The founders of the online meat marketplace Crowd Cow believe that the future of animal protein in the US is ‘craft’ as consumers look for better tasting, healthier and more sustainable alternatives to the industrial options that have dominated the market...
Roughly half of current online shoppers reported that they plan to purchase grocery items more often in 2019 with increased purchases of fresh food items, according to the 2018 US Online Grocery Shopper Study conducted by The Retail Feedback Group (RFG)...
A month after committing $100m to launch its venture capital fund, Kraft Heinz has acquired wellio, an AI food tech company based in San Francisco, as part of its new digital innovation hub, the evolv group.
Once the “biggest skeptic” of how blockchain technology could benefit the food and beverage industry, Frank Yiannas, the VP of food safety for Walmart, says he experienced a near “religious conversion” after working with IBM to digitize the food supply...
The amount of time Americans spend sitting down and eating a meal has shrunk over the past 10 years, while purchases of prepared food options from grocery stores and food service (carry-out, delivery, or fast food) have risen, according to the Economic...
PepsiCo has acquired Health Warrior, Inc. -- a plant-based protein company specializing in 100-calorie snack nutrition bars -- its first brand investment of the newly-formed entity, The PepsiCo HIVE.
Consumers’ approach to what they eat is changing from “monolithic meat, potatoes and veggies,” to increasingly “heterogeneous” diets that go beyond sustenance to represent values and lifestyles – a shift that is translating to big business for companies...
When manufacturers, retailers, restaurants and food service providers throw away “perfectly good food” because they overestimated how much they needed or were unable to sell it before its best by date they are also throwing away more than $40 billion...
Plated is continuing the in-store rollout of its meal kits with Albertsons, gaining placement with 37 more stores in the Northeast and 42 locations in the Southwest.
Ethnic flavors, plant-based formulations, and use of traditional processing methods (e.g. small batch, stone ground) in new food and beverage launches are all fast-growing product attributes winning over consumers, according to Innova Market Insights.
BrightFarms is poised to bring its local greenhouse model to a nationwide audience with 15 hydroponic greenhouses to be built in the next three to five years as demand for locally-grown produce outweighs organic, shared BrightFarms VP of marketing and...
Greenleaf Foods launched today as a dedicated plant-based food company adding Field Roast Grain Meat Co. and Lightlife Foods (formerly under Maple Leaf Foods) to its portfolio of plant-based food brands.
Sustainability-related claims on food products are popping up more frequently and while still just a small fraction of market, items mentioning sustainability outperformed the growth rate of total products in their respective category, according to Nielsen.
Bantam Bagels – known for its mini stuffed bagels found at Starbucks locations nationwide and in the frozen foods aisle of 16,000 retail stores – has been growing at such a high velocity that it needed an industry partner to support its explosive growth.
Plant-based 'chef-inspired' food brand Kite Hill has closed a $40m capital raise led by General Mills' venture arm 301 INC. with participation from CAVU Venture Partners, which according to CEO Rob Leibowitz, will be put towards expanding...
Tillamook County Creamery Association has had a loyal regional following in the Pacific Northwest for more than 100 years (founded in 1909), but in order to secure its next 100 years the dairy co-operative needed to execute a national growth strategy...
Food and agriculture startups focused on reducing waste, using artificial intelligence to deliver higher food, and offering more sustainable and plant-based options, took center stage at Rabobank's FoodBytes! pitch competition and networking event...
New consumer research suggests that targeting so-called ‘foodies’ to leverage their influence for expanded brand awareness may not be as effective as appealing to an emerging, much larger and potentially more powerful segment known as the ‘food connected...
Cold brew coffee, once a trendy coffee shop menu item or made at-home in mason jars by enthusiasts, has been teetering on the brink of mainstream acceptance with scores of brands introducing on-the-go products at major retail chains, such as Wandering...
Bitsy’s is aiming to change the way the industry and consumers look at kids snacks, a still underdeveloped category with much potential for collaboration between the food industry and parents, according to co-founder Maggie Patton.
The days of landing a spot on store shelves simply by walking into a retailer without an appointment and wowing an employee with an unbranded, unpackaged product are becoming farther and fewer between as competition in the food and beverage space intensifies....
A report by market research firm Packaged Facts revealed that online groceries more than tripled between 2013 and 2018, though it still accounted for only 2% of total grocery spending.
Instacart has raised $600m in a financing round led by D1 Capital Partners, bringing its total funding raised – in Iess than one year – to $1.6bn, raising the e-commerce company’s valuation to $7.6bn.
While available year-round, apple sales typically peak around the harvest season running from late August through early October. However, this year, dollar sales have contracted 5% over the last 52 weeks (ending Sept. 15, 2018), according to Nielsen data.
