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Chobani has named the six smaller food companies that will be the first to go through Chobani Food Incubator, its new mentoring and support program. While the program is meant as a way for the startups to learn from the Greek yogurt maker, it also gives Chobani a chance to get an inside look at up-and-coming business trying to challenge the broader food industry. Other food marketers such as General Mills and Kellogg also search for early-stage food companies to partner with and potentially acquire. Chobani said that more than 400 companies applied for its program. The six companies it selected are Banza, a maker of chickpea pasta; Chops Snacks, which makes jerky; Ciss Cocoa Co., a maker of products such as baking mixes made with organic chocolate; Jar Goods, which sells jarred tomato sauces; Kettle & Fire, a maker of grass-fed bone broth; and Misfit Juicery, which makes cold-pressed juices, often with discarded produce. The inaugural class will run from October through March 2017, based out of Chobani’s New York City office with access to the company’s plants, R&D and sales offices. Chobani said it is giving each team $25,000 with no strings attached, equity-free capital and will cover travel and other expenses, At the end of the six months, the participants may showcase their products at the EXPO West Natural Foods Conference.

Dunkin’ Donuts’ most famous ties to the NFL are with its local team, the New England Patriots. That relationship includes videos featuring Rob Gronkowski of the Patriots and David Ortiz of the Boston Red Sox singing summer songs about iced coffee. Now, the chain has hooked up with another NFL star who is “Running on a Cold Brew.” Odell Beckham Jr. raps about drinking Dunkin’ Donuts cold brew coffee in a new video. “Known for his incredible play making abilities, we wanted to showcase Odell’s musical talents, which may be less well-known to fans,” Dunkin’ Donuts said in a statement. The new video also features songwriter/producer Kovas. Both the new video and the earlier ones featuring Gronk and Big Papi were created by SapientNitro. And Dunkin’ already had a relationship with the Giants. Do you remember when Eli Manning manned the drive-thru lane in 2012? If not, here’s a refresher. Dunkin’ said it currently has no plans for another music video featuring Mr. Gronkowski or any other NFL players for 2016.

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