While a scary percentage of new food & beverage brands end up quietly disappearing when their backers run out of cash, luck, or endurance, a small number succeed. But what distinguishes the winners from the losers?
Aiming for a lower cost way to boost flavor and mouthfeel of stevia extract, sweetener supplier Sweet Green Fields (SGF) launched Natrose I natural flavor at last month’s IFT 2014 show in New Orleans.
When consumers think about GMOs, they tend to contrast them with “some hypothetical alternative food that is pristine”, when in most cases, going ‘non-GMO’ just means returning to a food production system that is less efficient - and worse for the environment...
FoodNavigator-USA takes you through the latest and greatest in new product launches, from affordable healthy snacks and chia energy drinks to all-purpose stevia and dairy-free desserts.
Fourteen years after Unilever spent $2.3bn (€1.7bn) to buy Slim-Fast, it has sold up for an undisclosed sum to a private equity player. Analyst and author Julian Mellentin tracks the decline of a mega-brand and considers what he sees as a category in...
While many cardio health products are still focused on reducing 'bad' LDL cholesterol, the next generation will cover a broader range of benefits from improving endothelial function to protecting LDL cholesterol from oxidation, predicts tomato...
So Delicious Dairy Free brand grew at a 30% CAGR over past five years
While gluten-free gets all the glory, dairy-free products such as almond and coconut milk are growing at an equally explosive rate, says So Delicious Dairy Free, which has notched up a compound annual growth rate of 30%+ over the past five years, and...
H.U.M.A.N., the company behind better-for-you vending machines and healthy micro markets, has taken its business-to-business healthy snack distribution model into corporate offices with the launch of SnackNation.
The growth of the Non-GMO Project verification scheme has been nothing short of explosive over the past 18 months. But does the firm serving as its technical administrator have the resources to cope, and are competing certification schemes adopting the...
Recent pathogen outbreaks in raw chia powder and concerns over whether some psyllium is actually food grade highlight the ongoing importance of selecting suppliers wisely, says the CEO of BI Nutraceuticals.
The US food and beverage industry anticipates continued sales growth in 2014 on the heels of strong performances the past two years, according to the second annual "US Food & Beverage Industry Study" from accounting, tax and advisory services...
Americans don’t eat a third of the food they produce. But while this shocking statistic might alarm consumers, many still don’t see themselves as part of the problem, and mistakenly believe that food waste is less damaging to the environment than other...
At $88.3bn in 2013, the size of the US specialty food prize is already mouthwatering, and if current trends continue (sales grew 9.6% in 2012 and 8% in 2013), it will blast through the $100bn barrier in 2015. But which categories are growing most rapidly?
If you wash chia seeds after you harvest them, they turn into a gelatinous goo. Which can be a problem if you are trying to tackle salmonella, contamination with which is currently causing some big issues in the trade.
Steviol glycosides produced through fermentation will be cost-effective, high purity, and sustainable, but they are about 18 months away, says DSM Food Specialties as it announces its new sweetener platform at the IFT Expo.
Women, protein blends, and the ‘anti-wasting’ market are all areas of significant opportunity in sports nutrition, says Jeff Hilton, co-founder and CMO of BrandHive.
If the cover of TIME magazine earlier this month (headline: Eat Butter) is anything to go by, it would seem that the conversation about fat, and saturated fat in particular, is changing, at least in the media. But are policymakers sitting up and taking...
Pills or foods? Experts from the world of functional foods will join NutraIngredients-USA for a discussion of the functional foods, from market sizing and key consumer demographics to the regulatory considerations.
Food and beverage manufacturers are holding their collective breath in anticipation of the proposed changes to the Nutrition Facts panel put forth by the Food and Drug Administration and likely to be finalized next year.
A new player is poised to enter the burgeoning plant protein market with new protein and fiber ingredients produced via a novel fermentation process from heat stabilized defatted rice bran.
While the percentage of groceries purchased online remains significantly below that of books, TVs and pretty much everything else, e-commerce sales of food and consumables (food, beverage plus home/personal care items bought via online grocers) rose 13.7%...
