Food
Top 10: CPG companies take precautions against coronavirus and 3 new Cheez Balls flavors
CPG companies restricting business travel due to coronavirus was this week's most-read story across food and beverage briefs.
Food
CPG
What’s trending in snacks?
From small bites of sweets to refrigerated, grab-and-go meats and cheeses to new takes on classic chips, consumers are clamoring for a wide variety of snacking options.
Sponsored
Modern desserts embrace sweet, salty and umami flavors
Chefs no longer stop at sweet when developing desserts. For its new Zoe’s Crush cookie, Sweet Street incorporated miso and other umami-boosters for a complex treat.
Food
How plant-based meat makers put down roots for their brands
Plant-based meat makers must decide whether it makes sense to launch first in foodservice or retail channels.
Sponsored
Q&A: Tyson partners with Progressive Beef program to bring transparency to beef production process
Tyson Fresh Meats partnered with the Progressive Beef program to raise the standards of beef production across the industry and give consumers the ability to learn the beef cattle production sustainability and animal welfare story.
Restaurant and Foodservice
How are restaurants keeping up with sustainability trends?
As more consumers look to brands and businesses to make sustainable and environmentally friendly choices, restaurants are taking several steps to move with the changing tide.
Food
Top 10: An Amazon grocery, a moldy Whopper and the Supreme Oreo
A sneak peek at Amazon's new grocery concept that will open in Los Angeles this year topped this week's most-read list.
Consumer Insights
Sous vide finds mainstream success in foodservice, consumer kitchens
Rising demand for convenient meals is feeding the popularity of sous vide among restaurant operators and home cooks.
Food Retail
C-stores seeing a sea of change
As c-stores have looked to reinvent themselves, they’ve emerged as competitive players in foodservice.
Food
Top 10: Valentine’s candy, Clorox’s rebrand, a Pizza Hut turnaround
SmartBrief readers were drawn in by candy news, Kind’s entry into new food categories and Clorox’s sustainable rebrand.
Consumer Insights
Demand for plant-based is hot, but what’s behind the term?
While the plant-based revolution is widely credited with disrupting both dairy and animal-protein categories, rarely do we see discussion of why consumers have such an affinity for all things marketed as “plant-based” today.
CPG
Agricultural strides: CPG companies take stake in the land
Executives from General Mills and Land O’Lakes Truterra share what their companies are doing to build robust, sustainable and profitable agricultural supply chains.
Food
Top 10: Top candy companies, Unilever’s drone plans, Walmart’s Super Bowl ad
The top 100 global candy companies and Unilver's plans to deliver ice cream via drone drew in readers this week.
Restaurant and Foodservice
Reset the Table initiative aims to advance gender equality in the foodservice industry
The Food Group created the initiative to level the playing field for women in foodservice.
Food Retail
How can grocery, CPG executives be great leaders?
The winners of this year’s leadership awards at the FMI Midwinter Executive Conference shared insights into being a strong leader and putting the customer first.
Food
How the beer industry is taking on climate change
Beer brewers and their trade groups are investing in research to sustain barley, hops as the climate changes.
Sponsored
Online grocery shopping can help retailers increase their reach, boost impulse buys
Online grocery spending is projected to triple by 2023 to $74 billion, according to Acosta research. As more consumers turn to online ordering, retailers have a growing opportunity to reach a greater number of shoppers and boost sales.
Food
Consumers, chefs increasingly turn to alternative flour
As consumers continue to seek out healthy substitutes for everyday favorites and grapple with dietary needs and desires, the alternative flour market is seeing a surge.
Food
Top 10: H-E-B’s Texas roots, Red Robin’s turnaround and hydroponic veggies at Whole Foods
Vertical farming startup Plenty has signed a deal to supply Whole Foods and Safeway stores.
Food
What’s Hot for 2020: Plant-based, many ways
Plant-based proteins came out on top of the culinary trends ranked by chefs in a new report from The National Restaurant Association, but the survey also sheds some light on other trends we can expect to see in plant-forward dishes this year.
