CPG Week Podcast: Scandal, Sauce, Snacks and Shrooms

[00:00:05] Monica Watrous: Welcome to the CPG Week podcast by BevNET and Nosh. I'm Monica Watrous, here with my co-host, Brad Avery. Here is the latest in food and beverage industry news. Japanese barbecue sauce supplier Bachans announced that it has been acquired for $400 million by publicly traded food manufacturer, the Marzetti Company. Marzetti plans to fund the transaction with cash on hand and additional financing. Batchan's founder, Justin Gill, used a multi-generational family recipe as a base to create a platform for Japanese-style condiments. The brand started with barbecue sauces, expanding from three into 10 varieties, and adding three dipping options over the years. Botchons has previously raised at least $17 million, bringing together venture capital firms like Sonoma Brands and Prelude Growth Partners, as well as celebrities and packaged food industry stakeholders like former Whole Foods co-CEO Walter Raab, among others. Botchons' 52-week net sales were about $87 million in 2025. Marzetti operates a house of sauce and condiment brands like Salad Dressings, Caesar Cardini's, Girard's, and Marzetti Dips. It also makes retail sauces using licensing partnerships with chain and quick serve restaurants like Arby's, Buffalo Wild Wings, Chick-fil-A, and Subway. We've seen quite a bit of merger and acquisition activity to kick off the year.

[00:01:34] Brad Avery: Yeah. And this one in particular feels like confirmation of the Asian food trends that we've been seeing. Next gen, higher quality premium products that have been coming out and reshaping the market.

[00:01:45] Monica Watrous: Absolutely.

[00:01:45] Brad Avery: And so to see an acquisition for a brand like this go through, that's validation.

[00:01:50] Monica Watrous: Definitely. And we've been watching for this sale to come through for a few months now. We had seen a rumor that Botchons was exploring opportunities for a sale, and this seems like a really great fit. Also, a lot of activity is happening in the condiments and sauces segment of the market. So it seems like a great investment for them. And we wish Justin and the Botchons team well.

[00:02:16] Brad Avery: The fallout from the Epstein files has reached the CPG industry. On Friday, influential doctor Peter Attia, an investor in brands like David Protein, AG1, and Magic Spoon, among others, was revealed to have had a close, years-long relationship with the disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Atiyah first met Epstein in 2014, and through at least 2018, carried on an email correspondence, with documents released by the Department of Justice revealing that their conversations at times took vulgar and ominous turns. Atiyah issued an apology on Monday, taking responsibility for what he called his, quote, embarrassing, tasteless, and indefensible emails. Meanwhile, Atiyah's exposure in the Epstein case creates what one communications strategist called a nightmare situation for the brands that Atiyah is tied to. In the case of David Protein, Atiyah also served as the brand's chief science officer. Late Monday evening, David's CEO, Peter Rahal, announced that the company has severed all ties with Atiyah. However, his status with his other investment and advisory brand partners, such as Energy Drink Element and olive oil maker Costa Rina, appear to be up in the air, at least as of this recording.

[00:03:29] Monica Watrous: And to be clear, Atiyah is not being accused of any crimes at this point, but his affiliations with Epstein are damning. For the CPG brands that have relied on Atiyah as a source of scientific authority are now having to find ways to distance themselves and their images from this person who has some very nefarious connections.

[00:03:59] Brad Avery: Right. Robbie Vorhaus, the crisis strategist who you spoke with, said this isn't just a PR hurdle, it's a legacy killer if brands do not immediately sever ties and show that they are distanced from this figure.

[00:04:14] Monica Watrous: It definitely goes to show that brands should be more diligent about partnering with influencers and personalities, not building a brand around a single person or entity, but having a diverse source of authorities and experts to draw from because you are inheriting their personal histories as well as their future mistakes.

[00:04:40] Brad Avery: Right. Obviously, nothing about Atiyah's connections to Epstein were known until this point. Atiyah clearly remembered the interactions. There were many meetings between the two. In his apology, he says he never participated in any wrongdoing, maintained innocence there, and again, underlining he has not been accused of any crimes. As one person we spoke with said, there's a stink now in association that companies are not going to be able to avoid if they continue to keep Batia as a member or a face of their brands.

