Is Lidl’s ‘Preferred Selection’ private label “confusingly similar” to Kroger’s ‘Private Selection’? Or is Kroger’s recent trademark infringement lawsuit against Lidl merely an opportunistic bid to derail a rival’s US market entry?
Using a novel nutrition rating system, such as Guiding Stars, could give retailers and food service chains a competitive edge by creating the perception they offer more of the healthy, fresh foods that today’s consumers increasingly want, new research...
As palates in North America change and acidified foods become more acceptable, space is created, too, for additives such as pectin that can handle specific pH regimes.
Ethical claims on food and beverages sold in the US are almost as ubiquitous as the Nutrition Facts panel and while they are not legally mandated by FDA like nutritional information, some manufacturers might feel like they are just as obligatory given...
Convenience is not necessarily mutually exclusive from freshness, and The Better Bean Company is an example of a brand that is catering to consumer demand for quick, grab-and-go yet fresh products.
There’s a very likely chance that Amazon will come to dominate the meal kit category, according to market research analyst Howard Waxman at Packaged Facts.
The ready meal category in the US is set to explode in part as a natural evolution of the meal kit craze that taught consumers how to cook healthy, fresh food at home, but which still ultimately takes more time than many people have daily, according to...
Leading trade groups for the retailer and food service industries are suing New York City to stop inspectors from holding their members responsible for posting calorie counts for prepared “restaurant-type food” ahead of a similar federal rule that has...
As recently as two years ago, bone broth was virtually unheard of by the masses, but now it is seemingly everywhere with newcomers crowding the category and pushing early players such as Bonafide Provisions to innovate to stay ahead of the competition.
As consumers continue to seek new flavors and experiences, Coca-Cola is exploring the booming US meal kit market in a new partnership with Chef’d that offers co-branded meal kits with complementary Coca-Cola brands.
Amazon's increased penetration into the grocery sphere will mean computer wizards, molecular biologists and sustainability experts will be developing ultra-intelligent grocerants of the future, predicts 'supermarket guru' Phil Lempert.
Consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands have a tough road ahead with the boom in grocerants, but they can survive with some clever collaboration and product re-thinks, says 'supermarket guru' Phil Lempert.
The long-raging debate over whether cutting carbs or cutting fat is a better way lose weight is a false dichotomy, according to new research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition that found successfully shedding pounds is less about...
Household penetration of protein bars has continued to increase as more retailers have moved them from the OTC/supplement aisles to the main snack bar fixtures, prompting shoppers to ‘trade up’ from sugary cereal bars to higher protein, lower sugar nutrition...
Entrepreneurs whose families immigrated to the US increasingly are bottling the flavors of their culture in marinades, sauces and spreads to satisfy not only their cravings for foods from their heritage, but to make international cooking at home more...
Sweetech, a new family of flavor enhancers from Bell Flavors and Fragrances, can help food and beverage manufacturers achieve significant (20-50%) reductions in sugar and retain a clean label, claims the Illinois-based company.
By Jay W. Connolly, Edward F. Maluf and Owen Wolfe, attorneys, Seyfarth Shaw
One of the hottest topics in the food, beverage and dietary supplement industries, for both producers and advertisers, remains the disclosure of genetically modified organisms, or ‘GMOs,’ in these products.
General Mills said it will focus on growing its cereal venture with Nestlé, unlocking growth opportunities and investing in NPDs to overturn the company’s historical decline in quarter-on-quarter revenues.
By Charlie Arnot, CEO, The Center for Food Integrity
If you care about GMO labeling, you only have a few more days to respond to USDA's 30 questions* about how to implement the new law. The looming deadline is both a stark reminder of the controversy around GMOs that brought the food industry to this...
The Amazon/Whole Foods deal has “absolutely rattled food retailing and CPG markets in a way I have never seen in my life,” says the founder of organic meal-kit company Green Chef, who says he has been approached by multiple ‘strategic’ suitors as the...
A comparison between Lidl stores in Europe and the first wave of US stores suggests the retailer is moving “away from the hard discount model as we know it in Europe,” according to an analysis by Bernstein.
Paleo product sales could soar in the next three years if enough manufacturers invest, according to IRI, but Mintel says paleo will never reach Greek yogurt heights.
Which ingredients should be classified as dietary fibers and why? Elaine Watson caught up with Dr Dennis Gordon from North Dakota State University (NDSU) at the IFT show in Las Vegas as the FDA considers petitions from suppliers of everything from inulin...
While the $700m price tag is sizeable for a company generating trailing 12-month revenues of $218m, Campbell Soup’s acquisition of Pacific Foods – best known for its shelf-stable plant-based beverages and organic broths and soups – makes strategic sense...
