The flow of caffeinated foods hitting the US market “slowed to a trickle” after Wrigley pulled its Alert Energy gum in the wake of the FDA probe into caffeine, says Datamonitor. But it’s too early to write off this trend just yet, as consumers still crave...
PepsiCo has inaugurated its first R&D facility in Mexico – a baking innovation center that will be dedicated to strengthening its better-for-you portfolio across brands like Quaker, Lay’s and Sabritas.
Dannon is looking to drive incremental growth to the dairy category with the launch of a new indulgent dessert brand called Dannon Creamery that targets a day-part US yogurt marketers have traditionally struggled to corner: the evening.
The Honest brand could extend well beyond the ready-to-drink tea category into a wider array of beverages and even foods, says the co-founder of Honest Tea, which posted a 27% surge in sales to $112m in 2013, and is growing even faster this year.
Greek yogurt manufacturers in the US could cut acid whey output by a collective 1m tons a year, by using this by-product to make additional dairy foods, claims Arla Foods Ingredients (AFI).
Coca-Cola has confirmed that the sugar level in its new stevia-sweetened beverage Coca-Cola Life may vary considerably in different markets, with the UK version containing a lot more calories than the version sold in Argentina, for example. Meanwhile,...
Jimmy Dean sausage maker Hillshire Brands has recommended terminating its agreement to acquire Pinnacle Foods in the wake of the $63/share takeover offer from Tyson Foods.
“My background is in sales, so I’m used to dealing with disappointment,” observes the founder of quinoa-based snacking brand eatKeenwa. But for every door that’s been shut in Blake Niemann’s face in the past 18 months, another one has opened. And his...
Savory snacks are a perfect fit for the World Cup and industry has injected huge efforts into flavor development, pack design and marketing campaigns to draw the punters in, says the director general of the European Snacks Association (ESA).
FoodNavigator-USA takes you through the latest and greatest new product launches, from peanut butter cereal and gluten- and dairy-free probiotic drinks to Wonka’s ice cream bananas with edible peels.
While POM Wonderful’s Supreme Court victory over Coca-Cola doesn’t have any direct impact on the wave of consumer class action lawsuits over false advertising engulfing the trade, it still makes uncomfortable reading for regulatory affairs bosses at food...
You can have an FDA-compliant label, but still face a false advertising lawsuit brought by a competitor, concluded Supreme Court justices today in an 8:0 opinion described by legal experts as a “resounding victory” for POM Wonderful in its spat with Coca-Cola...
'OUR LABELS COMPLY WITH ALL LAWS & GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS': CAMPBELL'S
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) today threatened to sue Campbell's Soup Company alleging that it makes misleading statements about the juice content, nutritional value and healthfulness of V8 juices sold in the US.
SCIENTIST INSISTS PEN NANO INVENTORY 'MISREPRESENTED' STUDY CONCLUSIONS
PepsiCo and Coke insist they do not use titanium dioxide in SoBe and Powerade drinks after a controversial report warned they use the colorant in a 'potentially dangerous' nano-sized form.
US dairy consumption patterns “have shifted away from plain fluid milk to highly processed forms of dairy that are little more than vessels for salt, sugar, and fat”, while cash from the dairy checkoff scheme is being used to promote ‘junk foods’ such...
Merchandizing gaps in convenience stores need to be plugged and snack makers must collaborate to drive progress forward, says the category development head at General Mills Convenience as it launches Nature Valley c-store tailored products.
The US ready-to-eat popcorn category has been “growing in the double-digits for the past 3-4 years” and is now worth “north of $600m in annual [retail] sales”, according to Diamond Foods CEO Brain Driscoll, who says new launches under the Kettle and Pop...
Many people developing new products at CPG companies feel frustrated and demotivated according to a new survey, which probably comes as no surprise given the high failure rate in the trade. But looking at what firms that produce more winners have in common...
The neuropsychologist behind cognitive health beverage Nawgan reckons his latest innovation 'ON powered refreshment’' - which combines caffeine and the fatigue-busting amino acid ornithine - has more mainstream appeal, bringing a fresh twist...
Nestlé has filed a patent for high-carb and high-protein bite-size dough snacks for athletes and health-conscious consumers looking to manage nutritional intake before and during exercise.
While Chobani, Dannon and Yoplait have been battling for supremacy in the US yogurt market (and at halftime at the Super Bowl), another equally ambitious player has recently emerged from the leftfield and served as a reminder that Greek isn’t the only...
