The Better Meat Co – a startup best-known for providing plant-based meat enhancers – has completed construction of a “substantial mycoprotein fermentation facility” in Sacramento that will produce fungi-based meat alternatives that “work phenomenally...
After years of slow but steady declines, juice sales in the US are rebounding in a trend that may have originated with consumers seeking wellness-enhancing products and moments of intentional indulgence during the pandemic, but which industry insiders,...
The thresholds for heavy metals proposed in the Baby Food Safety Act - introduced in the wake of the recent Congressional Subcommittee report alleging ‘dangerous’ levels of lead, mercury, cadmium and arsenic in baby foods – are challenging but feasible,...
The Swiss food giant has confirmed it will update its nutrition and health strategy after British newspaper the Financial Times published leaked internal documents acknowledging that nearly 70% of its main food and drinks products, making up about half...
Poverty in the coffee industry is an “enduring crisis,” despite US consumers’ willingness to pay upwards of $16-$22 per 12-ounce bag of roasted coffee and a premium for products that promise to ethically source beans and pay farmers a fair price.
CPG brands that invest in restoring healthy farmland can earn more than the goodwill of consumers who increasingly care about sustainability – they also could cash-in on the surge of ESG-earmarked funding and secure high-value assets that will support...
Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods enjoy more than twice the in-store velocity of other plant-based meat brands in the US retail market, "and so we believe this is still very much a two-horse race,” claim analysts at Bernstein, who say some of the...
After 16 years of blood, sweat and tears building a consumer brand, Hint Inc founder Kara Goldin has been through some ups and downs, and 2020 offered up both in equal measure. But while many beverage brands struggled to adapt in a rollercoaster year,...
Despite significant unmet demand for convenient keto products across categories, consumers who follow the diet are becoming more selective and less willing to settle for options that use low-quality or unhealthy ingredients to meet the diet’s strict macro...
As consumers adopt a more flexible and holistic approach to ‘dieting,’ brands have more room to innovate at the ingredient-level through “mindful omissions and swaps” to create products that appeal to shoppers’ lifestyles, according to new research from...
‘Why is it that at a time when people have never known more about health and nutrition, they have never been more obese?’ asks Jack Bobo in the intro to his new book.
One cigarette won’t kill you, observes pediatric neuroendocrinologist and sugar’s arch-nemesis Dr. Robert Lustig, but 10,000 cigarettes over 10 years just might. Processed food is also poisoning us, it’s just doing it much more slowly, contends Lustig,...
As inflation threatens to crest double digits for CPGs by the end of the year, consumer price sensitivity also is increasing while volume consumption is decreasing – creating an “uncertain, idiosyncratic and uneven” market in which manufacturers must...
Consumers are awakening to the idea that their dietary choices impact climate change, and while some already consider environmental sustainability when selecting products many more say they would if they had more information – creating a unique marketing...
While many of the grocery shopping and eating habits adopted during the pandemic remain elevated compared to before the coronavirus outbreak, some are beginning to erode as the threat of COVID-19 subsides and local economies – including restaurants and...
Kombucha market leader GT’s Living Foods has withdrawn its CBD-infused Dream Catcher functional beverage line, with founder GT Dave acknowledging that regulatory uncertainty and a slightly confused consumer proposition both played a role.
Cognitive decline over time may be inevitable, but according to the husband and wife team behind the recently launched whole food functional beverage blend Memore, feeding the mind the right nutrition early and often not only could delay onset and slow...
Despite an uptick in snacking and consumption of indulgent foods and beverages during the pandemic, the number of Americans dieting last year held steady compared to previous years – but their approaches and motivations shifted to reflect changing pressures...
From grim footage of workers mistreating cows to environmental concerns, consumer perceptions of the dairy industry are not universally positive, acknowledges Chobani president Peter McGuinness. But adding dairy to the sectors covered by Fair Trade certification...
The long-awaited end of the pandemic may be nearing in the US as vaccine distribution expands and new government guidance rolls back some mask and social distancing requirements, but for the CPG industry, some of the challenges that arose and accelerated...
CBD products manufacturer CV Sciences has recorded a sharp decline in revenue, mirroring reports of an overall contraction in the market for hemp extract products.
On May 6, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) issued a scientific opinion concluding that titanium dioxide (E171), a whitening pigment used to color everything from gum to sauces, “can no longer be considered safe as a food additive.” So what does...
Carbon labeling for food and beverage may be coming faster than originally predicted, and soon may hold more sway with consumers than other popular certifications as the ongoing pandemic accelerates consumer interest in sustainable diets, predict industry...
The unprecedented shift to ecommerce during the pandemic and predictions that many consumers will continue to buy groceries online even after it is safe to return to retail stores has elevated the importance of an omnichannel strategy – but according...
