For a fraction of the price and hassle of in-person sampling or focus groups, the new product discovery and data analytics platform Snack Drop allows emerging brands to offer goods directly to consumers in exchange for honest feedback and detailed information...
A sweeping collection of convenient and accessible new products from Del Monte Foods rolling out this summer takes the company into new categories and channels to meet the rising consumer demand for plant-based products, purposeful snacks and time-saving,...
As concerns about cultural appropriation and misrepresentation bubble up alongside the push for social equity, food and beverage industry stakeholders are delicately navigating consumers’ sometimes-conflicting demands for authenticity and innovation.
While Coca-Cola Co. is eager to restart innovation in 2021 after pulling back in 2020 to accommodate supply-constraints and heightened retailer demand for best-sellers, it is doing so with a shorter leash on experimentation and higher bar for financial...
Less than a year after taking the helm at Clif Bar & Co., new CEO Sally Grimes is spearheading the company’s first transformation in 30 years with an ambitious goal to double its business to $2 billion and double its positive impact on the world....
Coca-Cola has been streamlining its portfolio: cutting down from 400 to 200 master brands. This doesn’t mean the company has abandoned NPD, says CEO James Quincey – rather, he sees the strategy as clearing the way for the ‘next generation of innovation’.
As consumer taste preferences shift to reflect a deeper understanding of the connection between health and diet during the ongoing pandemic, PepsiCo is expanding the scope of its Greenhouse Accelerator program to embrace emerging science and technology...
The Kraft Heinz Company’s recently released ‘transformation plan’ detailed the group’s strategy to deliver consistent growth, with top line gains led by its international business. FoodNavigator speaks to International Zone President, Rafa Oliveira, to...
While the pandemic may have slowed the flow of venture capital funding in some segments of the packaged food and beverage industry earlier this year, analysis from Finistere Ventures shows it threw open the tap for the food- and ag-tech sectors, which...
The Coca-Cola Co. is trying to make the best of a bad situation by using the pandemic, which had decimated its revenues with the closure of public places, as a “catalyst for change” to “drive out some of the bureaucracy,” refocus on local opportunities...
Kraft Heinz is pulling back on innovation in favor of renovating well-established, iconic brands to which consumers have flocked during the coronavirus pandemic in an effort to maintain household penetration gains made in the last nine months of lockdowns,...
After initially hitting pause on new deals during the early days of the coronavirus outbreak, investors have steadily returned to the bargaining table, but the CEO of one venture capital firm warns the pandemic has raised the bar for and slowed the pace...
Encouraged by strong third-quarter sales online and in stores as well as net sales in the period that grew twice that of a year ago, Sprouts Farmers Market is “financially stronger than ever,” and on track to double its business by 2025, according to...
While companies of all sizes understandably want a guarantee that a new product or innovation will succeed before investing heavily in large-scale production and marketing, the CEO of Pilot Lite Ventures warns that this way lies the valley of death.
While Grupo Bimbo has managed to stay on top of and benefit from increased demand for its baked goods and snacks in the US during the pandemic so far, executives are weary of any additional strain on capacity and employee safety posed by a potential second...
For innovations to succeed they do not need to be perfect out of the gate, but they do need to offer a real benefit to companies, their consumers and their retailer and business partners at a scale that justifies the investment and risk, top executives...
Nestlé is ready to be “much more acquisitive” now after 18 months of aggressively selling underperforming businesses and brands that did not tidily fit into the company’s new image of itself as a primarily nutrition, health and wellness business, according...
After helping to build a category for biltong – jerky’s less-processed, softer and often healthier cousin – the founders of Kalahari Snacks believe the “next evolution” in the meat snack segment is a trio of crunchy beef crisps that it launched online...
Often called the “Swiss Army knife of food formulators’ toolbox for their versatility,” eggs can help brands meet Generation Z’s, sometimes contradictory, demand for experimental flavors, elevated eating experiences and, yet, still comforting foods, according...
COVID-19 has impacted everything from how, when, and where we buy groceries (spoiler alert, online is gaining share), to consumers' health priorities (immunity is rapidly gaining traction), but what, if anything, does this mean for food innovation...
With the invention of peanut coffee, fifth generation peanut farmer James Harrell found a way to combine in one product the rich history and future of his hometown of Suffolk, Va., which as the headquarters for Planters Peanuts was once known as the ‘peanut...
Echoing recent comments from the CEOs of Coca-Cola and Mondelēz International, Kraft Heinz CEO Miguel Patricio told analysts Thursday that he is focusing on core SKUs to deliver supply chain efficiencies and delaying new product launches, although it’s...
