US consumers increasingly see non-GMO, natural, organic and clean label claims as a proxy for ‘healthy’ or ‘healthier,’ says Nielsen in a new report* examining how consumers around the globe are thinking about health and wellness.
We’re searching for trailblazing, entrepreneurial start-ups to present their red hot food and nutrition innovations at Food Vision USA in Chicago on November 9, 2016.
Mondelēz seeks to strike down a nationwide class action lawsuit that alleges the firm's Sour Patch Kids box “misleads consumers into believing that they were receiving more products that they actually were”.
Reasonable consumers may well be misled by the packaging of Welch’s fruit snacks, a magistrate judge has concluded, prompting a lengthy rebuttal from the defendants in court documents filed this month.
Quinoa is what’s up in WutsupBaby’s line of infant and toddler cereals. It has won over East Asian consumers, reflected by its 10% revenue increase in the past 10 months. Now, the California-based company is ready to sell stateside.
As the public health war against sugar consumption in the US continues to build, food and beverage manufacturer Snapfit hopes to keep chocolate out of the crossfire by offering a sugar-free option that also is natural.
Nestlé-owned brand Stouffer’s has reformulated its lasagna to use “ingredients that consumers trust and recognize from use in their own home kitchens.”
Sales of vinegar, a long-time and often-overlooked pantry staple, are skyrocketing as consumers increasingly embrace it as a clean, functional ingredient that offers health benefits, sought-after flavor variety and versatility, according to a category...
The rise in home-delivered groceries, meals and meal kits satisfies the growing demand for mass personalization and convenience, says a new report from Rabobank. But are the business models viable, and what will determine the winners from the losers?
Kraft Heinz may be “on the prowl again,” according to Susquehanna analyst Pablo Zuanic, who predicted the CPG giant could be back on the acquisition trail before the year-end in an August 25 note to investors.
Grass-fed claims on products are a beacon for consumers who are health-conscious, want minimally processed food and care about animal welfare, and as such manufacturers increasingly are using them on products across categories and channels to drive up...
A California federal judge has dismissed a class action lawsuit brought against Starbucks claiming that the company tricks customers by making its iced beverages appear full but underfilling the cup with actual liquid.
New research attempts to set the record straight on the safety of carrageenan – a controversial but widely used stabilizer and thickening ingredient that has been called into question as a potential cause of inflammation.
When it comes to online shopping, consumers may say that they want products with a long shelf-life, but a recent Harris Poll found that they are just as likely to buy fresh fruits and vegetables as dry packaged goods online – revealing ecommerce may hold...
Brooklyn-based pea protein chip pioneer Proformance Foods has closed a $1.2m financing round led by a leading CPG company, and changed its brand name from ProTings to Protes following a trademark dispute with B&G Foods, which owns the Original Tings...
Boulder-based spicy chai tea brand Bhakti has recruited CPG industry veteran Sarah Bird as its new CEO as it seeks to build its footprint in the conventional channel and take the mission-driven brand in new directions.
New name would 'improve consumer understanding and promote clear food labeling' says Unilever
Unilever and The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) have both voiced their support for a citizen’s petition asking the FDA to permit ‘potassium salt’ as an alternate name for potassium chloride on food labels, while the Salt Institute has...
After pitching potential investors for “two years solid,” all the hard work of the co-founders of Hip Chick Farms finally paid off – literally – to the tune of $2 million from Advantage Capital Partners and $500,000 from CNBC’s reality show Texas Investors...
Within months of enacting Berkeley’s controversial “soda tax” and the corresponding public awareness campaign on the health risks of sugar-sweetened beverages, consumption of the drinks in the California city dropped a sizable 21%, according to new research.
While the SmartLabel initiative has been dismissed by some as an elaborate conspiracy by big food companies to avoid mandatory on-pack GMO labeling statements, it will ultimately have far broader significance – and potentially a huge impact on how consumers...
Epidemics of seasonal viral infections, such as the flu, or seasonal fluctuations in mothers’ vitamin D levels, could explain why celiac disease is strongly associated with children’s season of birth and shed light on what triggers the autoimmune disorder,...
