The $8bn US wet soup category is “sleepy and ripe for disruption,” says the founder of Sonoma Brands, which is launching its first incubated brand in July: ZÜPA NOMA, an organic ready-to-drink chilled vegetable soup in a bottle debuting July 1 in around...
Of the many culinary ways pulses can be used, inclusion as an ingredient in snack foods or pasta really ramped up, Pulse Canada data says. We chatted with the industry association to learn more about the state of pulses.
Traditional white dairy milk is becoming more colorful as consumers increasingly demand sustainability, functionality and flavor from a category that for years was dominated by only three choices: whole, low-fat and skim.
On the menu for this edition of Taste Test Friday is a blind sampling of a classic American-Italian meal: pasta with Bolognese sauce – but with a twist.
Sales of plant-based alternatives to animal products may be growing fast, but the road ahead for the industry is far from smooth with several substantial hurdles threatening to hold back the industry, according to key stakeholders.
A double-blind, placebo controlled study on elite athletes found that the dairy-derived Lactobacillus helveticus Lafti L10 by Lallemand Health Soultions can be a beneficial supplement for the reduction of upper respiratory tract infections.
Consumer demand for convenience and increased access to technology is tilting market share towards food service and away from packaged foods in grocery aisles, according to a recent report.
Despite the intense focus in recent year on providing on-the-go food for time-crunched consumers, the vast majority of Americans still sit down together for dinner at least once a week, if not more often, according to a recent Harris Poll.
Soylent will debut this week on Amazon Launchpad as the Los Angeles-based start-up seeks to expand the audience for its ‘neutral-tasting’ but ‘nutritionally complete’ beverages and explore moves into a broader range of products.
'Creating a little niche called ‘meat-alternatives’ is not helpful and it’s not progressive'
Sweet Earth Natural Foods – a fast-growing plant-based food brand run by former Burger King and PepsiCo execs Brian and Kelly Swette - is on course to generate revenues of $20m in 2016, just five years after the couple acquired the trademark and set about...
Sales of plant-based alternatives to animal products are booming, thanks in large part to improved sensory qualities, expanded availability and increased consumer access to information about their health and environmental impacts, according to category...
The Hemp Industries Association and the Kentucky Hemp Industry Council have filed a petition with the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to remove industrial hemp plants from its list of controlled substances.
The FDA has issued a GRAS (generally recognized as safe) no objections letter for EverSweet, Cargill’s hotly-anticipated ‘next-generation’ Reb D and Reb M sweetener – produced via fermentation rather than from the stevia leaf - qualifying it for use in...
From purple cereal and jackfruit-based meat analogs to chickpeas in a new guise, Sterling-Rice Group (SRG) selects nine natural food trends it predicts could inspire packaged foods and foodservice menus in 2016 and beyond.
Rod Troni, chief marketing officer Snyder’s-Lance, on the role snacking plays for today’s consumers, the changing retail landscape and how the pretzels, crackers and chips business is set to develop
Sustainability and environmentally-friendly claims are becoming increasingly influential among consumers with recent research from The Hartman Group finding almost a third of consumers always buy products based on social well-being and environmental concerns.
Millennials may have an estimated $200 billion in annual buying power, but as a group that experienced the Great Recession at an impressionable early age, most take a “practical and cost-conscious approach to buying,” new research reveals.
Cold brew coffee is creating quiet the buzz in the US with new brands streaming into the market and retail sales growing exponentially in the past five years.
Serial snackers, addicted to new products and ‘emotionally connected’ to coffee? Marketers are obsessed with Millennials—generally defined as adults between the age of 18 to 34—so we thought it would be fun to head into the streets of Chicago and find...
A new trade organization devoted to expanding the use of insects in food and feed will meet for the first time this week as bug enthusiasts gather for a three-day conference on edible bugs in Detroit.
Once considered boring by many Americans, water is becoming a go-to beverage of choice thanks to innovative manufacturers that are adding to it carbonation, fruit flavors and functional ingredients that consumers want, according to market research.
Banana water from Elmhurst Naturals – which combines water, banana juice concentrate and natural banana flavor (70 cals per 12oz bottle) – is now available in HEB, Jewel, Sprouts, Albertsons, Amazon and other big name grocers, and hits Kroger in the fall.
Kite Hill - a San Francisco-based brand on a mission to disrupt the dairy case with its cultured nut milk products – has closed an $18m fundraising round led by 301 INC (General Mills’ business development and venturing unit) and CAVU Venture Partners.
