Check out who’s moving onwards and upwards as we head into spring with the latest FoodNavigator-USA round-up of movers and shakers in the food industry.
By Winnie Byanyima, executive director, Oxfam International
Food and drink companies can have a big influence over sustainability and ethical issues in their supply chains - and have the power to change them rapidly. One year on from Oxfam's first Behind the Brands sustainability scorecard, nine of the ten...
Mars Food North America is recalling one production lot of Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice Original Long Grain White Rice due to punctures in the pouch packaging.
The foodservice sector could generate explosive growth for gluten-free products, although it’s hard to predict exactly when talk will translate into action, according to the firm behind leading gluten-free brands Udi’s and Glutino.
While the debate about deforestation due to palm oil rumbles on, new research has suggested that the release of methane from palm oil processing wastewater may also be a significant concern.
The Food and Drug Administration is proposing several changes to the nutrition labels on packaged foods and beverages. If approved, the new labels would place a bigger emphasis on total calories and update serving sizes, while also drawing attention to...
Are consumers who say they’re avoiding gluten really just avoiding wheat? Can we trust survey data about the number of people following ‘gluten-free diets’? Are market researchers' (wildly differing) estimates about the size of the gluten-free market...
On Thursday the Obama administration unveiled the changes that the Food and Drug Administration drafted to the nutrition facts panel (see what the FDA is proposing here). In anticipation of the announcement, the Center for Science in the Public Interest...
From ready meals to breakfast bars, lots of pulse flour-based gluten-free products are coming on stream, says Margaret Hughes from Best Cooking Pulses, Inc., with the favorable nutritional profiles and moderate costs gaining traction with manufacturers...
High prices for fresh fruits and vegetables are associated with higher Body Mass Index (BMI) in young children in low- and middle-income households, according to new research.
Customer care has come a long way since the pen and ink complaints letters of yesteryear – so how has a major company like Unilever made the transition to digital media?
When PepsiCo replaced the word ‘Simply Natural’ with ‘Simply’ on some Frito-Lay lines recently, some commentators wondered if this signaled the beginning of the end of the industry’s love affair with all-natural claims. However, new data suggests otherwise.
While some analysts predict US private label penetration rates (which have remained stubbornly at around 18% of dollar sales for in recent years) could reach 25-30% or higher in the next few years, their “exuberance… is perplexing at best”, according...
While the number of lawsuits filed against food and beverage manufacturers over ‘all-natural’ claims appeared to peak in 2012 and drop off again in 2013, it’s too early for the industry to start cracking open the champagne just yet, say legal experts.
The new non-GMO formulations of Original Cheerios and Grape Nuts might be made without ingredients from genetically engineered crops, but they also come with fewer vitamins - although brand owners General Mills and Post Foods won’t say why.
The sales slowdown in the US cereal category has nothing to do with consumers and everything to do with manufacturers, says the chairman and CEO of General Mills.
Ingredients giant Roquette has struck a deal with Iowa-based non-GMO corn and soybean specialist World Food Processing (WFP) under which WFP will manufacture Roquette’s pea protein in the US.
Food accounted for 37% of Wal-Mart’s US sales in 2012 vs 23% in 2002, but its growth has started to decelerate, and we can expect more destocking of major brands, a greater focus on private label, and renewed interest in higher-end health & wellness...
While most start-ups struggle to raise the funds to turn their dreams into reality, Hampton Creek Foods CEO Josh Tetrick has convinced some of the world’s wealthiest people that his plant-based egg replacers are worth a serious punt.
As CPG’s big guns congregate in Florida for the Consumer Analyst Group of New York (CAGNY) conference, many of them are at a strategic crossroads, says Rabobank.
While market researchers predict continued healthy growth for the US gluten-free market*, not everyone is convinced that it is built on a solid foundation.
DIGGING INTO INNOVATION & NPD WITH DATAMONITOR CONSUMER
Green tea has migrated from hot drinks into other foods over the years but has particular promise in breakfast cereal where manufacturers can pack nutritional punch into weight-loss products, says a Datamonitor researcher.
Tate & Lyle says it predicts a substantial deterioration in sucralose pricing owing to a glut of unsold Chinese sucralose which has forced it to reduce pricing in recently renewed contracts.
