Chocolate and confectionery ingredients

Atkins Nutritionals & Rob Lowe tackle misinformation about the low-carb diet in new campaign

15-Jan-2020 By Elizabeth Crawford

Recognizing that there is a lot of information – and misinformation – about different diets, weight management brand Atkins Nutritionals is launching a new multi-marketing campaign with spokesman Rob Lowe that aims to set the record straight about what...

Honeycut Kitchen puts a healthier spin on the nostalgic snack cake

13-Jan-2020 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Honeycut Kitchen, an emerging brand out of Los Angeles, is giving fitness enthusiasts an alternative to the monotony of protein bars with a lineup of snack cakes reminiscent of America's best-selling brands, but with a cleaner ingredients deck and...

NEWS IN BRIEF

Kraft Heinz appoints new leader for its US business

08-Jan-2020 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Campbell Soup executive Carlos Abrams-Rivera will join the senior leadership team at Kraft Heinz as the new U.S. Zone President, leading all US business operations, the company’s largest business, effective February 3.

Investing in the Future of Food: Lily’s CEO shares strategies to ‘run your own race’

08-Jan-2020 By Elizabeth Crawford

As more entrepreneurs adopt an iterative, fail-fast approach to innovation it is increasingly tempting to compare businesses and products as a way to measure success, but according to Jane Miller, the CEO of Lily’s Sweets, a better strategy to remain...

Bored of chocolate? Eat coffee instead, says The Whole Coffee Co: 'We're creating a completely new food category'

06-Jan-2020 By Elaine Watson

Until the 19th century, chocolate (cocoa) was something you drank, not ate, notes David Burke. “And then we figured out how to turn it into a food. Now we’re on the cusp of exactly the same thing with coffee.”

Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: How breaking school lunch free from ‘trap of cheapness’ can bolster business

06-Dec-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

The National School Lunch Program serves approximately 4.9 billion meals a year to children nationwide, and for many recipients it is their only source of nutrition, and yet, according to a new book by Jennifer Gaddis, the program is chronically underfunded...

Food For Kids Trailblazer: Kashi teams with Gen Z leaders to discover what young consumers want

03-Dec-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

As older members of Generation Z begin to strike out on their own and those still at home gather more influence over household grocery purchases, food and beverage manufacturers increasingly are asking what do 7- to 20-year-olds want to eat and drink?

FOOD FOR KIDS: Added sugar intake among babies and toddlers declines slightly, but is still a significant source of calories

15-Nov-2019 By Mary Ellen Shoup

A new study found that nearly two-thirds of infants (61%) and almost all toddlers (98%) consumed added sugars in their average daily diets, primarily in the form of flavored yogurts (infants) and fruit drinks (toddlers).

Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: Chobani Incubator’s Veteran Cohort pushes boundaries of entrepreneurial ecosystem

08-Nov-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

As an influential early-adopter of the incubator model that has spread throughout the CPG food and beverage industry in recent years, Chobani continues to push the boundaries of the entrepreneurial ecosystem by fine-tuning its program and recruitment...

Trends at FNCE: From innovative plant- & dairy-based drinks to women’s health products & upgraded standbys

06-Nov-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

At the Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo in Philadelphia late last month, more than 10,000 registered dietitians, nutritionists and industry stakeholders joined to discuss emerging health and diet trends in America. The expo floor featured more...

The power of influencer marketing: IZEA and IRI can pinpoint influencers' direct impact on sales

28-Oct-2019 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Influencers have become a crucial element of the content marketing toolbox for CPG brands, and with the recent launch of InfluenceImpact by IRI and IZEA Worldwide, brands and marketers can now measure the direct impact influencer campaigns have on the...

Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: Is the low-FODMAP diet the next big trend?

25-Oct-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

More than 45 million Americans suffer from Irritable Bowel Syndrome – the same number who use online dating apps and have student loans – only unlike people looking for love or struggling with debt, those suffering from gastrointestinal discomfort predominately...