In the latest iteration of FoodNavigator-USA’s What do you do interview series, we talk with the boss of organic ancient grain specialist Ancient Harvest about the challenges of long-distance (work) relationships, his move from banking to CPGs and what...
Becoming a target of opportunistic lawsuits is the price you pay for being successful, says Chobani’s marketing boss, who says he is “baffled” by a complaint filed by Dov Seidman accusing the yogurt firm of infringing his trademarks with its ‘How Matters’...
Dannon, Daisy Brand and Lactalis American Group (LAG) have questioned the reliability of a US study that reported finding levels of titanium dioxide nanoparticles in their products.
DIGGING INTO INNOVATION AND NPD WITH DATAMONITOR CONSUMER
Chobani is laying off a small but undisclosed number of temporary workers at plants in Twin Falls, Idaho and South Edmeston, New York as it harmonizes production between the two facilities after a labor-intensive ramp-up phase, and moves to new shift...
Jerry Bello - the founder of Veggie straws maker Sensible Portions (sold to Hain Celestial in a multimillion dollar deal in 2010) - remembers the exact moment when he stumbled across something he reckons could be an even bigger snack food hit.
Although fewer than one in 100 (0.9%) of US consumers is afflicted with a peanut or treenut allergy, the purchasing power of that group extends far beyond those with allergies, according to the recent Nut Allergy Ecosystem survey by Rich Products Corp.
The frozen food aisle has historically suffered from a bit of an image problem, given consumers’ long association with frozen TV dinners and freezer-burned commodity vegetable bags. But the growing interest in premium offerings among increasingly time-strapped...
From drinkable grains to Non-GMO verified, Sterling-Rice Group has identified 10 natural and organic food trends that are starting to influence the mainstream grocery market. Are you up to speed?
Nestlé says its scientists played a central role in developing a new physical mechanism that it is already using to improve the nutritional quality and pleasantness of powdered beverages.
A lawsuit filed by bestselling author and corporate ethics consultant Dov Seidman accusing Chobani of infringing his trademarks with its 'How Matters' campaign is "baseless and without merit", says the Greek yogurt maker.
It’s not as well-known as yerba maté or guarana, yet, but another natural source of caffeine - the Amazonian leaf guayusa - is about to give them both a serious run for their money, predict the entrepreneurs behind Runa, who are on a mission to do for...
World Environment Day - June 5 2014 - Driving action on climate change
Food manufacturers don’t understand the urgency of sustainability and need to act faster, but also communicate actions better with consumers, says the president of global NGO Food Tank.
General Mills has developed a high-protein variant of its flagship cereal brand Cheerios using soy – a product it says will sit comfortably in the mainstream breakfast aisle.
Several food manufacturers have been let off the legal hook recently as lawsuits filed against them for using ‘evaporated cane juice’ (ECJ) on labels have been dismissed or stayed following the FDA’s decision to look again at its guidance on ECJ. But...
The first bottles of fermented milk drink Yakult - packed with probiotic strain Lactobacillus casei Shirota - have rolled off the production line at the Japanese firm’s new US factory in Fountain Valley, California.
Hillshire Brands has entered into formal talks with Tyson Foods and Pilgrim's Pride, which have both made unsolicited offers to the Jimmy Dean sausage maker, which is itself negotiating a deal to merge with Pinnacle Foods.
The International Formula Council (IFC) has dismissed claims that the US practice of providing free hospital discharge bags containing samples of infant formula is in violation of the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes.
The future of snacks will be positioning them as part of a 'meal bridge' solution that hits on convenience, value, taste and health, says the marketing head at Snyder’s-Lance.
Two leading food industry associations have urged the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) not to set category-by-category limits for sodium amid rumors that the agency is planning to outline a new sodium reduction strategy this year.
Vital Juice CEO Edward Balassanian insists the product is outselling larger rivals including Hain Celestial’s BluePrint he says evangelize nutrition in juice that only his brand delivers.
Gluten-free and allergy-friendly packaged foods manufacturer Enjoy Life Foods understands the particular importance of word of mouth when it comes to its customers, and the firm has embraced the next generation of this through its investments in social...
The founders of Canadian bakery products manufacturer One Degree Organic Foods think the current packaged food landscape has distanced consumers far too much from Mother Nature. They’re looking to narrow the gap between food producers and the end consumer...
