Non-GMO, Kosher, gluten-free, ethical, environmentally-friendly, lactose-free, vegan, no additives/preservatives, and on-the-go claims are all gaining more traction on US food labels; while growth in ‘all-natural’- antioxidant- and low/no/reduced sugar/sodium/fat...
Genetically engineered crops are not a magic bullet and some weeds have become resistant to the herbicide glyphosate (RoundUp) used with selected GM crops, said Monsanto’s chief technology officer Dr Robert Fraley in a debate on Wednesday. But that doesn’t...
SPECIAL EDITION 2014, BEVERAGE SWEETENER INNOVATION
Mintel says the presence of nutritionally beneficial compounds could see stevia-based sweeteners of the future that combine functional benefits as well as calorie-free sweetness.
JK Sucralose - which claims to be the largest sucralose manufacturer in China - has weighed into the debate over sucralose pricing raised by market leader Tate & Lyle.
Professor: 'Congratulations to the FDA for putting public health first'
Food manufacturers are under increasing pressure to reduce sodium, but surveys suggest many shoppers are, well, not that bothered. So where does this leave firms plugging sodium reduction solutions?
Some food manufacturers still worry that using potassium chloride to replace salt in their recipes might compromise their clean label credentials. But the FDA’s recent proposal to include potassium as one of the nutrients that must be listed on the Nutrition...
Protein is hot - and big brands are piling more of it into everything from breakfast cereal to ice cream. Yet the Dietary Guidelines for Americans say “inadequate protein intake in the US is rare”. So does this trend make sense from a nutritional perspective?
Market pre-eminence has reduced food to a commodity subject to financial speculation, Pope Francis told attendees at a major nutrition conference in Rome this morning.
To understand Functional Foods you must see it as a strategy to add value to processed foods, says the president and founder of the HealthyMarketingTeam, Peter Wennstrom, in this guest article.
Faced with mounting difficulties in their drug businesses, many pharmaceutical manufacturers are looking at getting into functional foods and beverages, notes food marketing expert, Julian Mellentin in this guest article.
American children were exposed to significantly fewer TV ads for sugary drinks in 2013 compared with 2011. But not every soda giant got the memo, says a new report, which claims that children aged 2-11 saw 29% more TV ads for PepsiCo sugary drinks in...
Three years ago, Greek yogurt was on fire. Today, as the category has matured, its growth has slowed to a more modest pace, while one market watcher predicts dollar sales growth in the overall yogurt category (which has been driven by Greek in recent...
Can a boiled sweet stop you from overeating? While at first glance any product marketed as a ‘signaling lozenge’ sounds distinctly dubious, the entrepreneur behind MealEnders does not try to blind consumers with science - or pseudoscience - when he makes...
Four years ago sodium was public enemy #1. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) was calling for the FDA to modify the GRAS status of salt and slash the daily value for sodium to 1,500mg, and the food industry was on high alert. Today, sugar is the new bogeyman,...
Tune into an earnings call from a big consumer packaged goods (CPG) company, and you’ll likely hear a lot of frustration over the ineffectiveness of trade spending. But is weary resignation (‘it’s just a cost of doing business') a constructive response?
What’s for dinner tonight? And could Watson - the IBM computer that trounced its human rivals at Jeopardy - have the answer? FoodNavigator-USA headed to the reThinkFood conference - a collaboration between the Culinary Institute of America and the MIT...
Consumers underestimate calorie counts for, and consume more of, foods from companies with positive corporate responsibility programmes, say researchers.
Academic: "Anybody who thinks the world’s malnutrition problems are going to be solved without industry is dreaming."
By Shane Starling from the 3rd World Congress of Public Health Nutrition in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria
Emerging research linking vitamin E deficiency with increased risk of Alzheimer’s, miscarriages and fatty liver disease can contribute to an ongoing debate around recommended intakes, a nutrition congress was told yesterday.
Up until relatively recently, sucralose was a key profit driver at Tate & Lyle. But as the Chinese have added production capacity, CEO Javed Ahmed told analysts this week that he was struggling to see “how we or frankly anyone else can make any money”...
'Hampton Creek is up against a well-financed plaintiff'
While Unilever’s lawsuit against Hampton Creek Foods has generated a lively debate about corporate bullying, industrialized egg production, and whether the standard of identity for ‘mayonnaise’ is outdated, legal experts say it will hinge upon what consumers...
Attorney: Unilever needs to prove 'Just Mayo' misleads reasonable consumer
UPDATED: Unilever has filed a lawsuit against Hampton Creek Foods accusing it of falsely advertising its egg-free Just Mayo spread and causing “irreparable harm” to Unilever's Hellmann’s mayonnaise brand and the category as a whole.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has rubbished suggestions by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) it is hiding data collected on animal drug residues in raw milk.
UPDATED - Initial returns indicate that voters in Colorado have given a firm thumbs down to GMO labeling initiative Proposition 105, while the vote in Oregon on Measure 92 headed to a nail-biting finish - but ended with voters saying NO.