[00:05:18] Monica Watrous: Absolutely. And one of the crisis strategists that we spoke with had a great quote, which is, quote, in the longevity space, you cannot market purity while covered in the soot of the Epstein files. In other news this week, beleaguered natural products giant Hain Celestial is getting out of the snack business as part of a larger overhaul. The Hoboken, New Jersey-based company announced Monday it was selling its North American snack segment to Canadian snacks manufacturer Snackruptors for $115 million in cash. The deal is expected to close by the end of the month. Snackruptors is primarily a cracker co-manufacturer based in Cambridge, Ontario, which is outside of Toronto. The divestment of the Garden Veggie Snacks, Terra Chips, and Garden of Eatin' brands comes after Hain Celestial sold off Thinster's Cookies to J&J Snack Foods and Parm Crisps to Our Home in 2024. The North American Snacks division represented 22% of net sales in the latest fiscal year and 38% of the North American segment net sales. This divestment is expected to leave a quote, meaningfully stronger, simplified portfolio, according to the company.

[00:06:35] Brad Avery: And adaptogenic mushroom energy drink brands are united in offering consumers a better for you lift. But whether or not to offer them a trip is becoming a different discussion. Odyssey Functional Energy and Melting Forest are two emerging energy drinks, both made with adaptogenic mushrooms. However, after a comprehensive rebrand last month that did away with Odyssey's new-age, sacred geometry imagery in favor of a more neutral and minimalist brand design, the two companies now reflect strikingly different ways to market their wares. Melting Forest leans into a cartoonish, psychedelic brand image which, without saying it aloud, winks and nods at an association with magic mushrooms. Founders Sean McDonald and David Martin said the branding has been vital to driving trial and securing repeat consumers, even in retailers like Kroger. In contrast, Odyssey's new refresh is already paying dividends with new accounts and higher pull through, according to founder and CEO Scott Froman. Froman, however, told me that he doesn't regret starting his business with a brand themed around numerology and esoteric spiritualism. In fact, he said it was not unlike Melting Forest, a major piece of building an early consumer base. But as the brand now goes mainstream with over 17,000 doors nationwide, getting to a more neutral brand image was vital to success.

[00:08:00] Monica Watrous: The maker of Tabasco is suing Stoli Vodka, claiming its new spicy vodka uses packaging that is similar to that of the hot sauce brand. The two companies were previously in talks to collaborate on a spicy vodka over a year ago, but that partnership fell apart and Stoli moved forward with its own habanero pepper vodka this year. Tabasco, meanwhile, rolled out a co-branded product with Absolute Vodka.

[00:08:24] Brad Avery: You know, I'm looking at it now and I can see how the red cap is kind of the thing that maybe pushes it over the edge. It's a red bottle imagery. I don't know that I personally would assume it was Tabasco brand myself, but I see it as an allusion to Tabasco for sure.

[00:08:44] Monica Watrous: Yeah, it bears a very close likeness, which is problematic if this brand is trying to launch a vodka with another company.

[00:08:52] Brad Avery: Especially since they were going to collaborate and then they didn't.

[00:08:56] Monica Watrous: Yeah, well, we will see how that one shakes out. And Kellogg's Raisin Bran is teaming up with legendary actor William Shatner on a cheeky Super Bowl spot tackling America's fiber deficiency. His nickname in the campaign is Will Shat, which makes for some clever and crappy wordplay, if you get my drift. You know, the man is in his 90s now. And this is what he's doing. I know. He went to space. Wilshat. He went to outer space and now he's Wilshat. Now he's Wilshat. I know. Give the guy some dignity. You know, I think he will take the paycheck. I mean, he could do whatever he wants.

[00:09:36] Brad Avery: He's Wilshat. He looks good for his age. It's all the fiber. I would not put that man in his 90s. I'd say he's like a ripe 80.

[00:09:44] Monica Watrous: Ripe 80. Ripe 80. That's the raisin brand for you. It's really doing the job.

[00:09:50] Brad Avery: There you go. Put that in the ad.

[00:09:53] Monica Watrous: Here are some other notable bits of news from the week. Oats overnight closed a $45 million growth equity round led by Asto Consumer Partners to fuel the business's next stage of growth. Millaways, a brand of plastic-free chewing gum, has raised $3 million in new capital to fuel its U.S. expansion. And finally, Aguas Frescas maker Bowie has raised $4.1 million of a planned $6 million funding round, according to an SEC filing. For these stories and more, become an insider at BevNET and Nosh. And if you're enjoying the show, please subscribe on your listening platform of choice. That wraps up this edition of CPG Week by BevNET and Nosh. Thank you to our audio engineer, Joshua Pratt, our director is Mike Schneider, and our designer is Aaron Willette. If you enjoyed the podcast, please subscribe on your listening platform of choice, and we will see you next time.