Just over half of food & beverage professionals surveyed by product innovation firm Mattson this month say projects and launches have been delayed due to coronavirus, but two thirds are still working on new concepts and products and 50% believe COVID-19...
While some food & beverage companies have hit the ‘pause’ button on innovation projects as priorities shift during this pandemic, others are finding creative ways to keep projects on track, which in some cases has involving transforming home kitchens...
While there is something to be said about following your gut as an entrepreneur, the founder and CEO of Mason Dixie Biscuit Co. advises that following the data often is a more reliable strategy for sparking retailer interest and launching products that...
Onboarding new brands is not top of the priority list right now at most food retailers, many of which are more focused on rationalizing SKUs than adding new ones. Meanwhile, R&D under lockdown isn't easy. So is innovation on pause, or are companies...
From the complexities of regulation and cutting-edge science to the brands behind the boom, the CBD Global Summit will bridge the business and science underpinning this fast-moving category.
Overnight success stories often are attributed to being in the right place at the right time, but according to the founder of the startup Uplift Food that doesn’t mean the circumstances were serendipitous or that entrepreneurs should wait for an opportunity...
The first cohort of Mars’ SEEDS of CHANGE accelerator shines a light on where the food giant predicts consumer preferences are heading with a heavy focus on plant-based, world-flavors and time-saving short-cuts for easy-meal solutions.
When you think of a successful leader, who do you envision? Someone experienced? Someone with a wide support network? Someone whose mettle has been tested and proven?
Accurately identifying an unmet need in the crowded food and beverage market and then developing the perfect product to fill it should be a straight forward recipe for success – unfortunately, in most cases isn’t enough.
Freeze-drying strawberries may account for three-quarters of Chaucer Foods’ business, but according to the company’s CEO Scott Jacobson the company can offer much more to manufacturers looking to tap into consumer demand for healthier products that also...
The JM Smucker Co. is overhauling the marketing model that helped it build iconic brands like Jif peanut butter, Smucker’s jelly and Folgers coffee in an effort to disprove the emerging notion that ‘big food’ can’t innovate or, in some cases, even navigate...
FDA’s new Acting Commissioner of Food and Drugs, Norman Sharpless, promised last week that he will pick up where outgoing Commissioner Scott Gottlieb left off in strengthening nutrition policy and regulation to improve the public’s health and implementing...
FDA will push forward with its Nutrition Innovation Strategy despite the departure this month of FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb who championed the initiative as a way to reduce the burden of chronic disease through improved nutrition, according to an...
As Tillamook County Creamery Association marks its 110th anniversary, the farmer-owned cooperative is growing faster than ever with new products, a fresh look and rapidly expanding distribution.
With newcomers launching practically every day in the food and beverage industry, the pressure is on for legacy brands to up their innovation game – and according to industry giant Unilever the best way to do this is to start with modern consumers’ core...
First time entrepreneurs often lament that if they had known how much work it would take to launch a startup they might not have done it, but the husband and wife duo and long-time industry veterans behind the plant-based protein brand Sweet Earth Natural...
The food and beverage industries are undergoing a massive renaissance with fresh ideas continuously entering the market, but with a dismal failure rate for new CPGs of upwards of 85% in the first two years, it can be difficult to identify from the outset...
With the largest research and development network in the industry and a laundry list of new launches designed to meet evolving consumer demands, Stouffer’s demonstrates that legacy brands successfully can go toe-to-toe with startups when it comes to innovation...
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...
The National Dairy Council (NDC) has kicked off its 2019 New Product Competition and is now accepting submissions for the ‘next new innovative product’ in dairy. The competition is open to undergraduate and graduate students in the US and Canada.
In a letter to Nestlé, the world’s largest food company by revenue, Third Point, a New York-based asset manager with $18bn in capital ($3bn in Nestlé), called out the food and beverage giant for falling short on its long-term, sustainable growth mission.
California-based Nona Lim has raised $3m in seed round funding. Harbinger Ventures led the round with additional funding from Echo Capital Group, Navama & Kouffman LLC, CircleUp and Cambridge Companies SPG.
Snacking is about to get personal with food manufacturers using technologies such as visual and 3D printing to scale up bespoke eating experiences, according to Gil Horsky, global innovation leader at Mondelēz International.
Nutrition Capital Network partner Grant Ferrier said the mentoring program his company provides has boosted the success of innovation partnership programs such as the one sponsored by DSM.