Walmart US e-commerce sales grew 74% in the first quarter (13 weeks to May 1), driven by strong demand for its expanded grocery pickup and delivery services offered during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hemp-infused beverage brand Recess (strapline: ‘calm, cool, collected’) has launched a new direct-to-business wholesale online platform and an updated direct to consumer site to make it as easy as possible to get the product into people’s hands.
Higher costs associated with serving school meals to needy children during the coronavirus pandemic paired with reduced program participation are generating “crippling financial losses” that could compromise efforts to serve students next year unless...
How is COVID-19 impacting the hemp-derived CBD market? Are consumers turning to CBD to address anxiety during these times, or when it comes to functional foods, beverages and supplements, are they more likely to spend money on products they believe have...
While consumer interest in where food comes from and how it is produced has been growing in recent years, an organic industry leader says the coronavirus pandemic has turbocharged shoppers’ interest in local, organic and sustainably produced products...
While the coronavirus outbreak may have initially sidelined new food and beverage launches as retailers scrambled to stock the basics, and stay-at-home orders slowed research & development, one investor predicts “a burst of innovation” from existing...
The number of US households who reported shopping online for groceries rose dramatically in March when the pandemic hit, and stayed consistently high for the month of April, reveals new data from Brick Meets Click.
Sales growth in most snack and nutritional bar segments – categories associated with convenience, on-the-go consumption and sports - has dropped sharply since coronavirus hit, with the biggest drops in performance nutrition (-20% in March/April), meal...
Califia Farms is moving into new territory with the launch of plant-based butters - its first foray into the fats & oils category - and Protein Oat, a line of plant-based milks with a comparable level of protein to dairy milk per serving.
The Organic Trade Association is calling on the US Department of Agriculture to help ease mounting pressure on the organic supply chain posed by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic by increasing flexibility for inspections and the disbursement of funds related...
Energy drink manufacturer Celsius was able to quickly transition its marketing to online, streaming events which helped it to report a strong quarter, even as the face to face marketing it had relied on came to a hard stop.
Through a combination of donations, supply chain reinforcement and upcoming retail promotions, Chobani is staying true to its food philosophy – or “D.N.N.A.” to provide all Americans “delicious, nutritious, natural and accessible” food, despite mounting...
The last few weeks have been a rollercoaster ride for many small businesses. FoodNavigator-USA caught up with Diana Levy, founder and CEO at Undercover Snacks, which makes chocolate covered quinoa snacks at its own SQF-3 manufacturing facility in New...
While the price of gas, clothing, and many other consumer goods has fallen during the pandemic, grocery prices are on the rise, with the food-at-home index showing the largest monthly increase since February 1974, despite continued declines in world food...
While COVID-19 has upended the status quo for the entire food industry from growers and distributors, to retailers and consumers, it has also exposed the lack of resiliency within the food supply chain to handle something as disruptive as a global pandemic,...
Do essential businesses such as food manufacturers and retailers need some kind of liability shield to protect themselves from an anticipated wave of COVID-19-related personal injury litigation, or would this only encourage bad actors and deprive people...
Compared to the same period last year, fresh produce has generated an additional $205m in sales for the week ending May 3* with fresh vegetables leading sales, according to a report by 210 Analytics, IRI, and the Produce Marketing Association (PMA).
A new survey out by the Natural Products Association (NPA) zeros in on the natural products industry and offers some insight into what the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) process entails.
Following recent high-profile claims that the food supply chain is buckling under pressure from the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Consumer Brands Association is teaming with more than 35 trade associations to address long- and short-term challenges...
Continued uncertainty over the regulatory status of hemp-derived CBD is a bigger roadblock for food and beverage brands than COVID-19 to market growth this year, say startups, but there are still opportunities to grow while they wait for the FDA to weigh...
As at-home food consumption remains at elevated levels, PepsiCo has launched two direct-to-consumer websites – PantryShop.com and Snacks.com – to meet the shift in demand where shoppers can order PepsiCo and Frito Lay products directly from the company.
Once relegated to the dusty back corners of kitchen cupboards or quickly swigged by only the most devote health-conscious consumers, apple cider vinegar has been thrust into the limelight by the coronavirus pandemic for its claimed immunity, beauty-enhancing...
Just as shelf-stable pantry items have experienced surging sales in recent months, frozen food sales have exploded since the onset of COVID-19 with new consumers entering the category, finds a recent survey commissioned by the American Frozen Food Institute.
With the typical consumer managing an average of 3.3 individual dietary preferences and 64% of the world’s population following some sort of exclusion diet (Nielsen), grocery retailers will need to adapt their online and physical stores to provide a hyper-personalized...
Many of the changes in consumer behavior and purchasing at grocery stores due to the ongoing pandemic, including preferences for e-commerce, smaller stores and healthier food, are the cornerstones of Sprouts Farmers Market's new “transformational...
Global ingredient supplier Ingredion expects continued strong demand for ingredients that go into packaged foods through the first half of the year, partially offsetting volume declines the company is experiencing in foodservice, which represents between...
Beyond Meat is taking a series of “offensive measures” to chart a course through the coronavirus pandemic, including switching some foodservice production lines over to retail products, developing value packs, offering more aggressive pricing, and building...