Time-crunched parents are more likely than those without children to make grocery lists, but sticking to them can be more of a challenge if their kids tag along to the store, according to new research analysis from the Corn Refiners Association.
Perfect Day, a new ‘animal-free’ milk scheduled to launch at the end of next year, contains all the same components as cow’s milk, including dairy proteins, but doesn’t use any animals in its production process. But will consumers embrace it as cruelty-free...
The word ‘disruptive’ is bandied around with wearying regularity in relation to food startups these days, but if anyone warrants this moniker, it's Perfect Day (formerly Muufri). Unlike the purveyors of nut- or legume-based ‘plant milks’, Ryan Pandya...
The EVOL Foods frozen food manufacturing plant in Boulder, CO, is to close in the first quarter of 2017, with operations shifting to a facility in Fayetteville, AR, operated by parent company Pinnacle Foods.
In an effort to engage consumers, General Mills called for submissions of rabbit videos doing athletic tricks to build awareness around the removal of artificial colors and flavors in some of its cereal brands. The competition goes hand-in-hand with the...
Target has seen meaningful uplifts in grocery sales in ‘LA25’ stores where it is testing new merchandising concepts, but has had a challenging quarter owing to deflationary pressures, chairman and CEO Brian Cornell told analysts this week.
Totino’s pizza sticks and stuffed nachos have hit shelves in major retailers across the US this month as General Mills continues to expand its on-the-go snack meal portfolio.
The refrigerated 'cold-pressed' baby food category is growing rapidly - albeit from a tiny base - but there is still time for new players to carve out some distinct territory, say the founders of The Latin Baby, a Florida-based brand targeting...
New research from Euromonitor shows continued economic and political instability in the world’s biggest economies is dramatically affecting the global performance of dairy, with what initially appears to be a 9% decline in retail value sales in 2015,...
A false advertising lawsuit alleging that Chobani’s labels are confusing and deceptive, paints American consumers as credulous fools unable to apply common sense when they go shopping, argues the yogurt maker in court documents urging the judge to toss...
While many meal-kit delivery services seem to be targeting foodies and people that love to cook but don’t always have time to prepare meals from scratch during the week, new research from CivicScience suggests that Americans who are the least enthusiastic...
While the word ‘natural’ still appears on the label of 11% of new food and beverage introductions in the US according to Mintel data, brands that are part of the so-called natural foods industry need to embrace a new form of conscious capitalism if they...
What differences in shopping habits do childless households have compared to ones with children? A lot, a new study by Packaged Facts reveals. We chat with founders of two smaller brands who market directly to children and get their take.
From teas enriched with medicines to programmable tea taps, the humble brew could see a dramatic evolution over the coming years, says Tetley. Even the concept of tea consumed as a liquid could be challenged.
Making a profit and promoting health are not mutually exclusive, and healthy food brands now generate some serious profits. But no business will willingly engage in initiatives that could damage sales of its biggest – and sometimes unhealthiest - legacy...
New FDA rules clarifying the process by which ingredients are deemed generally recognized as safe (GRAS) have been welcomed by some stakeholders, but harshly criticized by others, who say any system allowing firms to self-determine the safety of their...
If you want to take a journey back in time on your next trip to the grocery store, go buy some pancake mix, says the co-founder of Birch Benders, a Boulder-based start-up seeking to shake up a sleepy category with fresh ideas, recipes and packaging to...
Will nut-based ‘cheeses’ ever give their dairy-based counterparts a serious run for their money? Perhaps, predicts the founder of Treeline Treenut Cheese. But it’s not a competition, says Michael Schwarz, who has just secured nationwide listings for his...
Seafood checks many of today’s on-trend boxes, including being high in lean protein and omega-3 fatty acids, sustainable, natural and minimally processed – yet consumption of it in the US continues to fall, prompting manufacturers and public health advocates...
Organic ready-to-drink (RTD) tea brand Steaz (The Healthy Beverage Company) has been sold to a “privately-held strategic buyer” for an undisclosed sum in a deal CEO Linda Barron said would further accelerate its growth.
Danone’s proposed acquisition of WhiteWave Foods will “have a serious anti-competitive effect on the organic yogurt and organic fluid milk markets in the US,” the Cornucopia Institute has told the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice.
