Gourmet nut butters, pea protein, purple corn, yogurt for men and more chewy drinks? Sterling-Rice Group identifies the top 10 natural and organic food trends that are starting to influence the mainstream grocery market.
Quinoa’s relatively high price compared to staple grains may restrict consumption to health-conscious consumers in high-income countries for now – but it could play an important role in food security in the long term, according to the FAO.
Corporate sustainability programs do not go far enough to stamp out child labor on cocoa farms - only third party certification will do, says a new campaign.
Blanket opposition to genetically modified crops is “a morally unacceptable position to take on the basis of unsubstantiated suspicions and fears”, according to the boss of Toronto-based firm Maple Leaf Foods.
Back in 2008/9, Boulder Brands CEO Steve Hughes had a lot of sleepless nights. The struggling Smart Balance spreads business - which represented 90% of group revenues - was running “in fourth gear” - and the economy was in the doldrums.
A new analysis of where Americans are getting their calories from has thrown up some surprising results, with the percentage of energy derived from so-called ‘junk-food’ such as soda, burgers and fries from fast-food chains proving to be somewhat lower...
Rising demand in Asia and Africa will drive significant growth in global sugar consumption, according to a new Rabobank report. The report, Global Sugar to 2021, projects global sugar consumption to grow from 166 million tons to 203 million tons in raw...
The chocolate and cocoa industry has pledged $3m in new funds to global cocoa sustainability as major firms including Mondelez, Hershey and Cargill talk about their new initiatives.
Understanding why consumers have adverse reactions to certain types of bread should be researched, instead of searching for some miracle gluten-free replacement, says The Real Bread Campaign.
America’s top food and beverage companies have exceeded their goal of reducing 1.5 trillion calories in the US marketplace, says the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation (HWCF).
Flour made from cassava can be up to half the price of regular wheat flour, holding great promise for bakers amid commodity volatility, says the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
The Japanese government has placed a temporary ban on Western White wheat imports after unauthorized genetically modified wheat was found growing in the US.
The Kellogg Company has reached a new settlement to pay out $4m in its Frosted Mini-Wheats class action lawsuit. But the court has raised concerns on the significant cash drop from the previously rejected settlement of $10.5m.
Consumers are becoming less interested in mid-market products, and are trading down for basic groceries and trading up for premium brands that matter most from an emotional and social perspective, says a new report from Rabobank.
Bold, meaty flavored chips and extra spicy meat snacks are trending as manufacturers strive to excite millennial tastebuds, says a Euromonitor analyst.
Industry efforts to reduce and/or remove trans fats from food products have led to progress, but this progress is slowing, and the industry must continue its effort to reformulate, says a new report from Harvard School of Public Health.
KeHE Distributors is expanding its non-ambient US warehouse space to keep pace with ‘high double digit growth in frozen,’ and frozen gluten-free in particular, the company tells us.
From Nike’s Bill Bowerman being inspired by a waffle iron, to studying the behavior of herding cows for the redevelopment of Times Square, cross-pollination of ideas from different fields can generate big rewards.
While peanut flour has been around for years, recent interest in protein - particularly the plant-based variety - has sparked renewed interest, particularly in the nutritional bars market, according to one leading supplier.
A new analysis of sodium levels in 480 packaged and restaurant foods over the period 2005-2011 provides further evidence that voluntary approaches to sodium reduction have not delivered the across-the-board reductions required to meet government targets.
Drug stores, club stores and the foodservice market could be the next big areas of opportunity for gluten-free, according to Boulder Brands, which owns two of the biggest names in the sector: Udi’s and Glutino.
Women are about 15% more likely to order dishes featuring fruit than men when eating out, and 35% more likely to order dishes featuring coconut, according to new data from digital food ordering service GrubHub.
Cargill has launched a new initiative designed to help manufacturers improve the nutritional profile of foods marketed to children and meet a swathe of new guidelines from retailers, the government and other organizations setting nutrition criteria for...
This is the story of how an initiative from Oxfam prompted assurances from leading chocolate companies to improve the lives of women cocoa farmers. How did each firm react? Were they quick and effective enough?
Obesity-prone minority US children from low-income families could reduce their body mass index (BMI) by prolonged consumption of ready-to-eat (RTE) breakfast cereals, new research suggests.
Hostess Brands has closed all asset sales and pulled in $860m; a figure a little less than the worth of the company but expected given the speed of the sell-offs, an analyst says.
CSM has agreed to sell its bakery supplies businesses to private equity firm Rhône Capital for $1.05bn, eight months after its announcement to reposition as a bio-based ingredients firm.
United States Bakery has won the auction for the Sweetheart, Eddy’s, Standish Farms and Grandma Emilie’s brands as part of the sell off of chunks of the Hostess Brands empire.
Glanbia Nutritionals has launched a new ingredient to replace whole eggs in bakery applications as firms seek alternatives in the face of steep price increases in the egg market.
Adding pea protein to gluten-free bread may enrich the nutritional content of the product, with a sensory panel rating it ‘most acceptable’, says a new study.
Hain Celestial has unveiled a raft of new products utilizing hot ingredients from chia and quinoa to coconut pulp and almonds, including organic gluten-free chia seed corn tortilla chips under the Garden of Eatin' brand, and coconut almond butter...
The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) has welcomed the decision of the world’s biggest sovereign wealth fund to pull investment from certain palm oil companies – but has disagreed with its divestment from firms that are on the path to RSPO certification.
As moves to secure GMO labeling continue to gain momentum at a state level, Whole Foods Market has “put a stake in the ground” and made a commitment to label all products containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in its US and Canadian stores by...
Almost a third (30%) of American adults say they are trying to reduce or exclude gluten from their diets, according to The NPD Group, which conducted a consumer survey in January 2013.
Health Canada has approved Ingredion’s NUTRAFLORA prebiotic fiber as a source of dietary fiber under its revised Fiber Policy for Labeling and Advertising of Dietary Fiber-Containing Food Products, introduced in February 2012.
Big interview: Ingrid Hirstin Lazcano, CEO, Andean Dream
A technical paper produced by NASA in 1993 observes: "While no single food can supply all the essential life sustaining nutrients, quinoa comes as close as any other in the plant or animal kingdom.”
Organic Valley recently announced a plan to distribute more than $1 million in grants to fund research, education and advocacy on the production of organic foods. The grants have long term goals and a near term objective, with one of the biggest individual...