Starbucks-owned brand Evolution Fresh is test marketing a new range of co-branded smoothies made with cold pressed, high pressure processed juice and Dannon Greek yogurt in 200 Starbucks stores in San Jose and St Louis.
It's hot, it's sweaty, and it's the place to be if you're interested in what's next in the weird and wonderful world of food ingredients. Check out our first gallery of highlights from the 2014 IFT annual meeting & expo in...
You'd think that pro-science,'molecular gastronomists' such as Chef Homaru Cantu would be all in favor of genetically engineered foods, especially if they can add nutrition, or reduce the environmental impact of food production, right?...
The number of Americans aged 65+ will double in the next 25 years. But manufacturers of products that could have strong appeal to this demographic (Greek yogurt, protein bars) are not doing enough to target them, says IRI.
A novel ‘enzymatic enhancement’ process that can convert low grade stevia extracts into high purity Reb A could transform the economics of stevia production and help California-based Stevia First stand out in the market, claims its boss.
Growing consumer interest in positive nutrition, demographic shifts, new eating patterns, recent scientific findings, and the recommendations from the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans all point to a bright future for protein-rich foods and beverages,...
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...
While tocopherols have historically grabbed the limelight, the other members of the antioxidant-packed vitamin E family - tocotrienols - offer exciting benefits for cardiovascular and cellular health, says the firm behind annatto-derived delta-tocotrienol,...
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.
Celebrity doctor Mehmet Oz has admitted that the biggest disservice he has done for his audience is not identifying where to buy the quality products he talks about on his show.
Can anything top protein? What’s a “silver consumer” and why should we care? Would salty caramel work in a soft drink? Innova Market Insights teased a very full agenda of trendwatching presentations at next week’s Institute of Food Technologists’ (IFT)...
Cargill has unveiled IngreVita, a proprietary blend of high oleic canola oil, antioxidants and long-chain omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) from fish oil that it claims will take omega-3 food and beverage fortification from the niche to the mainstream.
United Natural Foods Inc. the dominant force in organic and natural food distribution in North America, says its acquisiton of Tony’s Fine Foods will help it stave off competition in the space from more mainstream distributors.
Nearly 3% of global food and beverage launches and 6% of US food/bev launches were marketed on a ‘high-protein’ or ‘source-of-protein’ positioning in the year ending March 31, 2014, according to data from Innova Market Insights.
Eating instant oatmeal for breakfast may help to manage hunger better than the leading oat-based, cold cereal, says a new study funded by Quaker Oats with implications for weight management.
The evidence has grown so strong for the best-documented probiotic strains that a generic digestive health claim should exist, according to a consensus statement from leading international researchers published this week in Nature Reviews: Gastroenterology...
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has finalized a set of manufacturing guidelines designed to ensure infant formula products produced for domestic sale are “safe and support healthy growth.”
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?
The US soymilk category remains in a funk according to a new report, which shows retail sales - which topped $1bn five years ago - slumped 8.5% to $638m in 2013, while sales of soy-based meat alternatives fell 1% to $776m, despite all the excitement...
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...
A bill that would have required firms to label genetically engineered foods in California has failed to secure sufficient votes in the state senate to pass into law.
Health and other consumer benefits may help make transgenic or genetically engineered (GE) food more acceptable to consumers, but the food industry needs to be more transparent to win back trust, says the immediate past president of IFT.
Leading academic calls results “out of line and improbable”...
The cost of New York State adopting labeling of GMO ingredient in food products could increase the cost of food for a family of four by $800 per year, says a new economic study from Cornell University. The results have been described as “out of line and...
There’s a reason why beef burgers are so popular, says Cluck ‘n Moo founder Steve Gold. They taste great and they are really succulent. But what if you could have the same great taste with less than half the saturated fat and 32% fewer calories?
What does it take to get to the top of a leading food and beverage company? Can you still make it from the shop-floor to the boardroom? Is an MBA essential? And do operations managers or R&D directors ever get to lead Fortune 500 companies, or do...
