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...
Consumers that say they seek out products they consider ‘clean label’ are more likely to enjoy grocery shopping and are actively engaged in the food shopping process, a Packaged Facts report revealed.
From novel approaches to introducing allergens to babies, to HPP babyfood, grab n’ go granola for schools and frozen puree pops for tots, entrants to our 2018 trailblazers challenge are creating innovative new products, brands, and routes to market for...
Lidl has faced a challenging start in the US, but with renewed focus on product refinement, commitment to home-delivery and creative store expansions there is 'every possibility' of success, says PlanetRetail RNG's research director.
Convenient solutions for getting dinner on the table at a reasonable hour are growing and the expansion of produce distributor Baldor Specialty Foods’ retail line, Urban Roots Veggie Side Kits, is intended to give consumers a time-saving and creative...
Food and beverage products touting protein claims has become a big business driven by strong consumer interest, however two Nielsen surveys highlight knowledge gaps consumer still have about the nutrient.
The line between breakfast and dessert can be a bit blurry with options such as coffeecake on the menu, but superfood snack company Health Warrior wants to place muffins squarely on the side of better-for-you morning meals with the launch of its Protein...
Predicting what consumers will want to see on menus in the coming season “is a bit of a mix of art and science,” according to a product development expert at the food service distributor US Foods, but she says this fall consumers will seek out versatile...
ALDI’s move to offer online grocery delivery via Instacart to US customers nationwide proves there is room for more than just Amazon in the e-commerce game, according to Jack O’Leary, senior analyst at PlanetRetail RNG.
For busy working parents, mealtimes can be stressful even on a good day, and if direct to consumer companies can solve this pain point with child-friendly meals that don’t require any preparation, the market opportunity is “potentially enormous,” say...
For many entrepreneurs who dream of launching the next big national brand, the future can’t get here fast enough; but the founder of the “curiously pink” antioxidant lemonade brand Poppilu, warns growing too quickly without first nailing down the fundamentals...
Campbell Soup Company has appointed Craig Slavtcheff as its new vice president of research and development (R&D) leading the company’s entire R&D division, including strategy, innovation, and product development.
Los Angeles-based Cave Shake – a ready-to-drink (RTD) vegan, ketogenic shake brand – said that despite droves of consumers ‘going keto’, the company is taking a steady, targeted approach to becoming the #1 brand in the category guided by a recent investment...
With kids spending so much of their day in school while also being heavily influenced by their parents' eating habits, how can we get kids to make healthy food and beverage choices?
Two weeks after rolling out into Walmart stores, The a2 Milk Company became available in 3-packs at Costco stores across the southeast, signaling that a2 Milk is no longer a niche product concept, said managing director and CEO Jayne Hrdlicka who took...
Walmart may not be a consumer’s first stop for third-wave craft coffee products, but that’s set to change as the super retailer transforms its center-store coffee aisle with direct-trade, single-origin, coffee products such as Boyer’s Mash-Up line created...
Bare Bones Broth Co. is moving its entire product line from the freezer to the shelf-stable soup aisle to make itself even more convenient and affordable for consumers, founder and COO Ryan Harvey said.
When Kraft Heinz launched its Springboard incubator program earlier this year, it was flooded with more than 200 applicants for only five spots – an overwhelming response that underscores the importance of fine-tuning a pitch when presenting to potential...
On average, most Americans eat only half their meals at home with family or household members -- a figure that the Food Marketing Institute Foundation and more than 200 food retailers, manufacturers and community organizations are hoping to increase...
The ideal situation for families with young children is a sit-down dinner seven days a week, but in many cases that's just not realistic, says co-founder of Nurture Life Jennifer Chow.
Since America was founded – no matter who has been at the helm – we have celebrated a proud ethos as the land of opportunity and abundance: A place where if people are willing to work they can find jobs, build homes and feed their families.
Culinary exploration and convenience are at the top of many consumers’ wish lists when it comes to meal prep, and Chicago food startup FILLO’S Americas Made (parent company: Sofrito Foods) is aiming to fulfill both needs.
The majority of product-related online searches now go through Amazon, not Google, and if you want your brands to get on consumers’ radar - wherever they shop - you have to be there, with an optimized profile, says ecommerce analytics firm Clavis Insight.
Despite a disappointing drop in net sales in the US, Hain Celestial executives remain undaunted and optimistic in their multi-prong strategy to reshape the US business and return it to growth in the back half of 2019, executives said Aug. 28.
