What a waste – can big food really close the loop?
A major food and drink player has ambitions to close its waste loop, but can it be done?
Food tech & digital transformation
Scientists crack cocoa’s consistency conundrum
A breakthrough in cocoa fermentation could finally deliver consistent, high-quality flavour every time
Closing the visibility gap: How CPG brands can prevent lost sales in-store
Rising costs and stiff shelf competition mean every blind spot can turn into wasted product, lost sales or empty shelves when customers show up.
How AI can help CPGs turn MAHA compliance into a strategic advantage
As companies brace for stricter guidelines under the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) campaign, AI is emerging as an essential ally in reformulation, risk management and consumer trust
Sustainability September
Compostable packaging gains ground: What CPGs should know about PHA
Innovations in compostable packaging are moving towards a commercial reality, and CPG brands that engage early with PHA solutions will be better positioned to meet sustainability and compliance demands
From research to market: How generative AI can speed product development
Practical strategies from industry voices show how generative AI can enhance ideation, protect intellectual property and create “first-time right” product launches
From stockouts to shelf strength: How retail data can boost CPG sales
AI-driven retail insights firm Crisp Data helps seafood brand Safe Catch recover lost sales and fuel double-digit growth
Cell-based dairy moves closer to market with Opalia-Hoogwegt tie-up
Start-up Opalia is on a mission to prove its cell-cultured milk can be used to make an entire range of dairy products: from cheese to ice cream
IFT FIRST 2025
Letter from the editor: IFT FIRST highlights
IFT FIRST revealed how industry and academia are racing to deliver safe, sustainable and consumer-friendly solutions in a rapidly shifting food landscape
Nestlé invents novel cocoa technique amid chocolate crisis
The KitKat and Aero maker hopes to yield more chocolate from fewer cocoa fruits
Can AI and automation change the game in beverage manufacturing?
While AI technology may grab the headlines, automation still propels most of the efficiency gains in manufacturing. But both technologies can certainly alleviate workforce worries
Personalized marketing just got easier: AI-powered identity resolution blends deterministic and probabilistic matching
Hightouch’s new AI-powered identity resolution service lets marketers ‘toggle’ confidence levels for more precise or broader reach – all within their own data warehouse
Could plant-based chicken brand Daring’s sale to v2food revive US alt-protein?
Acquisition pairs Daring’s retail reach and clean-label appeal with v2food’s tech stack to tackle taste, texture and nutrition challenges holding back sales of plant-based protein in the US
From static to dynamic: Why CPG brands are rethinking QR code strategy
Dynamic QR codes are emerging as a key tool for brands to own the post-purchase experience and capture first-party data
Top proteins trends in 2025: From cell cultivated to plant-based
A deep dive into the consumer shifts, ingredient innovations and market opportunities redefining the global protein landscape
Kroger pilots with food waste reduction app to tackle shrink and affordability
Flashfood’s partnership with Kroger tests how the model performs in a real-world mix of store formats and shopper needs
How data and AI are becoming CPG’s competitive moat
The new competitive edge in CPG? Digital supply chain modeling
Bridging the innovation gap: Turing Labs’ domain-trained AI streamlines innovation execution
Turing Labs’ upgraded Luna AI promises to modernize product development and market execution by replacing legacy tools with proactive, domain-trained agents that take tasks from start to finish seamlessly
Future Food Tech Chicago
Mission Barns charts next steps after winning USDA & FDA nods for cultivated pork fat
Following the greenlight from USDA last week, Mission Barns is not wasting time bringing its animal-free cultured pork to market – it is targeting a Sprouts Farmers Market launch this summer, while simultaneously pursing B2B partnerships
How AI integration is boosting dairy farms and value chains across Africa
Artificial intelligence (AI) is helping dairy processors in Sub Saharan Africa to optimize supply chain logistics, enhance traceability of products and to monitor the health of animals in real time
IFT FIRST
Is fiber the new protein?
While no one is eschewing protein’s role in a balanced diet, innovations in dietary fiber are helping boost nutrient density - as both macronutrients continue to trend
Amazon Access opens doors to more than 40 million SNAP shoppers
Brands with qualifying products can tap into a high-potential, under-served consumer base through Amazon’s streamlined portal for EBT and budget-conscious customers
Future Food Tech-Chicago
Designer fats fast: Startup Smey’s ‘neobank of yeasts’ speeds creation of cultivated fats
Smey’s AI-powered digital library of more than 1,000 yeast strains can speed innovation of sustainable cultivated alternatives to popular fats and oils, including cocoa, shea and palm butter
AI-powered tech turns industrial waste into clean energy - without costing the earth
Wase’s microbe-driven tech is an evolution on traditional ADs that benefits anyone from dairies to distilleries
Oatly bets on coffee and science to fuel plant-based milk’s comeback
Oatly defends processed food, doubles down on coffee and pushes for the next wave of plant-based milk growth
Joyn Foods joins blended meat category on retail shelves
The blended meat - or balanced protein - category continues to grow as players invest in ingredient technology to align with consumer preferences for healthy, clean-label protein
Future Food Tech Chicago
TMI? How much is too much when it comes to food-tech transparency
Food-tech pioneers and established brands weigh the risks and rewards of disclosing the science and processing behind new ingredients and products versus leading with consumer benefits
Future Food-Tech Chicago
Coffee crisis: What will it take to close the looming ‘massive’ supply-demand imbalance?
