Unilever PLC executives suggested during the firm’s July 25 first-half earnings call with analysts that inflation has peaked, but that its effects will continue to be felt, especially in its food-related business categories.
Consumers are starting to turn to products with brain-boosting benefits as CPG brands look to educate consumers on a range of functional ingredients, Stephanie Mattuci, director of Mintel food and beverage and purchase intelligence, shared during a presentation...
The Biden Administration’s expansive National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition and Health released in September included a commitment to expand healthy and sustainable food options at federal food facilities, and now 160 non-governmental organizations are...
Theo Mizzi, project manager at Inverto UK, discusses handling and storage challenges in the food and drink supply chain and how artificial intelligence can play a role in maintaining integrity during transit.
FoodNavigator-USA will present its free editorial webinar, Raising the Snack Bar: Exploring Growth Drivers, Innovations and Consumer Cravings on July 26 at 11:30 AM CT. The webinar will feature a panel of snack bar experts who will explore how key differentiators...
Internet of things (IoT) and data technologies are providing retailers with insight to create a more efficient business, from improving product availabiity on shelf to reducing spoilage, Thaddeus Segura, VP of data products and algorithm, told FoodNavigator-USA....
Tech giant Google's cloud-based data, AI, and omnichannel customer experience is helping retailers unlock new customer opportunities through digital channels, Paul Tepfenhart, global director for Google Cloud and head of food, drug, mass, and convenience...
Omnichannel experiences that mix in-person and digital shopping are increasingly important for brands and retailers to grow their businesses, as consumer behaviors shift due to economic factors like inflation, Alexandra Trott, director of insight for...
Conagra Brands is well positioned for 2024 as inflation eases, but will need to contend with shifting consumer behavior as shoppers begin to purchase fewer food items, CEO and President Sean Connolly said July 13 during the firm’s fourth quarter and fiscal...
Private label is expected to expand its presence in retailers as 80% of industry executives reported increasing investment for the next two years with a focus on label transparency through digital touchpoints both in-store and digitally, according to...
Even though overall prices for food consumed at home held steady in June after inching up slightly in May, the impact was not even across all categories – causing consumers to continue to trade down and make tough decisions in the grocery aisles to balance...
By leveraging foot-traffic data, retailers can understand how their consumers are spending time in-store to develop a personalized and streamlined shopping experience.
At the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City late last month emerging and established brands were going back to basics with simplified ingredients, streamlined packaging, clear cut benefits and natural – if not always familiar – flavor profiles.
Even though women make up half of marathon runners, only 2.5% of sports nutrition products explicitly target them, and those that do tend to be more expensive and tend to be rated poorly, forcing many female athletes to compromise their health by consuming...
The Commission noted the proliferation of generative AI will likely make it easier for bad actors to write fake reviews. However, the FTC's plan to impose hefty fines may be enough to deter deceptive practices.
There are three major concerns about the use of AI in the food industry, with the majority of benefits at present related to market research and advertising strategies – as evidenced by Coca-Cola – according to an industry expert.
The functional beverage category is growing at a rapid clip as consumers look for fast, easy ways to support their on-the-go lifestyles and their health, but not all ingredients, products and platforms are created equally and the segment faces significant...
Despite overall sales growth, the specialty foods industry has faced challenges in recent years, including inflation, declining unit sales (for the first time) and increased competition from conventional grocery stores, explained David Lockwood, CEO,...
The average American eats 48 pints of ice cream per year - and according to new consumer research, adults with children reach out for a frozen treat more often than most.
Capsaicin-forward, craft hot sauce makers walked the fine line between flavor and heat, all while paying homage to locally sourced chilis from around the world, at the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City this week.
Whole Foods Market’s newest store opened this week in the historic Walter Reed Parks in Washington, DC, as an anchor for the redeveloping neighborhood and a new opportunity for area startups hoping to break into the competitive food and beverage industry....
FoodNavigator-USA visited HI-Chew's pop-up to speak with Teruhiro Kawabe, Chief Representative for the USA & President, CEO of Morinaga America Inc. and Joanne Hsu, senior brand marketing manager, to discuss the brand's HI-Chew bites launch.
As CPG brands look to grow their e-commerce business in the face of changing consumer behaviors, they are facing several key technology challenges and opportunities in the form of collecting first-party data and embracing AI to deliver on mass personalization,...
As CPG food and beverages companies grow brand penetration, they are met with a consumer who is increasingly savvy in finding the best purchase for their dollar, requiring e-commerce teams to rethink how to attract new customers and keep the ones they...
With the help of technological advancements, CPG brands and retailers are taking a hard look at their carbon footprint through real-time analytics as the push to carbon label standards becomes a bigger focus for governments around the world, Antony Yousefian,...
