Selling food & beverage brands online has some obvious advantages: you can get to market more quickly, get rapid feedback, and find out who your customers are. But it’s not all plain-sailing. Here are some takeaways from day one of the Digital Food...
The rumored Campbell Soup sale to Kraft Heinz has sparked debate among industry analysts on whether or not it would be a smart move for both CPG players. Taking a closer look at the potential deal some benefits for both companies start to emerge.
It’s not as big as Greek just yet, but the explosive growth of Icelandic skyr in the yogurt aisle could inspire a flurry of skyr-infused spin-offs in other parts of the store, predicts Arla Foods Inc, which has recently launched a skyr cream cheese in...
BlastZ - the latest innovation from GoGo squeeZ – is designed to attract new consumers to the burgeoning fruit squeezers category by appealing to kids that have outgrown apple sauce but are still looking for a convenient fruit snack, says associate brand...
One of the best places to spot emerging trends is at the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City where earlier this month more than 2,400 manufacturers and suppliers showcased more than 180,000 products ranging from innovative sweets, better-for-you snacks...
The FDA’s July 12 public meeting on cell-cultured (aka ‘clean’ meat) exposed sharp differences of opinion over how meat grown from cells outside an animal should be labeled and regulated. But there was also real excitement about the potential of a technology...
A new association created by four of the nation's largest food companies wants to redirect industry’s approach to nutrition, transparency and the environmental impact of food production, in a move the CSPI says "further marginalizes" the...
Dang Foods – best known for its coconut chips and sticky rice snacks – is making its first foray into the notoriously crowded bar segment with the FATBAR – a new high fat, moderate protein, low carb, nut butter-based bar with no added sugar that taps...
As sales of moringa in the US continue to rise, category pioneer Kuli Kuli is stepping up its consumer outreach and education efforts to defend its leading position in the space against competition from less-expensive and lower-quality options.
Spindrift, a sparkling water brand flavored with fruit juice, has achieved some significant milestones including multiple rounds of equity funding ($10m and $20) led by VMG Partners, triple digit sales, and national distribution. But according to the...
Sometimes less is more, as in the case of caffeine, which the founders of Chicago-based beverage startup Tempo argue more effectively boosts productivity, awareness and cognitive performance when metered out in “micro-doses,” rather than the mega-amounts...
With the upcoming launch of a naturally-sourced vanillin specially formulated for the US market, ingredient supplier Solvay can offer manufacturers a way to meet consumers’ growing demand for ‘natural’ and ‘clean-label’ products without breaking the bank....
Fruit bars maker, That’s It, has entered the confectionery category by introducing a line of truffles made with 64% dark chocolate: dark chocolate and dates, and dark chocolate and figs.
Primal Kitchen – a lifestyle brand spearheaded by former endurance athlete Mark Sisson (strapline: ‘Eat like your life depends on it’) - is on course to double sales this year as it adds new lines to its Paleo-fueled food portfolio from unsweetened ketchup...
For those who like the fiery heat of hot sauce but not the “sour pickle punch” that often comes with the vinegar base, Louisiana-based startup Swamp Dragon has a solution, according to the company’s founder.
At IFT in Chicago next week, “future-forward entrepreneurs” participating in the NEXT Start-Up Alley will showcase new solutions to some of today’s biggest problems, including food safety and sugar-reduction, as well as emerging challenges of the future,...
Artesa chickpea protein: 'It's as close to dairy as any plant protein we've tested'
Plant-based proteins are hot property, but organoleptic and functional challenges continue to hold the market back, claims Virginia-based Nutriati, which says its new chickpea protein concentrates can open up new application opportunities and give soy,...
It wasn’t too long ago when locally-grown produce evoked images of backyard gardens or roadside produce stands many miles outside of city limits. Now, the local produce movement has morphed into an urban-centered industry thanks to the rise of hydroponic...
Plant-based meats and clean-label are two of the most influential trends in food currently, but often they run counter to each other with many mock-meats made from highly-processed ingredients and protein isolates that most consumers would never find...
Thousands of anecdotal reports collected by the Center For Science in the Public Interest and others correlating artificial dyes, such as Red 40, with behavior problems have prompted some parents to seek naturally colored products – many of which fall...
Just Egg - a plant-based scrambled egg alternative from JUST made with mung bean protein - is rolling out to all 30 Veggie Grill restaurants next week, and has secured approvals at a raft of retailers including Fresh Thyme, Wegmans, Gelson's Market...
In a letter to Nestlé, the world’s largest food company by revenue, Third Point, a New York-based asset manager with $18bn in capital ($3bn in Nestlé), called out the food and beverage giant for falling short on its long-term, sustainable growth mission.
There's a lot of hype around 'big data' and 'data analytics', but how can you cut through the noise to distill these buzzwords down into something that is useful to your startup or established company?
