Health and nutritional ingredients

Startup Spotlight

Happy Wolf’s Whole Foods expansion is a ‘make or break’ moment for kid’s snack brand

20-Nov-2024 By Ryan Daily

Clean-label children snack brand Happy Wolf is leaning on brand ambassadors to spread awareness of its Whole Foods Market launch and where the product can be located, Jana Goodbaum, co-founder of Happy Wolf, shared in a recent Startup Spotlight interview....

Apothékary secures additional funding, bridges beverage, beauty categories

20-Nov-2024 By Deniz Ataman

Apothékary continues its expansion in the wellness space, securing additional funding for its Series A round from global Japanese beauty brand Shiseido and launching on Ulta.com as the retailer’s first alcohol alternative product.

SNAP recipients more likely to buy national brands over private-label, Circana reports

20-Nov-2024 By Ryan Daily

US shoppers receiving assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) gravitate to national CPG companies over private label alternatives, despite the cost-saving associated with store brands, according to a recent Circana webinar....

Starfish closes gap on FSMA 204 compliancy with reporting software

18-Nov-2024 By Ryan Daily

Food traceability software provider Starfish addresses transparency requirements in the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) with technology that simplifies supply-chain data without food and beverage companies changing their current system.

Silk Kids’ patented oat milk blend targets children's’ nutritional needs

15-Nov-2024 By Deniz Ataman

Silk Kids’ oat milk blend is formulated with kids’ nutrition in mind featuring a proprietary vitamin and mineral blend that differentiates the brand within the booming plant-based milk category, according to Kallie Goodwin, SVP plant based beverages at...

Trade associations respond to RFK Jr.’s HHS nomination

15-Nov-2024 By Stephen Daniells

Dietary supplement trade associations have responded to President-elect Trump’s nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.

2025 Beverage trends to watch: Circana expects growth in water enhancers, functional drinks

14-Nov-2024 By Ryan Daily

Hydration-boosting, functional and non-alcoholic (non-alc) beverages will continue their growth in 2025, but generations are seeking out different drinks to meet their health and nutrition needs, according to a recent Circana webinar.

The butterfly effect: Non-GMO Project Verified out grow similar self-reported claims

14-Nov-2024 By Ryan Daily

CPG companies trying to make the most out of their non-GMO claims are finding market success through certification programs rather than making claims on their own, according to data shared in a recent SPINS webinar.

Founders' Fundamentals podcast: Karen Anderson on identifying, capitalizing on whitespace innovation

13-Nov-2024 By Ryan Daily

Delivering on whitespace innovation can propel a CPG food and beverage startup into mainstream success, and filling a gap in the market might be simpler than some startups think, explained Karen Anderson, CEO of Purple Peak Marketing, during a recent...

Mood food for mental wellbeing – How can industry capitalize?

On-the-go functionality: Snack brands like Mood Bars blend brain-boosting benefits, convenience

13-Nov-2024 By Ryan Daily

Consumer demands for on-the-go functionality are fueling growth in the nascent mood-support snack bar, with brands like Mood Bars and others differentiating themselves in a crowded category with the help of brain-boosting ingredients.

Mood food for mental wellbeing – How can industry capitalize?

Video: Relaxation, mood-support foods focus on the ‘other side’ of functional

13-Nov-2024 By Ryan Daily

A good night's sleep could be a functional product away, as consumers swap their alcoholic nightcap for a nonalcoholic option or their favorite comfort food to ease their mind after a long day, Scott Dicker, director of insights at SPINS told FoodNavigator-USA...

Mood food for mental wellbeing – How can industry capitalize?

Navigating regulatory claims for mood foods & functional ingredients

13-Nov-2024 By Deniz Ataman

Brands marketing foods and ingredients for mood management must navigate a complex regulatory landscape by understanding functional claims, relying on strong scientific evidence and staying informed on emerging trends to market their products effectively...

Mood food for mental wellbeing – How can industry capitalize?

When function meets convenience: how mood foods are shaping F&B NPD

13-Nov-2024 By Deniz Ataman

High quality nutrients – from vitamins and minerals to botanical extracts – drive consumers’ purchasing decisions, while the line between function and form continues to blur as brands develop foods and beverages that deliver targeted health benefits and...

Innovation watch: Natural clean energy drinks

13-Nov-2024 By Rachel Arthur

Health conscious consumers don’t want sugar-laden, taurine energy drinks: but they still want a burst of energy to keep them powering through their day. How are brands providing that better-for-you buzz?

Beyond Meat grows in Q3 despite demand dip

11-Nov-2024 By Deniz Ataman

Beyond Meat’s strategic decision to reposition its products as premium and rely less on discounts helped the company return its revenue to growth for the first time since 2022, but it cost the company volume, which continued to slide.

Hummus for children? Little Sesame addresses lemon supply chain issues to dip into new segment

07-Nov-2024 By Ryan Daily

Little Sesame navigated supply-chain issues — including climate change-related sourcing challenges — to expand its core lineup of products with a child’s version of its hummus, as the brand uses recent government and venture funding to fuel growth in...

