With inflation driving up grocery prices and many government assistance programs ending, consumers are looking for deals now more than last year – but according to the marketing solutions company Vericast, they aren’t finding them when and where they...
Shares of United Natural Foods skyrocketed yesterday after the natural and organic food wholesaler’s fourth quarter earnings beat industry expectations, and executives laid out an optimistic outlook for 2022 with concrete plans to make the best of lingering...
Fresh food may make most consumers feel happier and capture the lion’s share of retail sales – for now – but rising prices, concerns about perishability and shifting preference are pushing more shoppers to the frozen aisle, suggests new research by Deloitte.
More US shoppers report feeling unhappy with how grocery stores are handling the COVID-19 crisis now, including a prominent concern around the cost and price of their groceries, than earlier this year, according to dunnhumby in its latest Consumer Pulse...
Following its initial foodservice launch earlier this year, Beyond Meat is rolling out Beyond Chicken Tenders at retailers in select markets across the US next month.
Not many companies would be satisfied with or even strive to produce a food or beverage that tastes ‘normal,’ but the founder of the better-for-you frozen dessert company Killer Creamery couldn’t be happier that the taste of brand’s new ice cream sandwich...
PepsiCo's Frito-Lay North America division introduced an industrially-compostable bag for select products of its Off The Eaten Path better-for-you snack brand as part of its newly-launched pep+ sustainability program.
Demand for immunity-boosting products may have driven an initial double-digit surge of natural and organic product sales early in the pandemic, but many category newcomers have stayed – and more have flocked to the segment in 2021 – even as the threat...
Growing plant-based foods company Above Food – which began as an ingredient supplier of specialized plant proteins – is quickly gaining ground in its B2C business, snapping up several brands and launching its own direct-to-consumer site with a growing...
General Mills is tapping into hard-to-access receipt-level, first party consumer data from retailers as it scales up its much vaunted “connected commerce” program – allowing it to create “strong one-to-one relationships” with shoppers and ultimately drive...
Pea protein-fueled brand Ripple Foods has raised $60m in an oversubscribed Series E round* that takes its cumulative funding to almost $250m, and will help the plant-based firm enter new categories, channels, and overseas markets, and extend its proprietary...
As consumers increasingly seek out sustainable and wellness-focused products, Walmart has created a dedicated online shopping destination to help consumers discover products considered to be better for their personal health and better for the environment.
Fueled by its ultra-scalable, modular farm system, indoor farming startup Square Roots has recently acclerated its retail presence where the company aims to disrupt the packaged salad mix category with its unique blend of baby and micro greens.
Supply chain challenges exacerbated by the pandemic have bolstered consumer interest in buying local to better support farmers, ensure product quality and reduce environmental impact, but many do not want to sacrifice the savings or year-around variety...
As the popularity of oat milk continues to rise in the US, so too do the number of players – but by taking an “oat milk for all approach,” that includes a lower average price point, more inclusive distribution strategy and aggressive sampling program,...
A keen empathy for consumers, a deep commitment to innovation and an open-door approach to collaboration helped the founder of Nissin Foods not only capture the hearts of billions of people when he invented instant noodles, but also helped build and sustain...
PepsiCo has unveiled a new data platform dubbed ‘pepviz’ enabling it to collaborate with retail partners to develop a more granular, targeted, and ‘hyperlocal’ approach to product assortment, digital marketing and inventory management that has already...
While pantry stocking and increased consumer demand for food consumed at home pushed up same store sales 15.8% for most food retailers in 2020, margins remained tight as new pandemic-related expenses and higher credit/debit card, healthcare and new technology...
Mondelez International and a union representing more than 1,000 Nabisco employees have reached a tentative agreement that could end a strike at three bakeries and three sales distribution facilities across the country that began early last month.
With soup sales beginning to cool closer to pre-pandemic levels in the last quarter of fiscal 2021, Campbell Soup Co. is heating up the category, literally and figuratively, with innovations across its Pacific, Well Yes! and namesake soup brands to maintain...
While inflation in August was still more than double the Federal Reserve’s 2% long-term target, its growth rate slowed for the first time in eight months – sparking optimism in some policy makers that the economy is healing.
The US Food and Drug Administration has announced 12 winners of a challenge aimed at increasing supply chain transparency and traceability for ingredients and whole foods.
Walmart is making it even easier for consumers to buy groceries online by simplifying its retail app and fulfillment process, and teaming with the multi-media company Meredith Corporation to leverage artificial intelligence and shoppable recipes for a...
Unlike many other retailers, Dollar General does not plan to pass through to consumers price increases to offset inflation, rather executives said the banner is more likely to change its product mix – a strategy that shifts the onus for cost management...
When it comes to packaging, is it always clear which is the most environmentally-friendly choice? Mixed material packaging combining high levels of paperboard, for example, is often touted as a greener choice than plastic, but if most of it ends up in...
