Better-for-you snack maker Popchips Inc. is selling its UK and European business to KP Snacks after five years of “whirlwind strong year after year growth” in the UK that led the brand to become the No. 1 growth crisp in the region, according to the company...
While the US olive oil market is highly competitive and extremely confusing to many Americans, Italian-based Domenico Manca believes it can add clarity and superior quality with the upcoming expansion of its San Giuliano brand throughout the US and Canada...
One of the best places to spot emerging trends is at the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City where earlier this month more than 2,400 manufacturers and suppliers showcased more than 180,000 products ranging from innovative sweets, better-for-you snacks...
The FDA’s July 12 public meeting on cell-cultured (aka ‘clean’ meat) exposed sharp differences of opinion over how meat grown from cells outside an animal should be labeled and regulated. But there was also real excitement about the potential of a technology...
Dang Foods – best known for its coconut chips and sticky rice snacks – is making its first foray into the notoriously crowded bar segment with the FATBAR – a new high fat, moderate protein, low carb, nut butter-based bar with no added sugar that taps...
As sales of moringa in the US continue to rise, category pioneer Kuli Kuli is stepping up its consumer outreach and education efforts to defend its leading position in the space against competition from less-expensive and lower-quality options.
Sometimes less is more, as in the case of caffeine, which the founders of Chicago-based beverage startup Tempo argue more effectively boosts productivity, awareness and cognitive performance when metered out in “micro-doses,” rather than the mega-amounts...
Primal Kitchen – a lifestyle brand spearheaded by former endurance athlete Mark Sisson (strapline: ‘Eat like your life depends on it’) - is on course to double sales this year as it adds new lines to its Paleo-fueled food portfolio from unsweetened ketchup...
For those who like the fiery heat of hot sauce but not the “sour pickle punch” that often comes with the vinegar base, Louisiana-based startup Swamp Dragon has a solution, according to the company’s founder.
At IFT in Chicago next week, “future-forward entrepreneurs” participating in the NEXT Start-Up Alley will showcase new solutions to some of today’s biggest problems, including food safety and sugar-reduction, as well as emerging challenges of the future,...
Artesa chickpea protein: 'It's as close to dairy as any plant protein we've tested'
Plant-based proteins are hot property, but organoleptic and functional challenges continue to hold the market back, claims Virginia-based Nutriati, which says its new chickpea protein concentrates can open up new application opportunities and give soy,...
It wasn’t too long ago when locally-grown produce evoked images of backyard gardens or roadside produce stands many miles outside of city limits. Now, the local produce movement has morphed into an urban-centered industry thanks to the rise of hydroponic...
Plant-based meats and clean-label are two of the most influential trends in food currently, but often they run counter to each other with many mock-meats made from highly-processed ingredients and protein isolates that most consumers would never find...
Thousands of anecdotal reports collected by the Center For Science in the Public Interest and others correlating artificial dyes, such as Red 40, with behavior problems have prompted some parents to seek naturally colored products – many of which fall...
Just Egg - a plant-based scrambled egg alternative from JUST made with mung bean protein - is rolling out to all 30 Veggie Grill restaurants next week, and has secured approvals at a raft of retailers including Fresh Thyme, Wegmans, Gelson's Market...
There's a lot of hype around 'big data' and 'data analytics', but how can you cut through the noise to distill these buzzwords down into something that is useful to your startup or established company?
Sustainably produced and packed with protein and vitamins, microalgae holds significant promise to help feed the growing population without exhausting the Earth’s limited resources, but its strong flavor has stopped many manufacturers from using it –...
We’re searching for trailblazing, entrepreneurial start-ups or established brands with new products to present their red hot food and nutrition innovations targeting expectant Moms, babies, toddlers, kids or teens at FoodNavigator-USA’s FOOD FOR KIDS...
While the ongoing war on sugar is taking a toll on sales of conventional chocolate in the US, it is creating an opportunity for once-niche, better-for-you options, including sugar-free – as long as the taste and experience are not compromised in the trade-off,...
Plant-based meat brand Beyond Meat has opened a second production facility in Columbia, Missouri, that will more than triple its manufacturing footprint from 30,000 to 100,000sq ft and create 250 new jobs in 2018.
Stevia-sweetened zero-cal beverage brand Zevia – which first hit the market in 2007 - notched up growth of more than 50% year on year in the latest 12 weeks in conventional channels, driven almost entirely through velocity gains as consumers demand beverages...
Mushroom chip brand Mudlrk (pronounced ‘mudlark’ – a term meaning a person who scavenges for objects of value) is aiming to begin online retail of its four SKUs at the end of July and hit brick & mortar stores later this year.
The plant-based milk segment was already pretty crowded by the time Jeff Richards quit the day job to launch Mooala in 2016. But the fact that buyers at the likes of Whole Foods, Safeway, H.E.B., Costco, and Wegmans, were willing to give him a shot this...
Tea Drops – which specializes in bagless, organic, pressed tea ‘drops’ that ‘disintegrate in your cup’ - has closed a $1.9m seed round led by New York-based early stage venture fund AccelFoods and supported by Halogen Ventures and Cue Ball Capital.