The push for PHA: How Mad Tea’s compostable pods shift packaging standards

06-Nov-2024 By Deniz Ataman

Mad Tea’s 100% compostable tea pods, made from a blend of PHA and other compostable bioplastics, aim to satisfy consumer demand for sustainable packaging, yet experts warn that high production costs, limited infrastructure, and regulatory confusion pose...

2025 trends to watch: Functionality, sustainability, comfort flavors continue growth

06-Nov-2024 By Ryan Daily

Functionality and sustainability will grow in 2025, as shoppers balance their desires for authentic and indulgent flavors with nutritious foods and beverages, C.A. Fortune and SPINS shared in a recent webinar.

Future of grocery: Consumers demand shelf-stable & frozen innovation, digital apps, 84.51° reports

01-Nov-2024 By Ryan Daily

Young and old consumers are divided on their top desires for future product innovation — with the former wanting cleaner labels and the latter wanting more high protein foods and beverages — but both agree that digital tools are crucial to keeping grocery...

GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic set to shake the global food industry

31-Oct-2024 By Augustus Bambridge-Sutton

Originally intended as a treatment for diabetes, GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic could be set to turn the food and drink industry upside down.

Yogurts appeal beyond gut health, as coconut options gain in popularity

25-Oct-2024 By Ryan Daily

Consumers are buying yogurt for more than gut health benefits, including for protein and indulgence, as shoppers turn to coconut-based as their preferred plant-based yogurt despite general slowdowns in the category, per research from market research company...

Growing functional food and beverage trend is an industry goldmine

23-Oct-2024 By Donna Eastlake

Brands are reformulating to create functional foods and beverages, catering to everything from gut health to improved sleep. So, how is the sector evolving to meet consumer demand?

Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee

Nutrition experts reveal Healthy US-style dietary pattern – but is it flexible enough?

22-Oct-2024 By Deniz Ataman

The 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) recommends consolidating various dietary patterns into a single, inclusive Healthy US-Style Dietary Pattern that includes nutrient-dense, plant-based foods and which is accessible for all Americans.

Superguts' Target expansion underscores new retail playbook for addressing Ozempic era demands

15-Oct-2024 By Ryan Daily

Demand for GLP-1 support products helped gut-health brand Supergut triple sales in the last year and opened retail doors, including at Target.

Will alternative meats thrive in frozen? Circana shows growth

15-Oct-2024 By Deniz Ataman

Meat alternative sales dropped in the last four years, but all is not lost for the segment which has opportunity to thrive in the frozen department with a particular focus on convenience, value, ingredient quality, diverse formats and new flavors, Circana...

REBBL bulks up protein offerings with 26-gram shake, featuring upcycled EverPro ingredient

15-Oct-2024 By Ryan Daily

Functional beverage brand REBBL is delivering on consumer demands for sustainability and enhanced macronutrient content with its new shakes that contain 26 grams of plant-based protein blend, including an upcycled barley.

Beauty meets confectionery: A growing trend in functional wellness

14-Oct-2024 By Natasha Spencer-Jolliffe

Discover how beauty-enhancing ingredients like collagen and biotin are changing the confectionery industry with delicious, functional treats.

Why shoppers are turning towards costly organic food and drink

14-Oct-2024 By Nicholas Robinson

More consumers are buying pricier organic food and drink, despite continuing cost-of-living pressures, with sales expected to rocket as governments push to make organic farming central to future sustainability strategies.

Apothékary debuts in 400+ Sprouts stores, focuses on tincture business

11-Oct-2024 By Deniz Ataman

Wellness brand Apothékary’s retail partnership with Sprouts Farmers Markets highlights its product expansion of herbal powders for beverages to include tinctures that align with the retailers’ growing supplement department in the non-alcoholic space.

Food manufacturers, retailers double down on private-label, as market continues growth, FMI report

11-Oct-2024 By Ryan Daily

Retailers and food manufacturers are banding together to develop more on-trend and innovative private-label products, as the market sheds the perception that they are just cheaper alternatives to national brands, FMI – The Food Industry Association shared...

Reformulation is rife in F&B but consumers aren't sold yet

11-Oct-2024 By Donna Eastlake

Brands are reformulating to improve nutritional value and reduce or remove ‘unhealthy’ ingredient levels. But this is not always a vote winner with customers. Why?

DGAC: Diets high in plant-based foods are moderately linked towards reducing illness

10-Oct-2024 By Deniz Ataman

Although the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) did not find strong evidence between dietary patterns and disease risk, some age-related cognitive health issues and breast cancer are moderately linked to diet.

How Bumpin Blends’ founder turned a flight delay into a Barbie collab

10-Oct-2024 By Ryan Daily

When a delayed flight could have ruined her day, Bumpin Blends' founder, Lisa Mastela, used the downtime to network with fellow travelers and, in doing so, connected with representatives from toymaker Mattel that ultimately landed the smoothie brand...

Novonesis develops ‘cleaner ingredient deck’ for plant-based meat with biosolution technology

08-Oct-2024 By Deniz Ataman

Biotech company, Novonesis, addresses core taste, texture and nutritional challenges in plant-based meat and dairy with its biosolution technologies, potentially reducing the ingredient label deck.

