With the global market for functional foods and beverages on track to reach $176.7 billion this year, this booming category now accounts for 5% of the overall food market and is driving growth for the food industry as a whole, according to Euromonitor.
There is huge, untapped, potential to incorporate fibers and proteins from rice bran into bars, powdered drink mixes, and other healthy products, says a natural products formulation expert that has just agreed to sell his business to rice bran ingredients...
Omega 3s will be swimming in uncharted waters with the launch of what Oceans Omega believes is the first shot product featuring EPA and DHA from fish oil.
The FDA says it will permit qualified health claims on the relationship between eating whole grains and a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes, but is the wording it has proposed so qualified that no food manufacturer will want to use it?
A bill proposing sweeping changes to food labeling laws covering everything from ‘natural’ claims to whole grain statements has been welcomed by consumer groups, but stands little chance of success, legal experts have told FoodNavigator-USA.
Consumer perceptions of store brands are continuing to improve in the US as retailers move beyond cheap me-too products. But perceptions of quality still vary considerably across different categories, says a new survey.
One in five Americans now grazes on snacks throughout the day instead of eating three square meals or even several ‘mini-meals’ a day, according to new research suggesting the line between meals and snacks has become increasingly blurred.
Mounting interest in the benefits of rice protein from the technical and sports nutrition communities alike has turned to increased sales of Axiom Foods’ brown rice protein powder.
ConAgra Foods has sold Lightlife - a manufacturer of frozen and refrigerated meat alternatives it acquired in summer 2000 - to private equity firm Brynwood Partners for an undisclosed sum.
US retail sales of non-GMO foods and beverages are projected to increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.9% in the next five years, and could represent 30% of the market with a value of $264bn in 2017, predicts Packaged Facts.
Leading stevia supplier PureCircle says “investments and assets are in place from agriculture to manufacturing” to be ready to commercialize two next generation stevia products - Reb D and Reb X - in 2014.
Aside from people with celiac disease, which is estimated to affect less than 1% of the US population, why do so many other Americans buy gluten-free products, and will they carry on buying them, or are current growth rates unsustainable?
A new-onset type 2 diabetic who developed diarrhea after being prescribed the drug Metformin resumed regular bowel movements, lost weight and experienced a dramatic reduction in fasting blood sugar after taking a novel ‘cobiotic’ ingredient, according...
Is it too risky to label products that may contain ingredients from genetically engineered crops as ‘all-natural’? And will the FDA step in and decide this issue so consumer class action lawsuits over this issue stop clogging up the court system?
A recent TV news segment on the subject of ginseng poaching raised the specter of the plant’s possible extinction in the United States. While that fear may be overblown, there’s little doubt that a number of factors (including overharvesting) are working...
Big Interview: Chris Cuvelier, founder/CEO of Zola Fruits of the World
In the increasingly crowded marketplace of functional beverages, what kind of impact can one more manufacturer of acai juice and coconut water expect to have?
The pace of progress on the joint development program of Cargill and Evolva to produce fermentation-based steviol glycosides is ‘exceeding expectations’ with the resulting ingredients potentially hitting the market earlier than expected.
On paper, it looks like a winner. Why not put Campbell soup in a K-Cup? It’s worked for coffee, tea and hot chocolate. And it beats donuts if you get the mid-afternoon munchies and don’t want to be consumed with guilt for the rest of the afternoon.
Are reasonable consumers being misled by companies using the term ‘evaporated cane juice’ (ECJ) to describe dried sugar cane syrup (aka sugar) on product labels? And should this issue be determined by the FDA or the courts?
Riding the wave of continued strong consumer demand for gluten-free food options, Canada’s gluten-free market reached $458.9 million in 2012, according to a recent report from Packaged Facts entitled 'Gluten-Free Foods in Canada'.
Plant proteins are all the rage - at least that’s what the market researchers are all saying - from pea and soy to algae and rice. But what about protein from canola, the second largest oilseed crop in the world?
While many US firms were struggling to get hold of sucralose from China early last year, the opposite is now true, with buyers reporting a glut of product on the market and a sharp reduction in prices.