Peanut butter and jelly maker JM Smucker Co.’s decision to realign its portfolio to focus on coffee, snacking and pet food is paying off with a “strong first quarter performance,” including increased net sales and profits, according to company executives....
One of the secrets to the rapid growth of Raised Real’s subscription home delivery meal kits for “tiny humans” is asking its members what they need – and actually listening to their answers, according to the company’s CEO Santiago Merea.
Tummy-friendly brand a2 Milk is now in more than 6,000 stores in the US, including Walmart. However, the reception from the wider dairy industry has been "lukewarm at best," claims its US CEO Blake Waltrip: 'There's an irrational fear...
A whopping 85% of consumers don’t know what they will have for dinner until mere hours before the meal – meaning what ends up on their plates increasingly doesn’t come from the fridge, but rather from a restaurant, meal kit or the grocery deli and chilled...
Grass fed beef may account for only a small fraction of the total US beef market, but demand for it is growing fast as consumers look for options that not only are flavorful but which they perceive as healthier for them, the environment and animals.
Aldi is putting an emphasis on fresh, organic, and easy-to-prepare options as it remodels stores, and says “20% of products in every store will be new compared to last year,” with the fresh selection increasing by 40%.
Interest in healthy snacks is nothing new, but interest in keto and vegan snacks is really on the rise, says the co-founder of snack subscription service Variety Fun.
Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, an artisanal ice cream brand from Brooklyn, has closed a Series A minority investment round led by Strand Equity, which the company will use to fuel its retail and wholesale businesses as well as make some major c-suite hires.
Freshness of food has become the top purchase driver for millennials (aged 23-40) and Gen Z (aged 11-22) reflected by a declining conventional snacking category and a rise in fresh perimeter-of-the-store sales.
According to recent research from Innova Market Insights, consumers are making more mindful choices about their diets and it is changing how they evaluate products, including pushing them to look more closely at ingredient decks and to consider the product’s...
Slightly more than two years after setting out on a mission to make childhood dreams of safely eating raw cookie dough a reality, the founder of The Dough Jar is realizing her own dream come true with the opening of a brick and mortar store in the Washington,...
Through a two-prong approach focused on innovation and acquisition, Nestle is remaking its image from a company perceived in the US to make primarily chocolate and confections to one that is “fit for the future” with brands across multiple categories...
Happy Family Organics is expanding its Clearly Crafted line of premium baby food from just pouches to jars to reach the millions of nutritionally at-risk, low-income infants in the US who participate in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women,...
Americans are preparing and eating more meals at home (four out of five meals) than they did a decade ago, according to The NPD Group. To capture these at-home eaters, the food industry should focus less on where consumers are eating and more on what...
The growth of retail meal kits and prepared meals is driving interest in high pressure processing (HPP) for multi-component foods in order to deliver products that are more commercially viable for retailers that want more than a few days of shelf-life,...
By James Richardson, PhD, founder, Premium Growth Solutions
As Chef’d found out the hard way, the future of the fresh meal kit category will be via retail and localized e-commerce services (e.g. Fresh Direct, Prime Now, Shipt, etc.). Drop-shipping subscription-based meal kits causes more problems than it solves...
While some meal kit brands are doing better than others, the subscription based home delivery model underpinning them is fundamentally flawed, claims the new owner of Chef’d, which abruptly ceased operations in mid-July.
The rise in sales and consumer interest of in-store fresh product offerings have challenged center-of-the-store items, but that doesn’t necessarily mean consumers have turned away from the middle aisles all together, Nielsen highlighted in its Total Consumer...
Egg protein drinks may conjure up images of an unappetizing mixture of blended raw eggs consumed by diehard athletes during early morning workouts. But egg ingredients supplier and formulation expert Rembrandt Foods is turning this stereotype on its head...
Earlier this week meal kit company Chef’d announced that it had ceased all operations and issued layoff notices to its employees, citing "unexpected circumstances with the funding for the business." While there is still speculation over what...
In a space like meat snacks, it’s hard to standout especially for a small brand like Chomps Snack Sticks. The Chicago startup’s lean and mean approach has gained it access into major retailers including 7-Eleven, Safeway, and Albertsons where it outsells...
Highlights from day one at the Digital Food and Beverage conference
Selling food & beverage brands online has some obvious advantages: you can get to market more quickly, get rapid feedback, and find out who your customers are. But it’s not all plain-sailing. Here are some takeaways from day one of the Digital Food...