Swedish company Oatly will open its first US production plant in New Jersey next spring to support demand for its dairy-free oat-based products in the US.
As the laws legalizing recreational use of cannabis shift in North America, consumer interest and readiness to try cannabis-infused products is also evolving, recent research by A.T. Kearney revealed.
Free from the constraints of the appellation d'origine contrôlée that dictate how cheese in Europe is made, American cheese makers are able to add innovative twists to traditional methods to create unique products that meet evolving consumer demand,...
Appalled at the amount of produce wasted every year while many people struggle with food insecurity, Kroger will launch a new brand that prizes oddly shaped and discolored fruits and vegetables that previously would have been rejected by the retail chain.
Earlier this week the top scientific body studying climate change issued a dire warning that “rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society,” must occur to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius and ensure a “more sustainable...
Just Add Cooking (JAC), a meal kit company founded in Boston in 2013, is looking for an extra boost of funding launching a WeFunder campaign with a $300,000 fundraising goal.
The value equation on which consumers select food and beverages has become infinitely more complex in recent years – creating a rising demand for ‘radical personalization’ that is forcing retailers and manufacturers to rethink how they make and offer...
For many Americans, canned tomatoes are a commodity that they regularly use in their home kitchens, but rarely think about beyond price and convenience – but Mutti, the number 1 selling tomato brand in Italy, wants to change that through a new multi-media...
Following Kroger's acquisition of Home Chef and months spent scaling up production capabilities, Home Chef meal kits have rolled out to 225 Midwest Kroger retail locations.
While the economics of running a subscription based home delivery model for fresh meal kits are notoriously challenging, shelf-stable kits offer distinct advantages to consumers and operators, argues the founder of gourmet meal kit brand Takeout Kit,...
Once Upon a Farm – a fresh baby, toddler, and kids food brand on a mission to transform the category – has closed a $20m Series B financing round led by CAVU Venture Partners.
Natural Products Expo West in March may seem far in the future, but now is the time for entrepreneurs to start preparing if they want to launch a new businesses, brand or product at the show, according to the co-founders of the condiment startup Kumana.
Demand for meat alternatives continues to be on the rise with a third of US consumers planning to buy more vegetarian/plant-based food products in the next year, according to Mintel's Better-For-You Eating Trends survey from August 2018, polling...
Vertically integrated and socially-conscious tea company, Vahdam Teas, secured $2.5m in its Series B funding round led by Fireside Ventures to ramp up its customer acquisition rate and fuel its direct-to-consumer business in the US.
Consumer attention to health and wellness when making food and beverage purchases has impacted specific areas of the grocery store, specifically the rise in sales of no sugar added products and items that contain stevia or monk fruit, Nielsen data found.
The old strategies of reaping reliable returns by relying on consumer loyalty, incremental investments in established brands, and large-scale distribution and manufacturing are no longer advantageous – making this one of the most challenging times for...
Kraft Heinz has committed $100m to launch the venture capital fund Evolv Ventures that will be focused on investing in emerging technologies in the food industry.
After setting up its head offices and production facility in Manhattan Beach, California, in June, plant-based yogurt and dessert brand The Coconut Collaborative has confirmed listings with several West Coast retailers and will appear on those store shelves...
Transparency into how products are made, what is in them and how they impact society is no longer simply ‘nice to have’ – rather a new report from the Food Marketing Institute made possible with help from Label Insight shows that it is a ‘must-have’ for...
What’s new in the snacking world and how are consumers fitting snacks into their day? Is the trend of ‘fresh snacking’ the future, or are pantry items still the bread and butter of the category?
Sales of kid-friendly school snacks on Amazon grew 40% year-over-year to $350m in the first half of 2018, driven by the e-commerce giant’s heavy online promotion as well as consumers’ growing familiarity and comfort with shopping online for snacks, One...
Over the past five years, 44% of American and British consumers surveyed that they have added more fish to their diets, followed closely by poultry, Cargill’s recent Feed4Thought survey showed.
Food sensory judgements – taste, texture, and aroma perception – can be influenced by the surrounding environment, and virtual reality (VR) technology can be an effective and affordable way of replicating various environments when conducting consumer...
Often overshadowed by flavor and color in marketing, texture plays a pivotal role in how consumers experience food and beverages, and research firm Mintel predicts that it is “the next big thing” companies should focus on as they try to keep up with demand...
Mars Wrigley Confectionery has released its latest merchandizing guidelines based on the most recent shopper behavior data to help c-stores drive sales.
Despite some fast food chains’ efforts to offer more nutritious food options with kids’ meals, 74% of kids still receive unhealthy drinks and/or side items with their meals when they visit one of the four largest fast food chains, a study by UConn Rudd...