USDA grants $11.04m for dairy producers, businesses to ‘spur innovation’ across the country

07-Oct-2024 By Deniz Ataman

USDA funding allocated for the Dairy Business Innovation Initiatives is supporting small and mid-sized dairy businesses and providing a pathway for market expansion and diversification, as the industry adopts innovative technologies around milk production

Recoup launches gut-friendly beverage at Sprouts, raises awareness on benefits of regen ag

07-Oct-2024 By Ryan Daily

Recoup’s prebiotic sparkling beverages hit the shelves at 420 Sprouts Farmers Market stores nationwide, as the company leans into gut health and regenerative agriculture claims to deliver consumer demands for functional and environmental benefits....

How food and drink is finally putting women's health before men

07-Oct-2024 By Donna Eastlake

Women’s health continues to grow as a hot food and drink topic, with brands exploiting the increasing NPD opportunities available

DGAC highlights nutritional disparities from latest dietary guidelines review

04-Oct-2024 By Deniz Ataman

Removing animal-based and carbohydrate-containing products and other food groups can lead to significant nutrient deficiencies, according to the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC).

Global population falls short on micronutrient intake

04-Oct-2024 By Asia Sherman

According to a recent analysis published in The Lancet, more than half of the world’s population consumes inadequate levels of micronutrients essential to health, including calcium, iron and vitamins C and E.

The Mart Group opens $65m facility to support burgeoning frozen baked potato brand OH!Tatoes

04-Oct-2024 By Ryan Daily

Potato producer The Mart Group opened a highly automated 100,000 square-foot facility in Rupert, Idaho — equipped with AI and automation — and will use the additional capacity to grow its frozen food business.

Babylife Organics rebuilds trust in baby food category with transparency, regen ag focus

01-Oct-2024 By Ryan Daily

Babylife Organics is reducing the levels of heavy metals in baby food by carefully sourcing ingredients and committing to certified regenerative organic processes while providing caregivers an easy way to check arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury levels...

Suja Organic makes ‘every sip count’ with rebrand focused on transparency, flavor, function

26-Sep-2024 By Ryan Daily

Suja Life rebranded its line of Suja Organic cold-pressed juices and wellness shots to simplify the product’s functionality and flavors as the company grows into more occasions and dayparts with its acquisition of soda brand Slice.

Rä Foods rebrands frozen yogurt to grow in natural channels, sprouts go pink with Susan G. Komen

26-Sep-2024 By Ryan Daily

Rä Foods rebranded and reformulated its line of frozen yogurts — from Mixmi to Wild About Mixmi Froyo — to appeal to consumers in the natural channel, as the company partners with the Susan G. Komen Foundation for Breast Cancer Awareness month.

'Sustainable products have to win the health battle,' Mintel on environmental trends in food, beverage

23-Sep-2024 By Ryan Daily

As greenwashing leads to "greenhushing," consumers are focusing on sustainable food and beverage claims that tap into their sense of health and self-preservation, with air quality and water conservation attributes set to take off in the US,...

Rising wellness trends: Zero-proof is ‘the next wave of beverages,’ foods for anxiety relief see ‘varied results’

20-Sep-2024 By Ryan Daily

Zero-proof beverages are gaining market traction as health-conscious consumers moderate their alcohol consumption while many shoppers also seek out functional foods to combat stress and anxiety, market research company Circana shared in a recent webinar...

Startup Spotlight

Coffee for children? Kiid Coffee takes a functional twist on the morning cup of Joe

19-Sep-2024 By Ryan Daily

Coffee is not just for adults thanks to Kiid Coffee, a functional beverage mix designed to help children hit their daily recommended intake of iron, magnesium, calcium and other important nutrients, the brand's co-founder David Sanborn told FoodNavigator-USA...

Nature’s Fynd’s fungi-based platform drives category expansion

19-Sep-2024 By Deniz Ataman

Nature’s Fynd is expanding into the dairy-free yogurt category with its proprietary Fy Protein to deliver nutritious solutions that meet consumer demand for plant-based alternatives that deliver taste and texture without compromise.

Gatorade mixes up portfolio with vitamin-enhanced Hydration Booster line, as water enhancer market grows

17-Sep-2024 By Ryan Daily

Gatorade released Hydration Boosters, an electrolyte drink mix line with a “heavier lifestyle lean” than its sports-focused products, as the brand evolves its portfolio to tap into more everyday occasions, Marissa Pines, senior marketing director for...

How climate change is impacting food commodities

13-Sep-2024 By Augustus Bambridge-Sutton

How is the food and beverage industry responding to the need to make its supply chains more sustainable? Find out at Climate Smart Food 2024.

ADM on the farm: Building regenerative agriculture builds business opportunities

12-Sep-2024 By Elizabeth Crawford

Regenerative agriculture is emerging as a powerful marketing concept with recent research by ingredient supplier ADM revealing most consumers familiar with the tenets are more likely to trust and buy from brands that support the practice.