For Crop One Holdings the sky isn’t the limit – it is just the next stopover – thanks a $40 million joint venture with Emirates Flight Catering that will more than double the vertical farm’s daily production of leafy greens and expand the Massachusetts-based...
Investors in early stage food companies are constantly searching for the ‘what’s next?’ in food, and many fundamentally agree that the ideas and people worth investing in are the ones that are fulfilling an unmet consumer need in a "unique way that...
Finless Foods – one of a new wave of start-ups in the rapidly heating-up cultured fish* arena - has raised $3.5m in a seed round that cofounder and CEO Mike Selden says will “bring us to the end of our initial R&D phase, meaning we’ll have the tools...
Colorado startup FoodMaven has an ambitious goal to reclaim some of the estimated $200 billion of revenue lost annually in America due to food waste by redirecting oversupplied food from manufacturers and producers to restaurants and institutions through...
At the intersection of the crowded cold-brew coffee category and the highly competitive energy drink segment, the founders of startup Bold Brew Coffee saw an opportunity to bring something new to each space.
It’s easy to look at the Annie’s brand now – which achieved double-digit household penetration during former president and CEO John Foraker’s tenure – and think the company never took a wrong turn on its path to center-store ubiquity.
Large food corporations growing through bolt-on acquisitions isn’t anything new and will continue, but what is changing are the structures and programs big companies are putting in place to tap into the mindset of emerging startup brands.
One in every five dollars spent at online natural and organic membership club Thrive Market is likely to be on private label products by the end of the year, predicts merchandising chief Jeremiah McElwee. “But we’re definitely not trying to be an online...
FORTO Coffee Shots, a two-ounce, single-serve coffee drink brand, is migrating from check-out counters populated by other energy shot brands and into the coffee aisles of 3,700 Walmart stores beginning this month.
For many consumers the idea of instant tea evokes nose-wrinkling rejection due to its extensive processing, long ingredient lists and a flavor unlike a freshly brewed cup, but startup Cusa Tea wants to change this with a version made in an all-new way...
Another start-up in the burgeoning cultured meat arena has emerged from stealth mode this month in the form of San Diego-based BlueNalu, which aims to make a splash in the cellular aquaculture field with cell-cultured seafood products after raising an...
Wanting everything to be perfect when launching a new brand is understandable – but it is also a huge detriment that can delay the initial takeoff or hold back a product or company from reaching its full potential long-term, according to the CEO of ice...
Chobani’s mission to deliver better food to more people is about more than creating finished goods that are more nutritious and more accessible – it also is about making those products in a better way, which is one reason why it is adding a Food Tech...
Hungry Harvest, a Baltimore-based “farm-to-kitchen” weekly delivery service of fresh produce, has expanded its reach to Detroit and Ann Arbor, Michigan, as part of its multi-pronged mission to fight food waste and hunger while delivering convenience and...
Not technically an herbal tea and not a soda, Petal identifies itself as sparkling botanical blend carving out a new space for itself in the world of better-for-you beverages.
'We’ve spoken to large and small food companies that are interested in partnering with us'
It’s not hard to see why cell-cultured (aka ‘clean’) meat is beginning to attract some serious attention – and investment. The addressable market is huge, and the product – if it delivers on its promise – could ensure meat does not become a luxury only...
An infusion of $12 million in Series B funding will help better-for-you snack delivery service SnackNation connect emerging CPG brands with more of their key consumers “at their most engaged moments” by expanding its distribution and fine-tuning its insights...
Kumana, a Los Angeles-based, Venezuelan-inspired company, making a line of avocado sauces is targeting national distribution through Safeway to inject some exotic innovation into the condiments space.
Kroger and Home Chef announced a merger agreement that will bring the Chicago-based meal kit brand to thousands of stores across the country signaling a massive evolution of meal kit companies vying for the in-store, non-subscription space.
The already fast-growing coconut milk-based beverage manufacturer REBBL is primed for exponential growth this year thanks in part to a $20 million investment led by CAVU Venture Partners that will allow it to expand distribution, launch new products and...
Bright Foods has brought added innovation to the emerging refrigerated bar space with the recent launch of Bright Bars – chilled whole food bars made via high pressure processing (HPP) – available in select Whole Foods stores in Southern California.
As a food or beverage startup, it’s natural to want to expand very quickly, but brands should take a moment to revel in their small-scale existence and take advantage of their ability to be nimble, says Poppilu founder Melanie Kahn.
Israeli cultured meat (aka 'clean' meat) start-up Future Meat Technologies reckons it can bring prices down from around $800/kilo today to as little as $8/kilo for its cell-cultured meat in six to eight months.
Startups that balance the health of consumers and the planet, as well as consider how their product impacts others up and down the supply chain are catching the attention of investors, according to industry insiders.
Springboard – a new Kraft Heinz platform dedicated to nurturing and scaling “disruptive” US brands - has unveiled its first incubator class, spanning meat snacks and egg white chips to fermented foods, avocado-fueled sauces, and lemonade with a functional...
Do you ever feel like you are in mortal combat with your business? Like either you are killing it, and orders are rolling in, sales are up and margins are wide – or it is killing you, and there are packing delays, profits are down and you can’t sleep...