More than fat or calories, the nutritional information consumers are most likely to look for on food and beverage packages is sugar, with a survey conducted by Cargill finding nearly two out of three consumers aiming to avoid it and the majority also...
The 2023 holiday season is around the corner and this year promises more good cheer – or at last more spending – than last year, but the higher inflation that will buoy sales is a double edged sword that simultaneously threatens volume and must be considered...
Inflation may finally be cooling, but prices at the shelf remain significantly higher for most products than a year ago, and certainly since pre-pandemic – leading to widespread food insecurity in the US and prompting consumers, retailers and brands to...
The grocery industry is at an inflection point as retailers and manufacturers grapple with dramatic changes in how food is produced and sold and an increasingly diverse consumer base that is no longer willing to settle for the one-size-fits-all, supply-driven...
Even though plant-based protein sales continued to slide in July, prompting retailers to slim down and shift offerings from the more premium placement in the refrigerated section to the freezer aisle, startup TiNDLE Foods still sees significant opportunity...
With roughly 2 billion people overweight, nearly a billion people suffering from hunger and a third of all food produced lost or waste – the current food system is “too unbalanced, too wasteful and too vulnerable,” according to Unilever, which is why...
Offering an abundant selection of fresh, high-quality, diverse fruits and vegetables is a top priority for most grocers given the produce section is often a key driver for overall store foot traffic – but according to a recent survey staying stocked is...
While regulators, legislators and industry stakeholders debate whether whole, 2% and flavored milks should be offered alongside plain, low-fat and fat-free options as a required component of school meals, a growing number of students are raising concerns...
Between climate change’s negative impact on food production and ongoing supply chain challenges that threaten access to high quality nutrition, ensuring the growing population has enough to eat without further compromising the planet’s health will require...
Despite high inflation, the majority of consumers are happy to pay more for products with a sustainable backstory. So there’s money to be made from environmental credentials, which makes falling into the greenwashing trap a bigger temptation than ever...
At the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City late last month emerging and established brands were going back to basics with simplified ingredients, streamlined packaging, clear cut benefits and natural – if not always familiar – flavor profiles.
Under a new CEO and with peak-pandemic receding farther into the background, the Consumer Brands Association is “going back to the future” to focus on core values that, while still priorities in recent years, took a backseat during the chaos of COVID...
Despite efforts to upcycle ingredients, promote so-called ugly produce and educate retailers and consumers about how to sell and use food before it spoils, food waste in the US remains at a stubborn 30%, in part due to inaccuracies predicting consumer...
While the cultivated meat industry has overcome significant upstream processing and regulatory hurdles in the past year, new market research suggests startups still face notable downstream food manufacturing challenges that could place them – along with...
Power Leaves says it's breaking the monopoly on the supply of coca leaf extract and bringing on a ‘new age of coca’. Through an exclusive agreement with indigenous communities, the ingredient manufacturer and supplier has developed a legal Colombian...
Fresh and frozen retail seafood in the US has been on a rollercoaster the past three years with shifting shopping and eating habits during the pandemic sending sales and volumes to dramatic highs and then rising inflation in the past year causing unit...
Between consumer desire for a more sustainable food system, growing momentum behind extended producer responsibility legislation and – of course – a desire to do the right thing, many CPG manufacturers are exploring more environmentally friendly packaging....
As a new anti-ESG era emerges, food and beverage businesses that set ambitious goals to reduce their environmental footprint, improve worker livelihoods, diversify leadership or enhance accountability could find themselves stuck between a rock and a hard...
After three years of innovation-stifling supply chain and labor challenges paired with record high inflation and a trying economy that has discouraged both investors and adventurous shoppers, food and beverage manufacturers are finally ready to prioritize...
Since kick-off in 2019, PeaTos has experienced explosive growth and received widespread acclaim thanks to its innovative approach to snacks – adding better-for-you nutrition to popular offerings – and marketing – debunking the junk and challenging the...
Millets may be relatively little known in the Global North currently, but the small, nutrient dense and drought-resistant grains (well, technically seeds), could be poised to become the next quinoa with the power to turbo-charge sales of CPGs featuring...
The dreaded question of what to cook for dinner or what to eat next isn’t just challenging for consumers, it is high stakes for retailers, which risk shopper loyalty, lost sales, food waste and more if they predict the wrong answer and fail to stock the...
At Natural Products Expo West this year, walking down an aisle without seeing a callout for prebiotics or probiotics was nearly impossible as more players race to meet consumer demand for each, which research from Coefficient Capital shows is climbing...
As consumers look for foods and beverages to do more for them and the planet they are becoming more sophisticated and skeptical of unverified claims – demanding proof that products and companies can deliver what they promise.
Precision fermentation is emerging as one of the buzziest technologies in food, and even though it has been used safely for decades without raising eyebrows, new uses and broader awareness are prompting consumer questions that if left unanswered could...
