Food prices across categories are predicted to rise low- to mid-single digits this year and again next year – adding on to already higher prices in 2020 fueled in part by the pandemic and raising questions about how consumers will react in the long term,...
The latest consumer price index reveals food prices have climbed 3.4% over the past year, reflecting a slow but steady month over month increase that likely won’t stop any time soon as ingredient, material and labor shortages continue.
The cost of containerized freight has reached an all-time high, says a new report from Mintec, which says its global shipping composite index (based on 11 east-west trade routes) reached a monthly average of $8,796 per 40-foot container in June, up +24%...
Meat, egg, and dairy ‘alternatives’ usually come with qualifying language (plant-based eggs; meatless nuggets, oatmilk). But what should we call next generation products that are not simply mimicking the real thing, but in many cases, are the ‘real’ thing,...
Online grocery shopping sales declined by 2% to $6.7bn in the month of July compared to the previous month, but still remain well above pre-COVID sales levels, according to recent data from Brick Meets Click/Mercatus Grocery Shopping Survey.
General Mills is dipping its toes into the emerging ‘animal-free’ dairy category with a brand called Renegade Creamery developing cheeses utilizing dairy proteins made via microbial fermentation (without cows).
While the topline data from General Mills’ yogurt business has made for grim reading in recent years, prompting headlines such as ‘General Mills loses the yogurt wars,’ the company has staged a recovery in its core Yoplait original line and is seeing...
The Mars Advanced Research Institute (MARI) is a division of Mars examining how developments in science and technology are going to shape the future food system. Dr Abi Stevenson, Mars VP of MARI, told us her unit is ‘looking at those truly next generation...
Best known for renovating the cottage cheese category with a clean-label alternative free from additives and made with milk from pasture-raised dairy cows, Good Culture has its sights set far beyond the $1.2bn cottage cheese category to become a fermented...
Grocery retailers and packaged food and beverage brands should brace for another significant shift in consumer shopping habits this month as many families with students returning to in-person school after a year or more of distance or hybrid learning...
For the first time in decades other than for inflation, the US Department of Agriculture is increasing the basis for which it calculates food assistance benefits allotted under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – a move that will help more...
Beyond Meat’s filings with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) reveal the broad scope of the company’s innovation pipeline, with trademark applications over the past couple of years spanning everything from Beyond Milk and Beyond Eggs...
Join Noblegen, Plantible Foods, Superbrewed Food, Mattson and Lever VC to discuss the future of protein
Plant-based proteins such as soy and pea continue to dominate the so-called ‘alternative protein’ category, but they’re not the only game in town. New options are now emerging from ‘animal-free’ collagen and whey to a novel set of proteins produced naturally...
While following a climatarian diet that prioritizes foods and beverages made in a way that protects and restores the planet’s health may still be niche, the trend is gaining traction quickly with some researchers and brands predicting environmental sustainability...
Worried that biotechnologies, such as those used to create non-browning mushrooms, are inadequately regulated or could be unfairly shunned by the public, a coalition of non-governmental organizations this week published a six-point framework for the “responsible...
A judge handling a high-profile lawsuit* over the use of dairy terminology on plant-based products has ruled in favor of Miyoko’s Creamery in its legal spat with the State of California over its use of terms such as ‘butter’ on plant-based products, in...
Closing out the first half of 2021, HelloFresh reported a year-over-year 83.7% increase in the number of active customers using the meal delivery service worldwide, as well as the continued global expansion of its business in new and existing markets.
Calories from ultra-processed foods comprise more than two-thirds (67%) of children's and adolescents' diets, up from 61.4% in 1999, according to researchers from Friedman School of Nutrition Science & Policy at Tufts University.
“Current data indicates that neither food nor food packaging is a pathway for the spread of viruses causing respiratory illnesses, including SARS-CoV-2,” according to a new guidance document from the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization...
Danone is hoping to make a splash in the small but rapidly growing plant-based yogurt segment with a Greek-style product under its Silk brand boasting 10g of protein from peas and a thick, creamy texture from coconut cream it claims will be a game changer...
The premium ice cream business can be pretty brutal – just ask Three Twins, Clemmy’s and Ample Hills – with regional brands now slugging it out with multinationals and a flurry of VC-backed startups in a market offering a bewildering array of options...
Lifeway Foods, best known for its kefir products, announced the intent to acquire certain assets of California-based GlenOaks Farms for $5.8m this week, expanding the company's position in the drinkable dairy space, says CEO Julie Smolyansky.
The Food Labeling Modernization Act - an updated version of a bill first introduced in 2018 that was designed to help consumers make more informed purchases – has been introduced to the House and the Senate.
UK-based startup The Supplant Company is targeting the US market with an intriguing new addition to the sugar-reduction toolbox in the form of ‘sugars from fiber,’ a new low-glycemic blend of sugars extracted from upcycled feedstocks that performs like...