Online grocery shopping, craft foods, fermented and pickled foods such as sauerkraut, and non-stop snacking will all gain momentum in 2015, according to ‘Supermarket Guru’ and TV personality Phil Lempert.
Given that the Dietary Guidelines urge Americans to reduce calorie intakes from added sugar, helping them identify foods that actually contain it by listing it on the Nutrition Facts panel seems like a no-brainer, says nutritional ranking system Guiding...
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) today filed an objection to a proposed settlement of the ‘copycat’ Vitaminwater lawsuits, claiming it only enriches lawyers and does nothing to stop what it alleges is the brand’s deceptive marketing.
From hop-free ales with lavender or elderflowers to ‘advanced Asian’ cuisine, Sterling-Rice Group (SRG) looks at the top 10 culinary trends it predicts will inspire the packaged food and foodservice industry in 2015.
US hummus category could break $1bn barrier in a few years
US sales of hummus have almost doubled since 2009 to top $600m, but could easily break through the $1bn mark in the next few years, predicts Eat Well Embrace Life, which is carving out a leading role in the ‘other bean hummus’ category and aims to be...
Consumers want to see what you are putting into the product as well as what isn’t in there
With revenues going from zero to “north of $20m” in three years, the growth of Way Better Snacks has been nothing short of meteoric. But while great branding, its focus on ‘sprouted’ seeds and the CPG experience of its founder & CEO Jim Breen have...
We’ve never had access to more information about how to get healthy. So why are two thirds of Americans still overweight or obese, and what can we do about it? To find out, FoodNavigator-USA headed to Atlanta, GA, for the 2014 Food & Nutrition Conference...
Ebola is a huge humanitarian concern for the cocoa and chocolate industry, but contrary to some reports it is not yet having a major business impact for big chocolate players like Mars and Mondelēz.
The average convenience-store shopper spends just three minutes in the store, says Wells Fargo in a new report arguing that there are big growth opportunities for brands that can offer more products designed for immediate consumption, and better meet...
Consumers are looking for individual and integrated strategies to optimize their health and wellness, but no company has yet put all the pieces together, says BrandHive’s Jeff Hilton.
Food industry ‘tinkering’ with sugar content while foods and drinks remain relatively high in sugar may detract from more basic sugar reduction strategies, warns a public health expert.
If you’ve got enough money - and clout - it’s not hard to make a big splash with a new product launch in year one. The real test comes in years two, three and four. And PepsiCo is proving that its innovations are still delivering after the initial hype...
GOLDEN STATE ROW ESCALATES AS NOVEMBER 4 BALLOTS APPROACH
PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi has attacked November ballots in San Francisco and Berkeley that will ask city residents to approve increased taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages and sweeteners used to sweeten such drinks.
It’s well-known that many CPG firms feel that they are not getting enough bang for their trade spending bucks. But a recent analysis by Nielsen reveals that most of them are not getting any bang for these bucks, with almost three quarters of promotions...
Is it harder to start a beverage business today than it was 25 years ago when he started distributing ‘ginger brew’ from his Volkswagen Bug in a tie-dyed tee-shirt? Probably, says Reed’s Inc founder & CEO Chris Reed. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t...
The IFT's FutureFood 2050 initiative has started a fascinating conversation about what we might be eating in the future. But what will food shopping be like? Will supermarkets as we know them today still exist or will we get all of our groceries...
Bakers cannot sit back and be bombarded by negative messaging around bread anymore because there’s actually a huge consumer group who wants it, says the VP of Panera Bread bakery development.
Chobani is working with Green America (formerly Co-op America) to “discuss realistic and viable” ways to secure more milk from cows fed non-GMO animal feed.
'The feedback we received appears to be merely satisfactory or mixed'
Initial feedback suggests the US debut of Coca-Cola Life has been “lackluster”, with staff in some of the first stores to feature the product reporting “satisfactory” sales, but nothing to set the world on fire, says Ali Dibadj, senior analyst at Sanford...
What will we be eating in 2050? Insect bars, 3D printed food, lab meat and personalized nutrition bars? No one knows for sure. But with a growing population and a changing climate, food systems - and diets - will have to adapt to survive, say 11 thought-leaders...
The "traditionally domestic focused" dairy industry must adopt a "world view" to ensure increasing global consumer demand does not outstrip milk supply, says Tetra Pak.
The notion that defining ‘natural’ is just too hard - either for the FDA or for the food industry - and that we therefore shouldn’t even bother to attempt it, is defeatist and “disingenuous”, says the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).
In part one of our coverage of FoodNavigator-USA’s natural & clean label panel debate we looked at whether the FDA - or industry stakeholders - should define ‘natural’. In part two, we look at all-natural lawsuits, and whether consumers understand...
Dispatches from Euro Fed Lipid Congress, Montpellier
Certified Sustainable Palm Oil could remain a niche product unless it gains importance in India and China, according to former RSPO director Jan Kees Vis.