Organic rice grower Lundberg Family Farms is on a mission to certify all of its organic rice as regenerative organic by 2027 to better meet growing consumer demand for sustainable food and to “leave the land better.”
Change is inevitable, and for most it is uncomfortable – but it isn’t necessarily bad given it can be a catalyst for tremendous growth, deeper connections and betterment, which is good news for the consumer packaged goods industry considering research...
Since Project Potluck was founded in 2020 to support people of color in the CPG industry, the landscape and conversation around diversity and inclusion has changed dramatically, but according to the grassroots group turned non-profit a lot remains to...
Alongside falling sales, volume and units, plant-based meat has slid into the trough of despair, also known as valley of disillusionment or sorrow, and while it is unclear if the category has hit bottom yet, many stakeholders already are looking for a...
Most Americans think about food in terms of servings, but Johns Hopkins-trained cardiologist Elizabeth Klodas talks about the snack bars, pancake mix, granola-like sprinkles and packets of oatmeal she offers under her brand Step One Foods’ in terms of...
Infancy is commonly recognized as a critical time period for microbiota to colonize the gut. And when it comes to adults, it seems there is a new probiotic launched everyday. But what about those in the middle? What do we know about the gut microbiomes...
As frozen pierogi maker Mrs. T’s celebrates 70 years of tucking ‘the stuff you love’ into a soft pasta pockets shaped ‘like a smile,’ the founder’s son and now company president reflects on what it takes to not only survive but thrive for seven decades...
Resistant starch has received a lot of attention for its potential to exert a healthy impact on the gut and Supergut is adding to that by offering insights through its research.
By Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: Emerging demand for positive nutrition must balance functional benefits, taste, sustainability and convenience
Born out of the pandemic when product availability was unpredictable or limited and when a premium was placed on immunity-boosting, consumers in 2023 increasingly are seeking positive nutrition – both for themselves but also for the planet and workers...
The idea of food as medicine is as old as food itself, but only recently has the mainstream US health care system begun to take notice, and action, as community-directed efforts to prevent, manage and treat diet-related illnesses through nutrition education...
While consumer spending remained strong through the holidays despite rising prices, the new year may bring a new level of financial scrutiny as more Americans consider budget limitations and what is essential – altering when, how and where they shop and...
After a scathing review published earlier this month by the Reagan-Udall Foundation criticized FDA for its scattered and inefficient approach to food safety and applied nutrition, the agency says it is committed to “building a world-class human foods...
The “three-headed monster” of rising inflation, product shortages and labor challenges continues to wreak havoc across the food industry with little sign of relief on the horizon – prompting many consumers to shift their shopping habits and forcing manufacturers...
Sales of non-dairy yogurt – like those of most plant-based products – have sharply declined in the past year, but a few bright spots revealed by consumer research and recent innovations by players in the space suggest the category could turn around with...
The stressful one-two punch of pandemic lockdowns followed by runaway inflation has many consumers looking for comfort and escapism from their food and beverages, which industry leaders say is driving demand for new flavor combinations that are nostalgic,...
While not a panacea for all the challenges facing the grocery industry, one stakeholder argues a less is more approach in 2023 may help ease the ongoing burdens of inflation, supply chain woes, and labor shortages as well as rapidly shifting shopper preferences...
Between Americans’ hectic on-the-go lifestyles pre-COVID, the pandemic prompting everyone to hit pause followed by hybrid work schedules, inflation rates at 40-year highs, and increased expectations that food not only nourish the body but also the soul,...
Despite efforts to brand fruit ‘as nature’s candy,’ celebrity endorsements by the likes of Jessica Alba designed to make vegetables ‘sexy,’ and many retailers selling fresh produce at a loss to improve access and drive foot traffic – the vast majority...
Between the supply chain challenges and product shortages that marked the beginning of the pandemic and rising food prices due to inflation continuing to push some products out of consumers’ financial reach, many Americans are being forced to try new...
Organic sales continue to reach unprecedented highs as consumers gravitate to options they perceive as healthier for them and the planet, but the segment faces significant headwinds that are slowing growth and will demand ongoing flexibility, innovation...
Natural Products Expo East may not be as big as its West Coast counterpart, but the 18,500 registered attendees and more than 1,200 exhibitors who convened in Philadelphia earlier this month for the annual conference were just as enthusiastic and the...
As consumers navigate rising inflation, out-of-stocks due to lingering supply chain and labor challenges and contemplate the potential impact of their purchases on the environment and workers, they are more willing to push aside old loyalties and try...
Plant-based meat alternatives continue their downward slide with sales, units and volume all dropping in July from a year ago – a trajectory that IRI data crunched by 210 Analytics shows was set in motion months ago, but which doesn't shake at least...
Knowing entrepreneurs often dramatically underestimate the time it takes to validate their business models, are more likely to lose money or break even than make a profit and face abysmal failure rates, one successful founder is offering a helping hand...