An infusion of $10.5m in seed funding will accelerate the consumer life sciences company GEM’s mission to overhaul the $140.3b supplement market by replacing “reductionist” pills, tablets and candies with whole food bites designed to improve the health...
Both sides have claimed victory in the latest installment of an increasingly acrimonious legal dispute* between Beyond Meat and its former co-manufacturer Don Lee Farms triggered by the early termination of an exclusive five-year supply agreement the...
The International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP) has clarified the term ‘postbiotics’ in a statement that responds to the scientific groundswell and growing number of postbiotic applications.
While the pandemic has helped fuel a business boom for much of packaged food and beverage industry, not everyone in the sector has benefited – with women and female-run small businesses in particular taking a hard hit that could have devastating long-term...
As inflation continues to pick up across grocery categories, Sprouts Farmers Market is offsetting most of the impact by confidently passing cost to consumers through its selection of unique, attribute-led, hard-to-find products that appeal to those seeking...
With demand for rare sugar allulose currently exceeding supply, Tate & Lyle has informed some partners that it is withholding supplies of the sweetener until further notice, FoodNavigator-USA understands.
Impossible Foods is heading into K-12 schools across the US this month via pilot programs in California, Washington, and Oklahoma ahead of a wider K-12 market entry in the fall, after securing a Child Nutrition Label for its burgers from the USDA's...
Thanks to advances in synthetic biology, with the right set of instructions, an army of microscopic little food factories (yeast, fungi, bacteria, algae etc) can now make animal proteins without animals, from collagen and egg albumin to whey protein if...
Impossible Foods has applauded a decision by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold the FDA’s approval of soy leghemoglobin (aka 'heme') - the star ingredient in its plant-based burgers - as a color additive.
Asian plant-based meat sensation OmniPork is gearing up for a nationwide retail and foodservice launch in the US market later this year after debuting in a handful of restaurants in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Honolulu to celebrate Earth Day.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has requested detailed information from four of the companies named in the recent Congressional report into heavy metals in baby food on their approach to monitoring inorganic arsenic in infant rice cereal – the...
While adaptogens and nootropics are central to the calming and functional benefits of Moment’s trio of botanical beverages, they take a backseat in marketing, which focuses first on the behavior modifications and lifestyle the brand promotes – a strategy...
Relying on historical usage of botanicals to help sell functional foods and beverages is no longer enough as consumers become increasingly sophisticated in how they approach and vet products to help boost their immunity, provide stress relief and reinforce...
With digital commerce sales accelerating during the pandemic and expected to climb from $35 billion to more than $250 billion by 2025, Danone North America is reallocating traditional marketing dollars to online in a bid to better drive consumer engagement...
Recognizing that risings costs are squeezing food and beverage margins as the pandemic continues, Albertsons will accept – to an extent – price increases that several large CPG players have warned in recent weeks are coming down the pike.
The popular recipe and home cooking platform Epicurious is dropping beef from its repertoire going forward in favor of more plant-based options to amplify the conversation about sustainable diets, stem the steady uptick in beef sales in the US and give...
The National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard (NBFDS) is “proving to be confusing as well as onerous for food manufacturers,” says FoodChain ID, which has just launched a compliance service* to help firms get their ducks in a row ahead of the January...
Visitors to BioMilk’s website are asked a simple question: ‘What is milk?’ a question that - until relatively recently - had a pretty obvious answer: the white stuff lactating mammals produce. Today, however, there’s plant-based milk; there are products...
Oatly posted a net loss of $60m in 2020 on sales up 106.5% year-on-year to $421.4m, reflecting its continued investment as it ramps up production and aggressively expands into new markets, according to a prospectus published ahead of its initial public...
Despite the interruption in civil litigation prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, “more new class action lawsuits were filed against the food and beverage industry—220* cases [+23% vs 2019]—than in any other year of the past decade,” according to an analysis...
Spencer Sheehan – a prolific plaintiff’s attorney in food litigation circles most recently making waves with a flurry of lawsuits over vanilla labeling – has turned his attention to flavored water, with a proposed class action alleging Whole Foods Market...
While a downturn in sales for snack bars in the past year suggest consumer demand has softened, snacking behavior has hit a fever pitch and innovation in this set is hotter than ever as brands evolve to meet shifting consumer demands.
Compliance with the National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard (NBFDS) – which requires firms with annual sales of >$2.5m to label ‘bioengineered’ foods, beverages, and supplements – is mandatory from January 1, 2022. So is the industry up to...
It’s well-known that the smaller the salt crystals, the saltier they taste, which means less is more, an enticing proposition for snack makers looking to reduce sodium. However, simply finely grinding table salt and sprinkling it on potato chips won’t...
US retail sales of plant-based milk surged 21.9% to $2.542bn in measured channels in the year to Jan. 24, 2021, while sales of plant-based cheese and yogurt (far smaller categories) were up 43.6% to $233.9m and 16.4% to $346.2m respectively in the year...