Shares in the world's biggest food company were down by around 2% this morning as Nestlé announced its slowest sales growth in four years and missed profit expectations for 2013.
Food product marketers have less than three seconds to grab consumer attention, and need think back to the old days of products in supermarket circulars to connect with consumers in the mobile era, says a leading marketing guru.
Big interview: David Janow, co-founder and CEO, Axiom Foods
Protein is undergoing a renaissance in food marketing, with high-protein claims appearing on everything from snack foods and sports beverages to soups and frozen yogurt. And plant proteins - particularly pea and rice - are gaining momentum.
A major new player in the flour milling industry may not now emerge until the second quarter of this year, as regulators continue to scrutinize the proposed merger of ConAgra Mills and Horizon Milling (a joint venture between Cargill and CHS) to create...
A federal judge has granted preliminary approval to a $3.4m settlement of a class action lawsuit accusing Trader Joe’s of falsely advertising certain products as ‘all natural’.
High pressure processing (HPP) has breathed fresh life into the US juice market. But if beverage firms are excited about the technology, so, it appears, are plaintiffs' attorneys, who are starting to take issue with the way some HPP-treated products...
The Kellogg Company has reported lower-than-expected fourth quarter sales due to continued weakness in cereal but its president and CEO says the company can still win at the breakfast occasion.
First there was the leaked GMA discussion document; now the industry’s biggest players have put their cards on the table via the Coalition for Safe Affordable Food, which is seeking federal legislation to create an FDA-administered voluntary program to...
What do genetically engineered soybeans, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and chickens raised with the use of antibiotics all have in common? They are all in products that come with ‘all-natural’ labels.
UPDATED: As the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos squared up at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday, the nation’s biggest food and beverage firms battled for supremacy during the commercial breaks. We know who won the game, but who won the...
Sensient Colors has expanded its vegetable juice-derived natural brown colors platform to give customers more options in the wake of a recent report that has reignited the debate over 4-MeI levels in some caramel colors.
Civil litigation over whether GMOs belong in ‘all-natural’ products will continue to clog up US courts owing to the FDA’s refusal to weigh in on this issue, says Mission tortilla chips maker Gruma Corp.
As the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos head into battle on Sunday at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, the nation’s biggest food and beverage brands will battle for supremacy during the commercial breaks.
The National Action Network (NAN) has stepped in to try and end a three-month stalemate between Kellogg and more than 200 workers over casual labor contracts.
The fiber and whole grain intakes of many Americans are still falling well short of the recommendations, but food such as ready to eat cereals, yeast bread/rolls, and oatmeal are making significant contributions in the right direction, says a new study...
Vegetarians aren’t necessarily looking for alternative proteins or meat analogues, and makers of meat-free meals are embracing a range of trendy flavours and ingredients, says Classic Cuisine’s new product development manager Paul Hunt.
We know that almost a third of the population has a genetic predisposition to celiac disease, in that they have particular versions (DQ2 or DQ8) of a cellular receptor called the human leukocyte antigen (HLA). But why do only a fraction of those with...
“This isn't meat,” said Phil Lapp’s nine-year-old daughter Morgan after wolfing down some home-made meat-free tacos one evening in 2011. “This is neat”.
Super Bowl parties are communal snacking events where consumers are open to trying new products, giving smaller brands a fighting chance, says Euromonitor.
US consumers are now well-versed in many of the ingredients and flavor combinations of Southeast Asia and India, though Malaysian cuisine is still largely untapped. But a recent survey of 1,200 chefs by the National Restaurant Association listed Malaysian...
US retail sales of meat alternatives - worth $553m in 2012 according to Mintel - could easily break through the $1bn barrier, predicts Garden Protein (Gardein) CEO Yves Potvin.
Meat reduction – or ‘flexitarian’ eating – is on the rise. In this special edition article, FoodNavigator asks why are consumers reducing meat, and how prevalent is the trend?
Many big brands are “playing a waiting game” right now to see whether moves by General Mills and Post Foods to axe GMOs from iconic brands (Cheerios and Grape Nuts) will have a domino effect, say analysts at Euromonitor International.