Public comments on USDA’s GMO labeling rule have exposed sharp divisions about whether it should include refined ingredients from GM crops, or foods produced via modern gene-editing techniques such as CRISPR. But they have also raised questions about...
Specialty food used to be reserved for special occasions and accessible only to those who could afford its premium price, but increasingly specialty food is becoming everyday food sold at everyday prices that are accessible to more people.
Enjoy Life Foods has evolved from a better-for-you snack producer to an allergy-friendly icon with double-digital annual sales growth over the past two decades, but the company said the secret to its long-term success is not to follow market data and...
Big food manufacturers have increasingly recognized that their scale and robust supply chains aren’t enough to stay competitive and turn around years of little to no growth, and are refocusing their efforts on restoring consumer trust, says Rabobank.
The term ‘clean’ is popping up more and more in food branding and in consumer vernacular, but its definition is as foggy as ‘natural’ and ‘healthy,' according to Mintel.
Sustainably produced and packed with protein and vitamins, microalgae holds significant promise to help feed the growing population without exhausting the Earth’s limited resources, but its strong flavor has stopped many manufacturers from using it –...
An estimated 15 million Americans suffer from food allergies, including 5.9 million children – or about two per classroom – and while an increasing number of companies offer products that are safe for them, there is still significant room for growth,...
Consumers will lose trust in the food industry if USDA does not mandate that refined ingredients such as oils and sugars derived from bioengineered crops are subject to GMO labeling, says the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA).
While sales of plain dairy milk have been declining for years, and US yogurt production has dropped off after peaking in 2014, new data shows the continued growth of cheese, butter, and ready-to-drink coffee, yogurt drinks and protein beverages featuring...
A new beverage line with a unique beauty-from-within and vision support positioning has launched based on a little-employed superfruit: The Gac fruit from southeast Asia.
After nearly four years of development, Zea10 is targeting food developers with its barley and rice plant protein isolate positioning itself as yet another alternative in the booming plant protein space at the IFT show next week.
We’re searching for trailblazing, entrepreneurial start-ups or established brands with new products to present their red hot food and nutrition innovations targeting expectant Moms, babies, toddlers, kids or teens at FoodNavigator-USA’s FOOD FOR KIDS...
Plant-based beverage brand Califia Farms has raised $50m+ in a new funding round led by Ambrosia Investments and existing investors, Sun Pacific and Stripes Group.
Home Chef meal kits - which roll out in selected Kroger stores later this summer in standalone coolers – will target the significant subset of consumers that buy into the meal kit concept but don’t want to commit to a subscription, says Home Chef chief...
If consumers are to believe that the food industry is serious about transparency, highly refined ingredients derived from GM crops must be included in the definition of 'bioengineered' enshrined in federal GMO labeling legislation, even if they...
When Cedarlane Natural Foods launched its ‘plant-powered’ foods back in the early ‘80s, many retailers weren’t ready for hummus and tofu meals. Today, they are carving out reams of space for these kinds of items and the industry’s biggest CPG giants are...
While the ongoing war on sugar is taking a toll on sales of conventional chocolate in the US, it is creating an opportunity for once-niche, better-for-you options, including sugar-free – as long as the taste and experience are not compromised in the trade-off,...
Plant-based meat brand Beyond Meat has opened a second production facility in Columbia, Missouri, that will more than triple its manufacturing footprint from 30,000 to 100,000sq ft and create 250 new jobs in 2018.
Stevia-sweetened zero-cal beverage brand Zevia – which first hit the market in 2007 - notched up growth of more than 50% year on year in the latest 12 weeks in conventional channels, driven almost entirely through velocity gains as consumers demand beverages...
Sales of salty snacks in the US continue to rise as consumers embrace smaller, more frequent eating occasions over three-square meals a day, but at the same time, rising health and wellness awareness is creating a significant competitive threat from better-for-you...
HelloFresh, which recently edged ahead* of Blue Apron to take the #1 spot in the US meal kit market, has recently launched meal kits in 581 Giant Food and Stop & Shop stores and started experimenting with prepared food vending machines in Europe....
Mushroom chip brand Mudlrk (pronounced ‘mudlark’ – a term meaning a person who scavenges for objects of value) is aiming to begin online retail of its four SKUs at the end of July and hit brick & mortar stores later this year.
The combination of Conagra Brands and Pinnacle could create a new giant in the US packaged food industry with a particularly strong presence in the resurgent frozen food aisle, although there are limits to how much frozen categories can rebound, say analysts...
While entering a high growth category might be tempting, companies might actually have better luck – and longer-term success – if they launch “explosive innovation” into a “hibernating” category, according to a top executive at Kodiak Cakes.
Even though frozen pizza is notorious for being loaded with sodium, saturated fat and preservatives, plant-based brand Sweet Earth Enlighted Foods sees it as the perfect vehicle to improve the health of Americans as well as the planet.
