Despite parents' best efforts and new products coming to the market promising critical nutrients from vegetables, the fact remains that the vast majority of children are simply not eating enough vegetables. This reality is the primary motivating...
Leading Canadian organic baby food brand Baby Gourmet is eager to expand its manufacturing capacity and bring its organic meals and snacks for babies and toddlers into the US after joining Hero Group’s “goodness of nature” portfolio, which also includes...
Black Lives Matter supporters may not be taking to the streets or grabbing headlines as often as they were last summer, but the social and racial injustices that drove them their persist, which is why KIND Healthy Snacks is deepening its commitment to...
On a mission to combat childhood malnutrition globally, Enspice Children’s Foundation has launched a line of season and spice blends fortified with plant-based vitamins and minerals to help fill nutrition gaps and raise money to feed children around the...
While interest in plant-based options for children is on the rise, meeting the high bar for taste and texture set by kids – who often are less willing than adults to compromise on experience for nutrition – can be a tall order, according to some nutritionists.
Early allergen introduction brand and 2020 FOOD FOR KIDS Trailblazer, Mission MightyMe, is helping parents become proactive in preventing peanut allergies by introducing the common allergen into their infants' diets via accessible and easy-to-eat...
CHUM Fruit Snacks founder Benjamin Bartley says parents "want cleaner ingredient lists, a sustainable story, breakthrough benefits not yet seen and above all, originality."
A sharp and steady decline over the past 18 years of infant iron consumption uncovered by Nestlé’s long-term Feeding Infants and Toddlers Study reveals a threat to children’s brain development and learning capabilities as well as a significant market...
Children’s dietary patterns are mostly set by the time they turn 2 years old, which doesn’t leave a lot of wiggle room for indulging picky eaters if caregivers want their kids to grow up eating – and liking – a wide variety of healthy, nutrient-dense...
Companies hoping to break into the children’s food and beverage category may have a better shot at success by going direct-to-consumer with solutions that extend beyond kids to target the whole family than they do at breaking into and out on grocery retail...
When the coronavirus first shuttered schools and threatened more than 22 million children’s access to the free and reduced breakfast, lunch and snacks, on which they relied for nutrition, PepsiCo’s Food For Good joined other non-profits, government agencies,...
As illustrated by the diversity and record number of entrants to FoodNavigator-USA’s 2020 Food For Kids Trailblazers Challenge, innovation abounds in the children’s food and beverage segment, but funding and shelf space in stores – even digital ones –...
The market for functional yet fun drinks that parents feel good about giving their kids – and that kids want to drink – is narrow, and a pain point for many parents combing store shelves looking for something other than a juice, water, or milk product,...
Cow’s milk allergy is one the most common food allergies among infants and toddlers, yet very few formula alternatives exist for parents looking for a solution that eases their baby’s digestive sensitivities while matching the nutritional profile of breast...
COVID-19 has screwed up many a brand’s best-laid marketing plans for 2020 (how does a 'back-to-school' campaign work if kids are not actually going back to school?), but it’s also forced marketers to find creative ways to adapt to stay relevant,...
Kids are drinking less milk and juice as they get older, but what are they drinking instead, and is it good for them? How do parents evaluate what types of drinks are good for kids? What are parents looking for on food labels?
Do children like oatmilk and Beyond Burgers? Research* shows that US families with children over-index for plant-based milk and yogurt sales and that parents of children under 18 are more likely to think that plant-based proteins are healthier than animal-based...
After discovering a “staggering level of exposure” of fast food, candy, soda and other unhealthy branded foods and beverages on YouTube videos featuring and targeting young children, researchers from New York University are calling on the Federal Trade...
There’s been a lot of innovation in the baby and toddler food market in recent years, and many new brands target Gen Z and Millennials. But kids aged 4-11 often get overlooked, says Mavericks Snacks founder Livio Bisterzo, who hit CPG gold with Hippeas...
Building off the landmark LEAP (Learning Early About Peanut Allergy) study, food allergy advocacy group FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education), is launching the SEED (Start Eating Early Diet) study exploring early introduction of multiple allergenic...
It sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised how many brands get this wrong, says David Lemley at brand consultant Retail Voodoo: If you’re developing and marketing products for kids, “You always need to age up.”
By adding healthier sides that are more prominently featured in marketing alongside more nutritious beverages, McDonald’s is chipping away at its goals to offer – and sell – more balanced Happy Meals with simplified ingredients, and less saturated fat,...
While the ongoing pandemic has caused many venture capitalists to hit pause or slowdown, other investors and even consumers increasingly are interested in supporting growing businesses and diversifying their portfolios as illustrated by a surge in crowdfunding.
Tweens... aged between nine and 12, they're not young kids anymore, but they're not teens either, so how food and beverage brands reach them (and their parents/guardians), and what's the best way to engage with this age cohort via influencers...
How are parents coping with the COVID-19 pandemic in their households when it comes to feeding their kids? Has the extra time spent at home given families more opportunity to cook and experiment with new recipes, or has the anxiety left parents scrambling...