VMG Partners acquires popchips to anchor new branded snacking platform

09-Oct-2019 By Elaine Watson

Private equity firm VMG Partners is betting big on the snacks category with the formation of a new division – Velocity Snack Brands (VSB) – set up to buy, incubate and grow snack brands, beginning with the acquisition of the popchips* brand from majority...

Peet's launches an elevated version of the RTD 'Frappuccino': 'We've been eyeing this segment for a while'

08-Oct-2019 By Mary Ellen Shoup

As a specialty, responsibly-sourced national coffee brand, Peet's is launching four blended, shelf-stable RTD coffee products intended for unabashed indulgence, said Peet's senior director of marketing & innovation, Gretchen Koch.

Bulletproof’s ‘biohacking’ innovations promise to help people become better, faster & stronger

26-Sep-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

To meet the demands of today’s fast-paced, high-pressure world, consumers everywhere are looking for shortcuts to be better, faster and stronger – fueling the emergence of so-called biohacking, a term coined by the CEO of Bulletproof and made easier by...

Theo Chocolate rebrands to highlight dedication to Fair Trade, show organic always means non-GMO

24-Sep-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

Subtle changes to Theo Chocolate’s packaging that debuted at Natural Products Expo East in Baltimore earlier this month aim to better communicate the bean-to-bar brand’s commitment to fair trade and organic ingredients as well as help it standout in an...

Atlas Bar cuts through the clutter of the protein bar category, readies for launch into brick-and-mortar

16-Sep-2019 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Building off its success as a direct-to-consumer business, emerging brand Atlas Bar will soon enter brick-and-mortar retailers nationwide, carving out a space in the competitive protein bar category with its low-carb, keto-friendly bars.

Investing in the Future of Food: Soylent shares strategies for expanding distribution beyond online

11-Sep-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

The success that brands incubated online often enjoy with direct-to-consumer marketing and distribution doesn’t always translate well to brick and mortar, but according to Soylent’s VP of sales Melody Conner building a company online first can provide...

NEWS IN BRIEF

CP Kelco expands its gellan gum production capabilities in the US

22-Aug-2019 By Mary Ellen Shoup

CP Kelco is expanding its gellan gum production capabilities in the US in response to rising demand for clean label, multi-functional ingredients.

Increased ‘health claims’ on children’s food belies products’ poor nutritional quality, study reveals

15-Aug-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

The percentage of children’s products making front-of-pack nutritional and ‘better-for-you’ claims has increased significantly in the past decade, as has the use of ‘fun appeals,’ but the nutritional quality has not, according to a recent study that prompted...

New campaign wants to make Werther’s Original more ‘relevant’ by highlighting diversity, inclusion

15-Aug-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

A new “more diverse and inclusive” marketing campaign for Werther’s Original that launched this week seeks to make the brand more “relevant” to modern consumers by showing that it offers more than the iconic hard candy for which it is best known, but...

Chocs away! Sir Kensington’s cofounder Mark Ramadan joins Hu Products as CEO

09-Aug-2019 By Elaine Watson

Sir Kensington’s co-founder Mark Ramadan is joining upmarket vegan chocolate maker Hu Products (pronounced ‘hue’ as in ‘human’) as CEO following the departure of Rita Hudetz, who left a week ago to pursue other opportunities.

The Bubbies mochi brand is on fire, says CEO: ‘This year our business will be 4x larger than when we acquired the company two years ago’

08-Aug-2019 By Elaine Watson

If growth in the frozen novelties category has not set the world on fire in recent years, one shiny bright spot in the market has been mochi: portable ice cream bites encased in chewy sweet rice dough that are lighting up retailers’ freezer cabinets,...

Investing in the Future of Food: Founder of Creation Nation shares tips for finding a co-packer

07-Aug-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

When starting out most entrepreneurs could use a hand, especially when it comes to making their products, but finding the right kind of help isn’t always easy and picking the wrong partner can negatively impact the brand – lessons that the founder of...

