food brands in a new collaborative program led by its SnackFutures innovation and venture hub.

Beginning in June, CoLab is a 12-week program offering workshops, one-on-one mentorship and a $20,000 grant to up to 10 startups. Mondelez will provide tools, technologies, access to company leadership and industry expertise while gaining insights, capabilities and potential investment opportunities. The program will culminate in a final showcase for brands to pitch to key stakeholders.

Startups may apply at www.snackfutures.com and must be based in the United States, generating at least $500,000 in revenue and demonstrating high growth potential and an alignment with the company’s innovation priorities.

“SnackFutures is in a unique position of both creating our own brands and investing in startups, so we can offer participants empathy and understanding from our own experiences along with the rigor, discipline and insights of global snacking leader,” said Brigette Wolf, global head of SnackFutures at Mondelez International. “It’s even more important for programs like CoLab now as these small brands try to recover and grow out of the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Since its launch in late 2018, SnackFutures has created and introduced five brands in the United States and Europe, including CaPao, Dirt Kitchen Snacks, Millie Gram, NoCoé and Ruckus and Co. It also has made minority investments in Uplift Food,  Torr and Hu Products, which Mondelez recently acquired. The team has immersed itself in the entrepreneurial community to gain insights, discover trends and understand key business challenges startups face. CoLab represents a continuation of SnackFutures’ mission to reinvent snacking by bringing together big and small.