Despite broad efforts to reduce sugar, sodium, fat and excess calories in the American diet in recent years, childhood obesity continues to afflict one in seven 10- to 17-year-olds in the US, leaving them vulnerable not only to type II diabetes, high...
With a recent national rollout at 500 Target stores, fresh baby and toddler food brand Little Dish is addressing the gap in the US market for nutritionally-balanced, just-like-homemade meals aimed specifically at the under-served toddler age group, says...
From bubbly probiotic water for kids to chickpea butter, ketchup with extra veggies, and goat's milk toddler formula, entrants to our 2020 FOOD FOR KIDS Trailblazers Challenge showcased innovative new products, brands, and routes to market for healthier...
We had a record number of entries for this year's FOOD FOR KIDS Trailblazers Challenge, spanning everything from chickpea butter and lentil-based meat crumbles to bubbly probiotic water and veggie-infused ketchup. Here are some of the innovations...
Introducing high doses of gluten into an infant’s diet beginning at four months of age could prevent them from developing celiac disease, one study suggests – although further research is needed, say researchers.
Evergreen, an emerging Chicago-based frozen waffle brand made from recognizable pantry ingredients, is steadily increasing its availability in a category long dominated by big food brands.
With today’s launch of a trio of toddler purees with bone broth, emerging children’s food brand Serenity Kids not only expands its reach beyond baby food pouches, but its founders say they hope to further boost the brand’s already fast-rising position...
School closures – and tentative re-openings – have compounded stress levels for families, while COVID-19-induced economic anxiety is also straining household budgets. So how can food and beverage brands come up with enticing – but affordable – recipes,...
Public health advocates fear Congress will adjourn for fall break without first extending emergency food assistance that is set to expire at the end of the month – potentially leaving millions of families whose children rely on free or reduced school...
Nestlé Waters North America’s (NWNA) recent launch of Fruity Water – a flavored, zero-sugar and unsweetened water collection for kids – provides parents with a convenient hydration alternative to plain water addressing the reality that many kids aren’t...
Want to get feedback on your new child-focused food or beverage launch, brand, or business, from our expert panel at FoodNavigator-USA's virtual FOOD FOR KIDS summit in the fall?
Faced with different shopper behavior throughout the pandemic, Sun-Maid has launched a marketing campaign aimed at moms navigating the new normal of the back-to-school season and who now must be prepared with snacks for their kids throughout the day,...
Despite parents’ best efforts to introduce their children to a variety of foods, many children between the ages one and three are falling short of key nutrients including vitamin D, vitamin E, calcium, fiber, and iron, reveals a study examining National...
Could children's pester power (the influence kids have over their family’s eating behaviors) be a force for promoting positive and healthy eating behaviors at home?
Legislation proposed yesterday to provide all children free school meals not only would help feed the increasing number of children who face food insecurity due to the pandemic and associated economic downturn, but it would also ease financial strain...
In a Citizen’s Petition filed today, children’s health advocates are ramping up pressure on FDA to address the labeling of so-called ‘transition formulas’ or ‘toddler milks,’ which they say offer “no unique nutritional value,” threaten the health of young...
Ruckus and Co - a brand of ready-to-drink frozen smoothies for kids developed by the Mondelēz SnackFutures Innovation hub - was set to land in retail freezer sections in early May before the world took a turn, temporarily halting its distribution and...
After months of adapting to the roller coaster of shifting business priorities caused by the coronavirus pandemic, GoGo squeeZ is entering another period of uncertainty: the back-to-school shopping season, typically a peak sales time and marketing push...
“More rigorous methods” are necessary for developing, communicating, and disseminating recommendations for feeding children from birth to 24 months -- arguably the most critical window for nutrition for a child, according to new report by the private,...
Beverage companies spent $1.04bn to advertise sugary drinks and energy drinks in 2018 in the US, a 26% increase compared to 2013, according to Sugary Drinks FACTS 2020, a new report from the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity at the University...
Dreams of a startup taking off like a rocket ship with broad distribution, strong sales and widespread brand recognition can quickly become a nightmare if entrepreneurs don’t first have in place effective strategies for hiring, financial management and...
Children under the age of 2 years should avoid all added sugars in order to better make “every bite count,” according to the Dietary Guidelines advisory subcommittee tasked with creating the first ever dietary guidelines for children younger than 24 months....
With fears that another wave of the coronavirus could hit the US just as the academic year begins, parents likely will seek products that could help support their children’s immune systems, claims Slammers Snacks.
Children’s brands that previously relied on “the nag factor,” impulse purchases or being the reward parents give children to behave in stores are pivoting their marketing to target adults now that most families send only one adult to the grocery store...
The middle of a global pandemic when many consumers are filling their grocery carts virtually may seem like a strange time to expand distribution in brick-and-mortar stores, but for the vitamin enhanced water brand KidsLuv the timing of its current rollout...