60-second interview: NSF International updates Non-GMO certification program

05-Aug-2019 By Elaine Watson

NSF International has just updated its Non-GMO certification scheme and logo. FoodNavigator-USA (FNU) caught up with Sarah Krol (SK), global managing director of food safety product certification to find out what this means... and whether firms are ready...

OHi’s rapid expansion underscores consumer demand for refrigerated bars, ‘perimeter snacking’

10-Jul-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

When the founder of the refrigerated bar brand OHi decided 18 months ago to expand her business from Hawaii to the mainland she thought it might take some time to educate retailers and shoppers about the category she was helping to build, but she was...

‘No longer does the mass channel have to be the last piece of the puzzle,’ vendor rep says

08-Jul-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

As consumers increasingly demand natural, organic and innovative products across all retail channels, emerging brands are no longer restricted to the classic route to market that began with independent, natural retailers and slowly expanded to conventional...

Most consumers want and will pay more for ‘sustainable’ options, but struggle to easily find them

24-Jun-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

Consumers increasingly want products that are better for them, but also better for the planet – unfortunately, it is not always easy to tell which products are healthy or sustainable, which is why it is important to use claims that resonate with shoppers...

Texture plays a key role in product acceptance, study reveals

19-Jun-2019 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Along with taste and smell, texture plays an equally important role in our like or dislike of specific food, according to researchers at Penn State University.

IFT Summit 2019

Tate & Lyle’s low-calorie sugar allulose easily snaps into formulas as traditional sugar replacement

18-Jun-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

Ever since FDA decided to exclude Tate & Lyle’s super low-calorie sugar allulose from the total and added sugar declarations on the Nutrition Facts panel, manufacturers across categories have been clamoring to learn how the ingredient might help them...

Investing in the Future of Food: RangeMe helps startups become shelf ready & business savvy

15-May-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

Under pressure to beat the competition or secure returns for investors, most startups want to get on store shelf as fast as possible, but first they must checkoff a litany of minimum requirements that can turn into unexpected roadblocks if they don’t...

Mondelēz advances mindful and sustainable snacking roadmap

14-May-2019 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Mondelēz International is making headway against its 'mindful and sustainable snacking' goals including growing its portion control snack sales to 15% of total net revenue last year, and improving the nutritional profile of some of its legacy...

JM Smucker leverages new marketing model, information services to prove ‘big food’ can innovate

08-May-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

The JM Smucker Co. is overhauling the marketing model that helped it build iconic brands like Jif peanut butter, Smucker’s jelly and Folgers coffee in an effort to disprove the emerging notion that ‘big food’ can’t innovate or, in some cases, even navigate...

Most consumers avoid sugar to lose weight, but it isn’t the main culprit, experts say

02-May-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

In recent years, sugar has emerged as the primary scapegoat for unwanted weight gain and a litany of chronic diseases, and while science does not support all the allegations against the ingredient, consumer “perceptions can become reality in the form...

InnovoPro proffers chickpea as a protein that can overcome hurdles other plant-based options can’t

29-Apr-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

While the plant-based protein category is booming, none of the top-selling ingredients dominating the space offer a perfect solution in terms of function, nutrition, sustainability and consumer-experience – a gap in the market that the CEO of Israeli...

Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: The benefits of blockchain for the food industry expands far beyond safety

19-Apr-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

Blockchain technology may be best known for its ability to securely move crypto-currencies such as Bitcoin around the word, but the technology can do much more -- especially in the food and beverage industries.

Yellofruit frozen banana-based desserts to enter 600 stores in Canada this summer: 'This is not a niche brand'

19-Apr-2019 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Canadian startup Yellofruit is using the same principles of ice cream food science to make its non-dairy frozen banana desserts that founder Andrew Kinnear says closely mimic the experience of eating traditional dairy ice cream.