US retail sales of packaged salads rose 8% to $3.7bn in the year to April 2, 2016, with a weak performance from the biggest segment, salad blends (-1%) offset by strong growth in the second and third largest segments, salad kits (+31%) and organic salads...
Thrive culinary algae oil has proved a hit with shoppers at upmarket grocer Gelson's Market in southern California, and is now rolling out to "hundreds of stores on the west coast," says brand owner TerraVia.
The bone broth market is still in its infancy, with manufacturers and retailers alike still trying to work out how to merchandise it, but having a packaging format that makes it easy to understand and prepare could help brands really punch above their...
Is Paleo a trend or a fad? And are 'plant-based foods' just a sexier term for meat & dairy alternatives, or the start of a new food movement? FoodNavigator-USA caught up with Blake Mitchell, president of food packaging and branding design...
What drives new trends? Is this best discovered seeing them unfold in real time at hands of innovators, or are they better discerned via a deep dive into marketing data? Both approaches were presented at the recent Healthy & Natural Show in Chicago.
Partially hydrogenated oils are being phased out by many margarine and spreads brands, but many shoppers still see them as ‘highly processed’ and less 'natural' than butter, and sales are going backwards. MELT Organic, by contrast, is still...
Refrigerated babyfood presents merchandising challenges for retailers, but has the potential to create a new super-premium subsegment in a category in need of fresh thinking, says Ashley Rossi, founder of organic baby food brand OrgaNums, which debuted...
Sales of tea in the US continue to climb steadily, thanks in part to a big push from interest in specialty tea – especially by millennials, according to the Tea Association of America.
Boston-based maple water brand DRINKmaple has secured listings at 1,030 Kroger stores in a deal that will extend its distribution to around 3,500 stores, just two years after launch.
Millennials may be the generation with the most spending power for now, but Gen Z is catching up fast and how they engage with brands and respond to marketing is very different than their predecessors, according to new research from CivicScience.
Market analysts from Mintel and Euromonitor presented the latest findings of sports category trends at the Ingredient Marketplace show in Orlando this past weekend.
Having the right team to execute on an idea is the key to attracting investment capital, experts say. But finding the right idea, that’s a bit more of a stretch and can provide a bigger payoff.
Growth rates in the US gluten-free market are slowing, but the category is still generating significant double-digit growth, says allergy-friendly brand Enjoy Life Foods.
After suffering scorn for years from carb-counters, wheat-haters and consumers embracing a gluten-free diet, pasta is coming back in style with a vengeance, suggests analysis of Google searches.
While some people plan a grocery shopping trip like a military campaign, many others are not thinking much beyond what’s for dinner tonight, says Mike Savage, VP Non Perishables at Fresh Thyme Farmers Market, and retailers are not making things easy for...
Tapping into America’s growing obsession with snacking, sugar reduction and desire for global flavors, New York startup The Chaat Co.’s new line of savory yogurts with spicy mix-ins aims to revolutionize the US yogurt category, which until now has focused...
Consumer demand for healthier foods that don’t sacrifice taste has led to a spike in interest in Asian cuisine, but so far home cooks have not embraced this trend fully in part because they are intimidated by its obscure ingredients, complicated flavor...
Whether it’s choosing a car, or deciding what to wear, Millennials display a “pronounced proclivity for bold and confident individualism,” according to Packaged Facts. But how does this impact their food choices, and how can manufacturers, retailers and...
Ripple Brand Collective - the New York based company behind barkTHINS, a snacking chocolate brand that has ‘taken off like a rocket ship’ since its 2013 launch - has been snapped up by Hershey for an undisclosed sum.
Buying organic is a top priority for many American parents, especially when it comes to the food they feed their children, according to new research form the Organic Trade Association.
US specialty food sales* topped $120bn in 2015, are growing four times faster than the rest of the food market, and now account for 14.1% of all food sales (retail & foodservice), according to a new report from the Specialty Food Association (SFA).
Eating alone is the new normal, says Hartman Group in an article exploring the changing dynamics of meal times as Americans increasingly abandon sit-down ‘family meals’ in favor of more ad hoc eating behavior and continuous snacking.
“Exciting and high-end attributes” mark out new products that made the biggest splash in CPG (consumer packaged goods) last year, according to the 2015 New Product Pacesetters report from Chicago-based market researcher IRI.
Product packaging today often is cluttered with so many certifications that consumers’ can’t absorb everything in the brief time they look at labels in stores, and as a result the icons’ impact is diminished and manufacturers likely aren’t getting their...
With plant-based diets all the rage in the US currently, milk alternatives – and particularly those from almonds – are seeing strong sales growth and increased innovation, while sales of dairy milk are contracting.