Convenience is a dominating factor influencing which foods and beverages shoppers in Mexico buy – even beating out innovation and authenticity, which also weigh heavily in the decision-making process, according to a recent Culinary Visions Panel.
With unemployment rates approaching 14% after two years of recession, Brazil’s economy is projected to grow by less than 0.5% in 2017, while the president has become embroiled in a corruption scandal some commentators fear could endanger an economic recovery....
To many consumers, ‘processed food’ is just another term for ‘junk food.’ It’s hard to define, but we know it when we see it (Twinkies). But do we know a ‘highly processed’ ingredient when we see it, and how much processing is too much? Elaine Watson...
Canadian bug powder supplier Entomo Farms is still doing most of its business with snack food companies, but VP Darren Goldin – chatting with FoodNavigator-USA at the IFT show - envisions a future where frozen raw insects (as well as the roasted and milled...
Glyphosate (the active ingredient in Monsanto’s herbicide RoundUp) will be added to California's Prop 65 list on July 7, 2017, meaning warning labels will be required from July 2018. But what, if anything, does this mean for packaged foods that might...
To preserve mushrooms to sell to foodservice companies, Scelta Muhsrooms blanches its white button mushrooms first. The wastewater is then used to make an umami-flavored ingredient.
What new tools are brands using to get products to market more quickly, and build consumer insights into the process at every stage? Are traditional focus groups becoming passé?
Amazon.com offers startups a way to test their products' proof of concept and gain an early, loyal following before approaching large physical retailers. But the website also leaves brands vulnerable to public consumer reviews and can be difficult...
The UK fresh prepared food market – in which Bakkavor is a leading player - is dominated by private label products, but there is a clear opportunity for national brands to carve out a significant slice of the rapidly-growing chilled food pie in the US,...
One product that generated quite a buzz at the IFT show this year was NuBana green banana flour from International Agriculture Group (IAG). Elaine Watson caught up with VP marketing and business development (and resistant starch guru) Rhonda Witwer to...
Producing ‘clean’ meat by culturing cells – instead of raising or slaughtering animals - is a new frontier in food production, but will it require a new regulatory framework, and what should we call it? Elaine Watson caught up with one food law attorney...
An expert panel convened by the International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP) has updated the definition of “prebiotics” to take into account advances in sequencing technology and the expansion in the use of the ingredients...
In what could be seen as another step in the trend of pressure on the margins of big CPG brands, Kellogg Company is stretching out payment schedules with retailers, according to an analyst’s report.
Hain Celestial’s Cultivate Ventures arm has acquired Portland, OR-based The Better Bean Company - which makes prepared beans and bean dips in chilled deli tubs – for an undisclosed sum.
Consumer demand for products that are authentic and ethnic is not only prompting brand manufacturers to innovate it is also raising the competitive bar at retailers, according to industry experts.
The first commercial product from Hampton Creek’s new clean meat production platform “will likely be in the avian family,” director of cellular agriculture Eitan Fischer told FoodNavigator-USA as the company best known for its work on plant-based proteins...
Acting responsibly and creating a positive social impact is no longer optional for companies – it is now a basic requirement for success based on the increasing weight consumers place on corporations' ethical and moral actions when making their purchasing...
The increasingly loud debate about food waste could easily lead one to believe it is “the” biggest issue industry currently faces, but new study in the American Journal of Agricultural Economics suggests most estimates are overblown and many proposed...
As the tenacious gluten-free trend continues to grow and mature into a market behemoth in the US, it is paving the way for the emergence of two trends that both claim to reduce the risk of inflammation and offer increased nutrient density despite opposing...
In the refrigerated, HPP baby food space, cold-pressed ingredients dominate. Fresh Bellies is differentiating itself by cooking vegetables to release flavor, and not blending them with fruits.
Certifying a product as approved by the popular Whole30 diet is a “pretty intensive” process, according to the diet’s co-creator, but for the few and proud that make the cut, the licensing deal can provide exposure to a fiercely loyal consumer base, boost...
While barely a week goes by without the launch of a new meal kit company, there is room in the market for “many multi-billion dollar players,” provided they carve out a distinct niche, insists the founder of Gobble, which focuses on pre-prepped meals...
Aside from giving Amazon a network of bricks & mortar stores from which to expand Amazon Fresh and other services, acquiring Whole Foods gives the ecommerce giant access to the 365 private label brand, which could become a “focal point of its online...
Winnipeg-based Johnny and Jennifer Kien went through the hassle of making fresh baby food from scratch when their firstborn came along. The hard work inspired them to start a brand that would make it easier for other parents.