CPG
CPG companies capitalize on brand recognition with collaborations
Food producers and chain restaurants entered several new categories in 2019 by debuting co-branded products, such as Twinkies cereal, Stuffed Cheez-Its Pizza and Starburst-flavored yogurt.
Food
Top 10: Stop & Shop sells stores, Applebee’s goes fast-casual, CPG debuts
New CPG products and a fast-casual concept from Applebee's made waves with readers this week.
Food
New visions of eating ideologies: Tapping into personalized nutrition
Personalized nutrition is the merging of two major cultural forces: personalization and customization and health and wellness via nutrition.
Consumer Insights
2020 Food forecasts focus on plants, sustainable food stories
2020 food trend forecasts call for continued growing interest in plant-based dishes, sustainable food sources.
Food
Consumers crazy for CBD? Today’s cannabis movement echoes natural market of the 1990s
Cannabis is poised to be a major disruptive force across a variety of markets, but none more so than food, beverage, and health and wellness. But we’ve seen this type of movement before.
Food
Top 10: Popular supermarkets, Danone’s new products, Peet’s and JDE merge
Kroger's popular regional banners and plant-based meat experiment caught readers' attention.
Consumer Insights
2020 vision: The food trends that will impact the industry in the year ahead
In 2020, there are some big factors we’ll be keeping our eye on that could have major ramifications for the food industry well into the future.
Food
Expanded plant-based options, elevated kids’ fare and alcohol-free beverages are on the menu for 2020
Several trends that emerged or gained a foothold in the food industry in 2019 will continue to grow in the coming year.
Sponsored
Self-care, sustainability and tech-enabled shopping will be among 2020’s top CPG trends
Spending on self-care, greater emphasis on in-store experiences and increased focus on sustainability will be major CPG trends in 2020, according to predictions from Acosta.
Food
Top 10: New CPG products, grocer initiatives, dry brining
CPG product debuts, interesting cooking methods and ALDI’s US success caught readers’ attention this week.
Consumer Insights
Diet trends address consumers’ health, sustainability concerns
Food options for both ketogenic and flexitarian diets exploded this year following the rise of consumer demand for more healthy choices as well as food produced sustainably.
Food Retail
Plant-based trends expand to the dessert menu
Vegan dessert options are growing in retail channels and getting more attention from chefs.
Food Retail
Where does the grocery industry stand on food waste initiatives?
Food waste is an ongoing issue for food retailers. Where does the industry stand and what’s being done to lighten the load in terms of wasted food?
Consumer Insights
Navigating dark tourism with respectful storytelling
Tourism experts share tips for telling history's darker tales.
Food Retail
Taking the pulse of online grocery shopping
Grocery shopping can now be done entirely online. Who is taking advantage of this type of shopping, and who is sticking to picking out products in person?
Food
Top 10: Walmart, Houlihan’s and a General Mills/Nielsen partnership
Walmart ranked high on two new top retailer lists this week.
Food
In-store pharmacies, health offerings shifting with trends, technology
Large pharmacy chains and grocers with in-store pharmacies are shifting their strategies based on consumer demand and new technology.
Food
Top 10: Kroger’s new look, Shake Shack’s growth plans, Coca-Cola’s AHA rollout
Industry reaction to Kroger's new logo and animated Krojis grabbed readers' attention this week.
Food
Agtech solutions allow farming to move indoors
How is the agriculture industry prepared to meet the needs of the booming vertical farming market?
Restaurant and Foodservice
The rise of natural winemaking means more accidentally vegan vintages
A growing number of vegans are seeking wines made without animal products.
Food
Top 10: Kroger’s new logo, P.F. Chang’s new concept, Halloween CPG products
Food and beverage readers ate up stories about Kroger’s new logo and P.F. Chang’s new nightclub concept this week.
Consumer Insights
Sustainability 2019: Evolving consumer priorities around purchasing and packaging
Consumer concerns over climate change, plastic waste and other perceived ills are pushing companies and government toward real action.