Oatly has lost its trademark infringement case against British oat milk producer Glebe Farm, claiming that it never saw the dispute as a David v Goliath power play. Glebe calls the case a victory for consumer choice in a growing category.
Leading CPG companies including Unilever, Hershey, and General Mills have urged the FDA to look again at the way some sugars such as tagatose and isomaltulose are labeled on the Nutrition Facts panel in the wake of recent changes to the way allulose is...
Plant-based dairy brand Miyoko’s Creamery has raised $52m in a series C round led by PowerPlant Partners ($40m) that will help fund marketing and innovation at the firm, which generated a 70% increase in revenues in 2020, and is gearing up to launch an...
The a2 Milk Company – maker of ‘tummy-friendly’ milk containing only A2 beta-casein protein - is continuing to generate double-digit growth in the US market while overall US retail sales of dairy milk continue to decline, says the company, which is planning...
By Rob Guite, Abby Meyer, and Abby Miles, Sheppard Mullin
President Biden’s recent executive order, ‘Ensuring the Future is made in all of America by all of America’s Workers,’ may encourage food & beverage companies to highlight their all-American credentials on-pack. However, claims about a product’s origin...
For many women, eating and cooking at home every day during the pandemic has been a double-edged sword that offered them more time with family and control over their diet, but also added a burden that left many women feeling unsatisfied – opening the...
From San Diego-based Debut Biotech, which is developing a range of high-value ingredients via a novel ‘cell-free’ biomanufacturing platform, to Virginia-based Bonumose, which has patented technology it claims could enable the “mass market adoption” of...
Santiago, Chile and Paris-based AI-driven startup Protera is one step closer to commercializing a portfolio of clean-label proteins that can replace chemical preservatives to extend food shelf-life, safely turn unsaturated fats into saturated fats, enhance...
From immunity- and metabolism-boosting kefir to a sugar-free lassi that supports mental clarity to trendy boba lattes optimized for performance and recovery, the 12 semi-finalists in the Real California Milk Excelerator are reinforcing the old adage “milk...
Fine chemicals co DIC has teamed up with San Diego-based startup Debut Biotech to develop color ingredients via a novel ‘cell-free’ biomanufacturing platform, which it claims could enable the biosynthesis of colors that are “hard to find or even inaccessible...
Consumers who turned to functional foods and beverages to help reduce anxiety, improve their sleep and lift their spirits during lockdowns are likely to continue their new habits and rituals as they navigate an uncertain return to offices, travel and...
Santiago-based food tech company NotCo has raised $235m in a Series D round led by Tiger Global and supported by DFJ Growth Fund, ZOMA Lab, athletes Lewis Hamilton and Roger Federer, and musician and DJ Questlove, taking its cumulative funding to $350m...
As many food and beverage companies face the pressure of increased costs to manufacture and transport their products, consumers have also reported feeling the impact inflation is having on their grocery bills.
The pandemic prompted the first positive growth in US retail volumes of fluid dairy milk for years (+2.1% in 2020). However, a corresponding drop in away-from-home consumption meant overall volumes were flat (-0.1%) in 2020 and are predicted to drop -4.5%...
Sourdough bread and stretchy pants may have been all the rage during the early days of the pandemic, but as vaccines become more prevalent and US consumers begin to reemerge from lockdowns, they increasing are turning to keto-bread and other low-carb...
Consumers’ intense focus on healthy eating and immunity-boosting foods is beginning to wane as more people become vaccinated, creating space for more indulgence and a back-to-basics approach to food, according to Mintel data.
The European Food Safety Authority was asked to review the link between sugar consumption and various diseases. The results are in: “Based on the risk of developing chronic metabolic diseases and dental caries, the intake of added and free sugars should...
Entering into the second half of 2021, Unilever said it will accelerate pricing across its product portfolio to offset the rising costs of transportation and commodities such as soybean oil.
Research published in the scientific journal Environmental Science & Technology claims to provide an enlightening but worrying insight into the world of chemicals that are intentionally added to plastics.
In the days and months immediately following the declaration of the coronavirus pandemic, consumer interest in immunity boosting foods and beverages tripled and brands moved fast to launch products to meet this heightened demand – but as vaccines become...
With an infusion of $10m in series A funds announced today the biotech and data science company Aromyx soon will be able to help more food and beverage brands quickly measure consumer perceptions more accurately than traditional taste test panels, which...
Nature’s Fynd - a Chicago-based startup growing protein-packed food from microbes with a fraction of the environmental footprint of meat or dairy – has raised $350m in a Series C round (taking its total financing to >$500m) as it gears up to launch...
Israeli firm NextFerm Technologies – one of a flurry of players developing new protein sources from microbes - is gearing up for the 2022 commercial launch of ProteVin, a vegan, non-GMO, yeast-based protein, following successful testing at pilot scale...
Swedish keto-friendly brand Nick’s – which entered the US in late 2019 with low carb light ice cream pints – is on course to triple its US sales in 2021 (vs 2020) with continued growth in bricks & mortar retail, sharp growth in its fledgling direct...