Vinegar (acetic acid) should be ‘purposefully’ integrated into more food matrices, say the researchers behind a new study which reports the potential blood sugar management potential of a vinegar beverage.
PepsiCo has been experimenting with ingredients from unpeeled heat-treated green bananas and plantains to serve as everything from a gluten substitute to a sugar replacer in products from oatmeal to smoothies, crackers, bars and cookies, a recent patent...
Sterilization and pasteurization have no effects on the chemical composition and antioxidant activity of maple sap, says a new study that supports it as a ‘great candidate for functional beverage applications’.
Hundreds of illnesses from Cyclospora in Texas do not show a connection to Taylor Farms’ salad mix, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
What have you heard lately about Michigan? That its biggest city (Detroit - once the wealthiest city in the world) recently filed for bankruptcy? Or that from December 2009 to March 2013, it was the #1 state in the nation for creating manufacturing jobs,...
In an issue that seems reluctant to go away, the Center for Science in the Public Interest has put aloe vera on its “avoid” list because of a range of negative reactions the ingredient can cause. This judgment is in error, according to an industry group,...
While there’s been a lot of buzz around the FDA’s recent approval of spirulina extract as a natural blue food color for candy and gum, WILD Flavors says its fruit-juice-derived blue color - which has been on the US market since 2009 - has broader applications...
You can’t paint a horse like a cow and expect people not to notice – but grind their meat into patties and it may be a different story. So what makes an ingredient vulnerable to food fraud?
‘Eco-eating’, which encompasses everything from edible packaging trends to sustainable seafood, is moving from natural stores and fancy restaurants to the mainstream of food culture, according to a new report.
Early stage algae company Heliae has taken a quiet approach to business development. While the Arizona-based company is close to coming to market with a range of nutraceutical ingredients, not much has been said about them in the marketplace or the press,...
It’s been a good week for JM Smucker: The company just announced the ‘small but important’ acquisition of Enray Inc., reported its ‘strongest first quarter earnings ever’, and continued to see stellar growth for the Uncrustables brand.
With more than half of consumers in developed countries over the age of 14 now classified as overweight or obese, and obesity rates in China and India expected to double by 2020, global interest in weight management products “will likely remain high for...
Can consuming dairy products reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes? The answer, according to a systematic review published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition last week, is a qualified YES.
The American Heart Association (AHA) has fraudulently certified as ‘heart healthy’ scores of products from Campbell Soup that contain far more sodium than the FDA - and the AHA itself - recommends for people on a heart-healthy diet, alleges a lawsuit.
The Food and Drug Administration has given additional clarification to a ill-defined subcategory of foods by issuing a revised draft guidance on medical foods. The new version clarifies some issues surrounding branding and marketing, and in so doing,...
Given that one in three American adults is expected to develop type 2 diabetes by 2050, foods and supplements targeting pre-diabetics and type 2 diabetics would appear to have enormous potential. So why isn’t the ‘healthy blood glucose’ market exploding?
Sales of organic products rose 13% to $11.2bn in the year to July 6 in the US retail market, with the highest growth found in shelf-stable meats, poultry and seafood (+61%); followed by baby food (+34%); and shelf-stable functional beverages (+33%); according...
Soaring whey prices are changing the face of the protein concentrate market, but hefty Asian-driven premiums won’t signal a flood to plant proteins, says an analyst.
While just 7% of Americans identify themselves as vegetarian, more than a third of shoppers (36%) buy meat alternatives, suggesting the category is appealing to a far broader demographic, according to a consumer survey conducted by Mintel.
Is your brand getting some decent bang for the bucks you spend on paid-for (‘promoted’) tweets? The answer, according to a new trial with 35 big names in consumer packaged goods (CPG) including Mondelez, is YES.
Many US supermarkets are stuck in a timewarp, and their market share will continue to decline unless they makes radical strategic changes, according to a provocative new report from Hartman Strategy.
A Minnesota-based firm making waves with anthocyanin-packed purple-corn ingredients says it has had significant interest from the snack food market, but is also talking to microbrewers, confectioners, and firms manufacturing everything from sourdough...