Investment from Mondelēz’s SnackFutures will help Hu Products help consumers ‘get back to human’

18-Apr-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

On a mission to help more people “get back to human” through clean eating that doesn’t compromise on taste and experience, the founders of the vegan and paleo snacking brand Hu Products are teaming with confection behemoth Mondelēz International’s innovation...

Founder of Proper Cookie Dough leverages social media, Kickstarter to market on shoestring budget

17-Apr-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

Advertising on Facebook is about more than spreading the word about a new brand or product, it is also a tool for entrepreneurs to identify their core consumer base, which might not be who they initially thought, according to one entrepreneur who recently...

Russell Stover corrects 'brand communication problem', brings sales growth to sugar-free chocolate product

12-Apr-2019 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Russell Stover enjoyed years of market dominance when it first launched its seemingly 'too-good-to-be-true' sugar-free chocolate line in the '80s. But lately, its sugar-free chocolate sales have wavered as it fell out of favor with consumers...

Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: What will it take to create a sustainable food system to feed 10 billion people?

12-Apr-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

By 2050, the Earth’s population is predicted to reach upwards of 10 billion people who will require significantly more food than is produced today, which many predict is not feasible without drastic changes in the way food is produced, transported and...

Consumer fear of sugar is mounting – but is it deserved and what alternatives will consumers accept?

08-Apr-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

Using tactics such as “sin taxes” and a new bold-faced call-out for added sugar on the revised Nutrition Facts panel, public health advocates and regulators have targeted sugar as a primary caloric contributor in the ongoing obesity epidemic in the US...

FDA’s Nutrition Innovation Strategy pushes forward with updates to labeling, standards of identity

05-Apr-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

FDA will push forward with its Nutrition Innovation Strategy despite the departure this month of FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb who championed the initiative as a way to reduce the burden of chronic disease through improved nutrition, according to an...

Michel et Augustin repositions to target mass retail: We want to create a 'real billboard effect', says US CEO

29-Mar-2019 By Kacey Culliney

French cookie brand Michel et Augustin has spent the last year trimming back its portfolio to refocus on its strengths, and is now ready to take a bite out of the mass retail cookie market, its US CEO says.

Partnerships help Freedom Foods raise consumer awareness and get on store shelves off cycle

26-Mar-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

Colon cancer used to be considered a threat mostly to adults older than 50, but the disease is becoming more prevalent among Millennials, which some experts believe may be linked to the rising popularity of low-carb and grain-free diets, a trend that...

Nutrition Index, Partnership for a Healthier America shine light on industry efforts to improve health

25-Mar-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

Despite efforts by the largest food and beverage manufacturers in the United States to tackle obesity and diet-related disease in the market, nearly 40% of adults and 18.5% of children in the US are obese – putting them at risk of Type 2 diabetes, high...

Partnership for a Healthier America will dive deep into what it takes to create a sustainable, healthy diet

22-Mar-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

In order to feed a nutritious, sustainable diet to the predicted 10 billion people who will populate Earth by 2050, environmental advocates and food & beverage industry stakeholders must work together rather than apart from – or even at times against...

Investing in the Future of Food: Start with the consumer when rebranding, advises Endangered Species Chocolate

20-Mar-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

While modern wisdom may favor launching fast and iterating quickly based on consumer feedback, the director of innovation at Endangered Species Chocolate says when it comes to packaging and branding it is better to slow down and invest in consumer research...

Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: Trendspotting at Expo West reveals upticks in keto, MCT oil, plant-based protein and better-for-you snacks & kids’ foods

15-Mar-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

CBD far and away stole the show as the hot new ingredient at Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim last week, but it wasn’t the only notable trend with promising market potential or significant recent development.

Clio Snacks seeks to revive sluggish Greek yogurt segment with yogurt bars promising permissible indulgence

13-Mar-2019 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Clio Snacks, which makes chilled Greek yogurt bars dipped in chocolate, sees itself as supplementing a declining Greek yogurt category by expanding usage occasions and answering the consumer call for a permissibly indulgent snack.