Honey, molasses and malt extract have long been incorporated into food products for many other reasons besides their natural sweetening abilities—among them color, aroma, browning, texture, better moisture retention and improved shelf life.
What do Hunt’s ketchup and Capri Sun have in common? They both switched back to using high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) after taking it out of the recipe, the former citing ‘consumer indifference’ and the latter citing sugar prices. Market data indicates...
Amid growing awareness in the US about reducing sodium in baked products, UK-based baking powder specialist Kudos Blends hopes to maintain strong growth across the pond with its zero-sodium potassium bicarbonate and low-sodium baking powders.
High levels of fiber and/or calcium can be incorporated into a ready-to-eat (RTE) cereal without impacting eating quality by pelletizing the ingredients, General Mills says.
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?
From August 5, 2014, manufacturers using the term ‘gluten-free’ on food labels must adhere to new FDA rules that set a gluten limit of 20 parts per million (ppm). But can consumers take their word for it, or will they still look for some kind of third...
Flowers Foods is bringing Wonder bread back to shelves with retro pack designs in a bid to spark consumer nostalgia in the US, its vice president of marketing says.
The return of brands from the former Hostess stable including Devil Dogs, Ring Dings, Yodels and Drake’s Coffee Cake on Monday will be followed by several other Drake’s products in the coming days including Honey Buns, Blueberry Muffins, Banana Nut Muffins...
Cargill has agreed to settle a proposed class action lawsuit alleging it is misleading shoppers by marketing its Truvia consumer products (which contain stevia extract Reb-A and erythritol) as ‘natural’.
Bimbo Bakeries USA (BBU) will close a Californian bakery and shift production elsewhere after careful analysis showed shortfalls in the infrastructure and manufacturing capabilities, the regional vice president said.
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.
The US breakfast cereal category can be bolstered by unlocking neglected brands and pushing deeper into the natural segment, the head of cereals at General Mills says.
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.
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.
Although federal efforts have led to “modest improvements” in food quality and marketing practices in recent years, “commercial interests have consistently overridden the health concerns of children”, according to one former government health expert.
About a year on from OatSweet’s initial push into the U.S. sweetener marketplace, Oat Tech CEO and founder, Dr. Paul Whalen, caught up with FoodNavigator-USA on the growth areas—both expected and unforeseen—for this natural, oat-based sweetener.
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?
Big interview: Josh Tetrick, founder and CEO, Hampton Creek Foods
Egg replacers have been around for years, acknowledges the entrepreneur who has persuaded everyone from Bill Gates to the co-founder of PayPal to part with some serious cash to fund his plant-based egg alternatives. “But wait till you try ours.”
A new report from Rainforest Action Network says food giants supporting "weak" and "diluted" Round Table on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) standards or buying GreenPalm certificates are kidding themselves if they think this will save...
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?
Natural colors expert Chr. Hansen has been exploring whether it is commercially viable to produce carmine - a natural red food color currently made from crushed cochineal insects - via a controlled fermentation process.
PepsiCo is seeking to patent a method of encapsulating aromas within beverage packaging to entice US consumers with ‘favorable aromas’ before they drink, say, juices or coffees.
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.
Flowers Foods will ignite growth in new markets and pick up lost volumes with its newly acquired ex-Hostess brand Wonder – a product its president and CEO describes as a ‘powerhouse’ brand.
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'.
The International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) has slightly reduced its cocoa deficit forecast for the current crop year and says there are ample stocks for chocolate manufacturers, but a deficit next year could raise prices.
Food companies that only use certified sustainable palm oil have been accused of “certifying destruction”, according to a Greenpeace report released to coincide with the first European Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) summit in Berlin this week.
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.
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...
The FDA is planning a consumer study to find out whether fortifying snack foods with vitamins or other healthy ingredients and shouting about it on pack could lead shoppers to believe that a diet of nutrient-enriched junk food is nutritionally viable.
What will we be eating more of in 2014? Elaine Watson caught up with Greg Kaminski, executive research chef at Synergy Flavors to find out what’s hot and what’s not in the world of flavor for 2014.
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?
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.
Quaker's involvement in oat research does not need to be compromised by its interest in the sector and should be supported given the lack of funding from elsewhere, says an analyst.
GMO laws are vague and this is driving up ‘all natural’ class action lawsuits but consumers need to do more to steer the conversation, says cereal and snack maker Barbara’s, who recently settled a case to the tune of $4m.
Adding chia seeds to bread recipes significantly increases final product levels of proteins, lipids, ash and dietary fiber, and consumers like it too, according to research.
Flowers Foods remains confident in the strength of its Tastykake business a month after Hostess re-entered the market with the infamous Twinkie et al., its CEO says.
A heart disease researcher who became fed up of waiting for the FDA to respond to his 2009 citizen petition calling for a ban on artificial trans fats has now followed up with a lawsuit.
Grupo Bimbo has developed a branded US gluten-free line that an analyst predicts big things for given the company’s strong market foothold and retail network.
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.
General Mills’ iconic home-cooking brand Betty Crocker is supporting same-sex marriages - a risky but smart move for an essentially conservative brand, an analyst says.