Demand for coffee is rising, but current production is threatened by climate change and geopolitical tensions in regions where the crops are concentrated – creating an opportunity for new methods for creating coffee and alternatives
dsm-firmenich taps Meala to elevate texturized pea protein with clean-label functionality
The partnership leverages Meala’s patented technology to simplify formulation while meeting the technical demands of plant-based and hybrid food applications
What every food and drink brand must know about AI and innovation
AI can speed up your pipeline – but it won’t tell you why everyone still picks chocolate. Here’s how to innovate without losing your edge
Can AI protect future food security?
Climate change is threatening the world’s food supply, but could AI be the unexpected hero?
Future Food Tech Chicago
Blending in to standout: What is the market potential for ‘balanced proteins’?
Products that combine animal- and plant-protein are a time-tested culinary technique that offer untapped market potential to win over consumers based on taste, nutrition and sustainability goals
Future Food-Tech Chicago
Whipping up innovation: How 3 companies co-created a first-of-its-kind product in 3 weeks
An unlikely trio - Savor, Alamance and Thimus - used applied neuroscience, novel fats and agile frameworks to create a sustainable whipped topping and an innovation model other companies can use to fast-track product development
NielsenIQ integrates FoodHealth Score to bring nutrition transparency to retail and CPG
The integration is designed to give retailers, manufacturers and researchers new insight into product healthfulness alongside consumer behavior data
Sweets & Snacks Expo
Inside Mondelēz’s data-driven approach to omnichannel agility
Director of Omnichannel Growth Jillian Durojaiye shares how the CPG giant activates around consumer preferences across digital and physical retail touchpoints
Soup-To-Nuts Podcast
From microalgae to macro impact: Arborea harnesses sunlight to create ‘food without the footprint’
Climate-tech food startup Arborea’s proprietary BioSolar Leaf system promises to produce nutrient-dense proteins and superfoods by “industrializing photosynthesis” and using a fraction of the land, water and carbon footprint of conventional agriculture
Sojo Industries secures $40M to scale modular packaging and automation platform for multi- and variety-pack food products
Sojo Industries will use the funds to improve CPG supply chains with fast-deploy modular packaging robotics and blockchain-enabled logistics software
Startup Spotlight
From stealth to the field in less than a year: Finally Foods leverages partnerships for speed
Molecular farming newcomer Finally Foods is speeding past major milestones on its path to commercialization – including recently launching the first field trial for producing dairy proteins in potatoes – thanks in part to powerful partnerships, exclusive...
Future Food-Tech Chicago
Investors’ appetite for food-tech enters new era with shifting interest in alternative ingredients
The investment landscape for food-tech remains chilly, but there are bright spots for alternative fats and oils and some appetite for sweeteners as well as alt protein with proven business models
Precision fermentation’s not all casein and lactoferrin - it’s also osteopontin
Better Dairy is looking beyond casein to a new protein in precision fermentation dairy
Natural color startup shines light on upcycled solution for replacing synthetic dyes
CPG companies are rushing to remove synthetic dyes, stressing supply chains and creating opportunities for new natural colors, like Sparxell’s plant-based ingredients
Why snack bar brand David acquired food-tech company Epogee
Protein bar brand David is hitting the ground running since its launch last September, generating $1 million in sales in its first week, and projecting $140 million in revenue for its first full year
Positive Nutrition
Beyond the noise: Ethan Brown on plant-based meat’s next chapter
With consumer skepticism around ingredient transparency, faltering retail momentum and backlash from the meat industry, the company finds itself at a crossroads – one it is determined to navigate with what CEO Ethan Brown calls “radical transparency.”
Marketing to Gen Z and Alpha
From aisle to algorithm: Why Gen Z’s frozen food discovery starts on TikTok, not in the freezer aisle
Gen Z may still walk through the freezer aisle, but their decisions start long before they reach the store
Marketing to Gen Z and Alpha
Inside Instacart’s app for Gen Z: Fizz joins the party
Gen Zers’ preference for occasion-based snacking and drinking inspired Instacart to create the Fizz app
Sweets & Snacks Expo
How retail media and shopper behavior are shaping candy & snack sales
Consumer preferences and retail media strategies are transforming the candy and snack aisles amid inflation and evolving shopper habits
How plant-based dairy brands can address the quality and perception gap
Improving consumer perception of plant-based dairy may start with better biosolutions
Exclusive: FDA’s ‘no questions’ letter for TurtleTree’s LF+ could accelerate adoption of precision-fermented lactoferrin into everyday nutrition
FDA’s acknowledgement of the safety of LF+ in functional foods, beverages and supplements will encourage more companies to use the animal-free lactoferrin beyond the applications of its bovine counterpart, which due to limited availability and high price...
Why reproducibility is the next big hurdle in sustainable protein innovation
As sustainable protein companies scale, reproducibility is foundational – and the future of alt protein depends on shared scientific standards, from lab upgrades to collaborative testing.