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,...
The increasing number of U.S. adults reducing or eliminating gluten from their diet who are not diagnosed with celiac disease likely is an unsustainable fad, clinical researchers argued at the Whole Grains Council Oldways Whole Grains: Breaking Barriers...
The “best” way to change consumers’ long-held perception that whole grain products taste “like cardboard” and to spur sales is to give consumers a risk-free chance to try the products and use positive, educational marketing, food manufacturers said.
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.
'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about corporate bullying, industrialized egg production, and whether the standard of identity for ‘mayonnaise’ is outdated, legal experts say it will hinge upon what consumers...
Boulder Brands - which announced a high-profile re-launch of its Smart Balance spreads on a non-GMO platform in March - has admitted that the move has not transformed the brand’s flagging fortunes.
Whole Foods Market hopes to ditch its unwanted moniker “whole paycheck” and reinvigorate slowing sales by lowering select product prices and expanding its reward program nationwide in 2015.
Consumers want to eat healthier, but when it comes to snacking a desire for decadent and indulgent usually wins out over virtuous, which is why Berkeley, Calif.-based The Good Bean wants to “reclaim fun for the better-for-you-chip space” with the launch...
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.
New I can't believe it's not butter recipe has no artificial preservatives
Unilever is seeking to seize back the initiative in the US spreads aisle with the roll-out of new ‘cool blending technology’ that enables it to produce buttery spreads without using artificial-sounding ingredients that have given the category an image...
The Federal Trade Commission’s allegations that baby food maker Gerber overstated the ability of Good Start Gentle formula to prevent allergies underscores the difficulty of using qualified health claims, which often are restrictive, difficult for consumers...
Jaime Crespo, senior brand manager, Lipton North America, says research suggests consumers are 59 times more likely to engage with brands on Instagram than Facebook, while millennials measure wealth more by experiences.
The rising tide of food intolerances and allergic reactions bodes well for Pascha Chocolate, a brand that is founded on an allergen-free positioning. But co-founder Courtenay Vuchnich said the real message is purity, with allergen-free coming along for...
Simple changes in how food manufacturers handle and trace ingredients, packages and labels at production facilities could reduce dramatically the number of recalls due to undeclared allergens, which make up the vast majority of food recalls, according...
One of the fastest growing ingredients right now, coconut often is touted as a superfood, but that does not mean products containing its oil, flesh or milk are “healthy,” a recent FDA warning letter reminds the food and beverage industries.
Whole Foods Markets has decided to go big, with a national TV ad campaign that kicked off during a recent World Series game. The message is one of “values,” talking about the natural grocery store chain’s commitment to sustainability and transparency.
While Beanitos probably has a higher profile, fellow Texan chip maker Simply7 snacks has quietly carved out an equally impressive niche in the better-for-you snacks aisle over the past four years with hummus, lentil, quinoa and pink pomegranate chips...
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.
Not so long ago, beans were something you’d more likely find in a dip than a chip. Today, in no small part because of the explosive growth of Beanitos, they are all over the snacks aisle as formulators look to boost fiber and protein, and marketers tap...
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...
'Many kombucha makers are thumbing their nose at the regulators'
In 2010, KeVita sparkling organic probiotic beverages were available in a handful of Whole Foods stores in Southern California. Today they have 90%+ ACV in the natural channel, and a growing presence in the conventional channel, and CEO Bill Moses sits...
Social media can be a powerful tool to identify trends as well as communicate with different customer segments. But it can also be used to identify threats, says market research firm Brandwatch.
Small and inexpensive changes to the content of supermarket circulars have ‘great potential’ to boost healthy eating and get consumers closer to dietary guidelines, but only if the retailers are on-board, says a new analysis.
The marketplace for consumer goods has fundamentally changed, and CPG companies looking for stable long term growth need to be able to solve this “frustrating puzzle,” according to a new report from market research firm Strategy&.
Tate & Lyle has unveiled CLARIA, a new range of functional clean-label starches that are claimed to perform as well as their modified counterparts, enabling firms to deliver cleaner labels on a broader range of products without compromising taste,...
Leavening agent sodium acid pyrophosphate (SAPP) doesn’t belong in products making ‘all-natural’ claims, even if they are USDA certified organic, the FDA has told a Massachusetts-based baker.
The cost to consumers of requiring labeling of genetically modified food is $2.30 per person annually, or less than a penny a day, says new analysis commissioned by Consumers Union, the policy arm of Consumer Reports.
New crowd funding platforms will transform the food industry, said an executive of a Canadian company set to go that route to raise additional capital.
Just weeks after the US launch of Coca-Cola Life, PepsiCo has unveiled plans to launch its own mid-calorie soda sweetened with a combination of sugar and stevia under the Pepsi True brand.
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...
After a years long pilot process, the new label Food Justice Certified is ready for market. The new designation aims to do what the USDA Organic Certification does not, and that is to verify that in every link of the food chain there is fair treatment...
Diamond Foods is "competing with products addressing the trends in convenient protein, natural, organic, gluten-free, and non-GMO", CEO Brian Driscoll told analysts Thursday. And while its nuts and chips tap into some of these trends, he said,...
While the jaw-dropping amount that General Mills paid for Annie’s ($820m) raised some eyebrows, it was “worth it”, says one corporate finance expert who says big CPG firms are increasingly eyeing up acquisition targets in the natural and organic foods...
What’s more sustainable? Using acres of land, water and energy to grow plants that produce minuscule quantities of natural flavors, sweeteners or phytonutrients; or making them via a fermentation process using baker’s yeast that’s been engineered to produce...
Opponents of genetic modification say there is a new, potentially more powerful technology to contend with: synthetic biology. Purveyors of natural products who are concerned about this technique have coined the term for the way in which scientists have...
90 scientists have written to President Obama urging him to press the FDA into making a decision, one way or another, on whether AquaBounty Technologies should be allowed to introduce the first genetically engineered (GE) animal to the human food supply.
While new class action lawsuits over ‘all-natural’ claims on food labels are still filed in the ‘food court’ in California on a weekly basis, some recent orders from judges handling these cases present a glimmer of hope for beleaguered food & beverage...
B&G Foods is the latest firm to be hit with a class action lawsuit accusing it of misleading shoppers by labeling products containing ingredients that are “highly processed” or/and derived from genetically engineered crops as ‘all-natural’.
Desires to align product portfolios with messages of corporate social responsibility are driving some of the M&A activity regarding organic and natural companies, says Euromonitor International.
While sales of vitaminwater and SoBe Lifewater have been pretty lackluster of late, US consumers are still looking for functionality along with hydration and refreshment in the enhanced waters category, and energy is the one trend that refuses to go away,...
Are consumers weary of 'all-natural' claims? And if so, what other cues do they look for on pack to see if a brand fits in with their values? We quizzed the bosses of some innovative food brands, ingredients suppliers and branding experts to...
Here’s a look at the latest and greatest in new product launches—from General Mills making the old new to kombucha for all, bean-based chips, eggless eggs, and protein-packed chips and even gummies.
A new group called the Global Nutrition & Health Alliance has formed with the mission to clarify the role of food fortification and nutritional supplementation. The issue of the role of these nutrients in the diet is still a matter of some confusion,...