Despite an overall decline in capital investments over the last year, BevNet Live’s panelists of financial experts encourage CPG brands to continue innovating along the supply chain while “strengthening velocity, sales and margins.”
The UK throws away around 100 billion pieces of plastic each year, much of which goes into landfill. Tetra Pak North Europe managing director Alex Henriksen told FoodNavigator about how inexorably politics and food packaging are tied together.
Under a new CEO and with peak-pandemic receding farther into the background, the Consumer Brands Association is “going back to the future” to focus on core values that, while still priorities in recent years, took a backseat during the chaos of COVID...
The Danish brand Naturli' will feature two versions of its vegan butters—Plant Butter Spread and Plant Butter Block—both formulated to perform and taste like traditional butter.
While most plant-based categories saw year-over-year unit sales slide last year in the face of higher prices to offset inflation, a handful of categories bucked the trend – including plant-based cream cheese, sour cream and spreads.
Within plant-based milks, almond may dominate sales and oat may be the fastest growing sub-segment, but an increasing variety of nut-, seed-, legume- and grain-based options are coming to market – simultaneously fragmenting and growing the overall segment.
Cultivated meat could debut on upscale restaurant menus in the US in as little as a few weeks or months after the USDA on Wednesday gave the greenlight for UPSIDE Foods and GOOD Meat to sell their “cell-cultured chicken” in the US.
Poultry producer Perdue Farms is shaking up what’s possible with direct-to-consumer offerings with new digital avenues, as it tells a better story about its animal welfare strategy, brand CMO and SVP of e-commerce David Zucker told FoodNavigator-USA in...
Sustainability messages can have a “dramatic amplifier effect” on brands’ reach and appeal when paired with traditional category claims such as “tastes great,” but to fully leverage their power marketers should focus on how sustainability claims benefit...
Meat-packing giant JBS begrudgingly agreed to discontinue “aspirational” claims about its goal to reach ‘net zero’ greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 after failing to convince an advertising watchdog that consumers would not interpret the commitment as...
AI technologies can help reduce food waste and increase efficiencies while improving the overall digital customer experience, Alex Weinstein, chief digital officer for Hungryroot, shared in a fireside chat with FoodNavigator-USA at the Digital Food and...
After overcoming a period of declining sales and discontinuation from retailers like Walmart and Walgreens, The Vita Coco co-founder and executive chairman Mike Kirban discussed the company’s operational strategy including brand exposure, reaching consumers...
Snack maker Mondelēz is embracing in-store and digital shopping experiences, as the company is committed to the direct-to-consumer (DTC) model for the long haul, company director of global eCommerce Abhishek Ahluwalia told FoodNavigator-USA in an interview...
Even in the face of widening price gaps, Kraft Heinz is unwilling to bring back the deep-discounts that were prevalent pre-pandemic – preferring instead to elevate and invest more in marketing and R&D so promotions and products are better tailored...
As CPG companies look to boost efficiencies during an economically challenging year, organizations like Bumble Bee Seafood are beginning to revamp their e-commerce strategy with a keen focus on return on investment (ROI) while also looking to streamline...
The move is part of the Special K, Coco Pops and Corn Flakes maker’s drive to become a more inclusive employer: recognising that a university degree doesn’t always have a correlation to the contribution that someone can make within a role.
Sustainability and future-proofing the food system
Alternative proteins hold significant potential to help combat climate change by offering a more environmentally sustainable alternative to animal agriculture – a benefit that could help them unlock much-needed funding and strategic support to refine...
As CPG brands and retailers respond to shifting consumers behaviors -- from trading down to private label to more brick-and-mortar shopping -- they need to put aside preconceived notions of what consumers want and use data and their internal resources...
While M&A activity is slower, the total capital invested in 2022 remains similar to previous years, with an increase in venture capital funds in the food and beverage industry, and trends surrounding plant-based food, private label and automation,...
A slight uptick in the price of food at home in May from April after months of steady decline isn’t as worrisome to some industry stakeholders as it could be given year-over-year food prices continued to slow and remained far lower than the double-digit...
Nearly 2,000 companies and 270 trade groups, including those representing grocers, convenience stores and other retailers that sell packaged food and beverages, are calling for the swift passage of legislation that could lower credit and debit card swipe...
Due to the rise in grocery prices, consumers have transitioned into value shoppers, prioritizing price sensitivities over brand loyalty. This shift has opened an opportunity for smaller retailers to more efficiently meet consumer needs by leveraging their...
The online marketplace PartnerSlate will “accelerate the growth of its online marketplace digitizing the $200-billion food and beverage contract manufacturing industry" with a $4m fundraise led by Supply Change Capital, according to its recent press...
Despite efforts to upcycle ingredients, promote so-called ugly produce and educate retailers and consumers about how to sell and use food before it spoils, food waste in the US remains at a stubborn 30%, in part due to inaccuracies predicting consumer...