Retailers struggling with labor shortages are offering higher pay and better benefits to fill vacancies – but according to one industry player they also should embrace automation to ease the burden on and maximize the efficiency of existing staff to maintain...
Despite “more inflation than we’ve seen in really in a decade,” General Mills has successfully offset increases with little detriment to sales or retailer and consumer relationships, but managing labor constraints and supply chain challenges hasn’t been...
Like many CPG players, Kraft Heinz has leaned heavily on pricing to offset inflationary pressures, and is willing to do so again, but it is not the only weapon in the company’s arsenal to protect its margins and balance consumers’ needs, executives said...
From plant-based and nutritionally enhanced products to improved sustainability and packaging innovations, the 45 startups participating in FoodBytes! by Rabobank’s Pitch 2021 competition announced today hit on some of the hottest trends and biggest challenges...
The Gardein plant-based meat brand notched up retail sales of $170m in measured channels* in the year to July 25, up 33.5% versus two years ago, says brand owner Conagra Brands, which says it's particularly encouraged by the 'growth that is...
Over the next three years, Kellogg Company wants to invest $45m to boost production of and better position for long-term success its ready-to-eat cereal business, which has bumped up against capacity restraints in recent months as consumer demand has...
Local Bounti is playing to win in the CEA (controlled environment agriculture) sector with a hybrid approach to growing its leafy greens that combines the best of vertical and horizontal greenhouse farming, which founder and CEO Craig Hurlbert says offers...
Ongoing labor challenges are a double-edged sword for Hormel Foods Corporation, which struggled to fully meet consumer demand in its third quarter due to staffing shortages, but which also saw its food service business rebound significantly thanks to...
For a company with an over 90-year history, Ocean Spray is still in its early days of tapping into the kids beverage category with its Growing Goodness line, a functional line of kids juice products with no added sugar.
Feeling good about where Campbell Soup Co landed in fiscal 2021 “amidst the difficult environment,” company executives anticipate fiscal 2022 “will be a complicated transitional year” as inflation, labor shortages and other supply chain challenges persist....
Kellogg is bracing for at least another six to nine months of volatility as it continues to grapple with supply chain constraints, inflation and labor shortages, but it also is optimistic about upcoming innovations and opportunities embedded in new consumer...
While many retailers and CPG manufacturers are implementing price increases to their product assortments, online fresh food retailer FreshDirect said it will be rolling out price savings to consumers on a wide variety of its products.
To keep up with its robust year-over-year growth and prevent disruptions to its supply chain network, Walmart has announced that it will be hiring 20,000 new supply chain associates to work across its distribution centers, fulfillment centers, and transportation...
B&G Foods is selling its Portland, Maine, manufacturing facility to the Institute for Digital Engineering and Life Sciences to cut costs and boost efficiencies at a time when the overall food and beverage industry is struggling with inflation and...
Even as economies reopen and consumer mobility increases, demand for CPGs and food consumed at home remains elevated over pre-pandemic levels in many categories, and in some cases exceeds the high demand of the early pantry-stocking days, according to...
Messaging around dairy alternatives often focuses on health, sustainability, animal welfare, or food allergy/intolerance, which motivates shoppers that want to feel good about what they put in their baskets and their bodies. But ‘plant curious’ consumers...
After an initial launch in Canada, plant-based foods company Nabati Foods is rolling out its plant-based liquid egg product (Nabati Plant Eggz) in the US where it will be sold online through the company's direct-to-consumer website.
Poppi, an emerging prebiotic soda brand, has closed a $13.5m funding round led by CAVU Ventures and further backed by a star-studded investor pool including Ellie Goulding, Halsey, Kevin Love, and Olivia Munn, which will go towards supporting the company's...
Whether it is in-person, online or a hybrid of both, children across the country are returning to school – bringing relief to some caregivers and triggering anxiety in others, but either way almost everyone is headed to the store for classroom essentials,...
While Quest Nutrition may not have achieved its founders’ somewhat lofty goal of ‘ending metabolic disease’ just yet, the high-protein, low-carb, low-sugar positioning of the company – one of the runaway CPG success stories of the past decade – is continuing...
Closing out a challenging fiscal year plagued by labor shortages, supply chain constraints, and higher-than-expected inflation, Hain Celestial executives are “very bullish on our future” after convincing retailers to accept price increases, implementing...
Specialty ingredients supplier Balchem has developed several product concepts for the kids snacking market addressing specific nutrition areas of increasing importance to parents and families of young children.
When COVID-19 hit, Amy’s Kitchen – best known for its frozen pizzas, burritos, entrees and shelf-stable soups – ticked all the right boxes for ‘pandemic cuisine,’ says chief customer and consumer officer Karen Jobb. It makes convenient, healthy, restaurant-quality...