A judge has dismissed a worker safety lawsuit* filed by an unnamed worker at the Smithfield meat processing plant in Milan, Mo., on the grounds that such matters are for federal regulators, not local courts, to decide.
As Americans staying at home to slow the spread of the coronavirus flock to meal kits, both HelloFresh and Blue Apron saw sales lift near the end of their first quarters, but whether the companies can sustain the increase beyond the pandemic depends on...
Waiting for a response from cold calls to retail buyers about placing a product on store shelves can feel demoralizing to emerging brands, but Brad Charron, the CEO of the plant-based bar and beverage brand Aloha, advises entrepreneurs not to take it...
Online grocery sales and store pickup orders reached $5.3bn in April, a record 30-day high and 37% sales increase from March, according to the Brick Meets Click/Symphony RetailAI Online Grocery Survey conducted in late April.
Plant-based technology company Calyxt has launched a direct-to-consumer site for its high oleic soybean cooking oil, Calyno, which is claimed to have 20% less saturated fat and lower oil absorption (i.e. less greasy finish) than commodity soybean oil.
As more meat plants temporarily close or operate at reduced capacity as coronavirus spreads, plant-based brands “have a window of opportunity to present themselves as more reliable alternatives,” says Lux Research. But no production facilities are immune...
There is an “indisputable relation between vitamin D and the immune system”, says a new review that shows that avoiding vitamin D deficiency has clear benefits for immune health.
Emerging and regional brands with inventory and turnkey solutions could more easily win space on store shelves despite delayed category resets and formal reviews as retailers continue to grapple coronavirus-related disruptions and low fill rates from...
From fewer containers and reduced shift work at harbors to delays in planned maintenance in factories, the coronavirus pandemic is impacting global supply chains in myriad ways. FoodNavigator-USA (FNU) caught up with Jon Peters (JP), president at Beneo,...
With Expo West canceled and instore sampling off the menu for the foreseeable future, New York based high protein, low-sugar gluten-free startup Three Wishes Cereal decided to get creative…
Over the last month, online food marketplace BUBBLE has seen dollar sales grow 800% (vs the previous month), cart sizes quadruple, and a surge of interest from prospective vendors as new and emerging natural food brands without the bandwidth to set up...
The day any entrepreneur decides to sell his or her business is “always bittersweet” observed Jonathan Sebastiani after selling KRAVE Jerky to Hershey for $218m in January 2015. So how does it feel - five years later - to be back at the helm after buying...
Hormel Foods-owned Rochelle Foods is reopening its 400,000-square-foot plant in Illinois – which produces microwaveable and precooked bacon for foodservice and retail, deli hams, and Hormel Compleats microwaveable meals – after two weeks of temporary...
By Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: Navigating coronavirus’ uneven impact to chart a path forward for groceries
While some food and beverage brands have enjoyed tremendous growth following the coronavirus outbreak, others have been completely "pummeled" by government and consumer response to the virus – revealing a division that could provide a road map...
Scientists have identified a link between the outcome of COVID-19 disease and dietary selenium – found in fish, seafood, meat, poultry, and cereals. FoodNavigator hears from lead researcher Professor Margaret Rayman, from the University of Surrey, to...
Kroger is purchasing 200,000 gallons of fluid milk from dairy farmers who have struggled to find new buyers to purchase their excess supply (much of which was originally destined for foodservice and schools before the pandemic hit). The milk will be redirected...
As tensions – and lawsuits – mount in the meat industry as plants balance the need to protect workers with pressure to maintain the nation’s food supplies, food trade associations have urged Congress to move to protect essential businesses from ‘unfounded’...
In the past two weeks, more than a dozen food and beverage companies – many of which are small and struggling to operate during the pandemic – have teamed with the KIND Foundation’s and Project N95’s recently launched Frontline Impact Project to donate...
Echoing recent comments from the CEOs of Coca-Cola and Mondelēz International, Kraft Heinz CEO Miguel Patricio told analysts Thursday that he is focusing on core SKUs to deliver supply chain efficiencies and delaying new product launches, although it’s...
Driven by strong demand for its snacks products in North America, Mondelēz International reported 2.6% growth in net revenue to $6.7bn for Q1 2020, offsetting sales downturns in other areas of the business including world travel retail and away-from-home...
As Americans spend more time at home and are paying acute attention to health and wellbeing, their demands are shifting towards products with specific functional benefits, options to recreate restaurant experiences at home, and an intensified desire for...
Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) is teaming up with baby and kids food manufacturers, early childhood educators, and other key stakeholders under its 'Shaping Early Palates Initiative', which aims to disrupt the marketplace of childhood...
The Israeli start-up discusses its new sustainability plans, why it sees cultured meat as a 'necessity' and also why the sector can live in harmony with the traditional meat industry.
![Attorney: ‘The CBD market is just not a priority [for the FDA] and will likely remain in its current state for some time’](/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/_aliases/news_teaser_medium/publications/food-beverage-nutrition/foodnavigator-usa.com/article/2020/05/11/hemp-derived-cbd-regulatory-uncertainty-a-bigger-roadblock-than-covid-19-say-caliper-foods-mad-tasty-remains-bullish/11372748-1-eng-GB/Hemp-derived-CBD-Regulatory-uncertainty-a-bigger-roadblock-than-COVID-19-say-Caliper-Foods-MAD-TASTY-remains-bullish.jpg)
