CPG Week Podcast

On this week’s show, NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg, reporter Adrianne DeLuca and editor-in-chief Jeff Klineman waffle between the various ways gluten-free brands are cooking up new breakfast lines. They also discuss the impending auction of Cali’flour Foods and news that Perfect Day’s CPG arm has found a new home. Later, Carol sits down with Mia Medina, founder and CEO of Gather Brands, to discuss the current retail environment as well as opportunities and issues brands face as they scale distribution. Show Highlights: 01:54: Will it waffle? According to gluten-free frozen breakfast makers that answer is a definitive ‘Yes.’ The team discusses new innovation strategies Banza and Brazi Bites are testing in the breakfast set. 09:03: The frozen aisle is red hot… with deals that is. What led two entrepreneurial brands to seek new ownership? For one, it was not a matter of choice and for the other, revenue growth may have been a key reason. 18:56: How does a non-traditional broker assess potential emerging brand partners? Mia Medina shares the different levers she looks at to determine when it’s the right time to work with a startup food maker and what opportunities she sees ahead of them. 31:26: Deductions can be near-deadly to a young company and handling them in a timely fashion is an absolute necessity. Mia talks through the effective strategies she has seen in curbing chargebacks. “A lot of retailers want to be first to market with local brands, some don’t, and some actually really want to see a sales story that it’s going to move once they put it on shelf. Knowing who those ones are that want to be first to market – that’s the fun part.” – Mia Medina About The NOSH Podcast The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food. New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected]. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

This week on the NOSH Podcast, NOSH editor-in-chief Jeff Klineman, editor Carol Ortenberg and reporter Lukas Southard discuss the recently published NOSH Notables 2023 List. Carol and Jeff explain their process for developing the list and how current industry trends are reflected by the executives selected and list categories. In this episode: 1:07 – Lukas asks Carol and Jeff about the impetus for the project and the process for selecting the 50 notable individuals. 8:25 – The team discusses the list structure and why the categories of Backers, Connectors, Gatekeepers, Quarterbacks, Spark Plugs and Superheroes ended up being the framework for the Notables list. 11:00 – Jeff and Carol review some of the notable Notables on the list and why NOSH feels they deserve recognition for their impact on the CPG food industry. 16:25 – Jeff and Carol describe how inclusivity played a role in their decision making, sharing how diversity and representation were important in both the makeup of people and in CPG. 24:45 – The three discuss why among a list of 50 influential people in CPG the three familiar faces of Snoop Dogg, Barbie and Gum E. Bear made the list. “It’s how NOSH sees the industry and some of the key currents that run through it. To define places like leadership and connection, investment and encouragement, and innovation.” – Jeff Klineman, BevNET Editor-in-Chief About the NOSH Podcast The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food. New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected]. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

On this week’s show, NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg, reporters Adrianne DeLuca and Lukas Southard and editor-in-chief Jeff Klineman advocate for year-round pumpkin spice products and then run through some key trends surrounding grains and sugars spotted at recent trade show IFT First. The group also discusses Perfect Day’s presence at the show as well as recent changes to the company’s strategy. Later, Adrianne chats with Chubby Snacks co-founder and CEO Dillon Ceglio about how the brand developed and evolved its production process. He explained that building the business, and working in it, had a positive impact on both team building and the bottom line. Show Highlights: 05:20: How has regenerative agriculture helped generate a new wave of support for ancient grains? What sweeteners are shaking out to be the most versatile, and budget-friendly for brands? The team talks through insights gathered and ingredient trends observed at the IFT First show. 19:00: Precision fermentation company Perfect Day was also spotted at the show, which sparked a discussion about the recent news regarding the animal-free dairy producer’s CPG businesses. The team talks through how those changes fit into the broader landscape and strategy shifts often taken by tech and innovation-focused companies. 27:39: Dillon explains why the sandwich brand gravitated towards self-manufacturing and how developing its own production process gave them the ability to build towards automation. 36:31: Self-production also meant self-fulfillment in Chubby Snacks’ early days. Dillion shares the company’s tips and tricks, and why the team had to fight it out in their walk-in freezer with FedEx. “We learned how to problem solve, very efficiently. We raised a decent amount of money, but [not] a lot so we had to make a little go a long way… We were forced to be in line working in the business with our staff and that went a long way in building rapport and trust … they gained a lot of respect for us and that respect went a long way.” -Dillon Ceglio About The NOSH Podcast The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food. New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected]. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

This week on the NOSH Podcast, Nosh editor Carol Ortenberg, Editor-in-Chief Jeff Klineman and reporter Lukas Southard sat down to talk about THC-infused snack brand knockoffs, CPG food products cashing in on popular entertainment properties (IE Barbie and Yellowstone) and the WHO’s ruling on artificial sweetener aspartame. In the featured interview, Lukas speaks with Every Body Eat co-founders Trish Thomas and Nichole Wilson about how they strategize using inclusive innovation and how the strength of the business comes from its use of the “concept of mattering” in its production stream. In this episode: 2:23 – Carol tells Jeff and Lukas what she picked up at the local grocery stores and ate while visiting Montreal. (Spoiler: There are words exchanged about bagels) 5:40 – The team discusses why products such as Trips Ahoy and Stoneos have found themselves in hot water with the FTC and FDA. 12:33 – Carol asks Jeff and Lukas about what they think of the recent CPG foods capitalizing on trending television show Yellowstone and movie release Barbie. Jeff and Lukas have a beef about a popular TV show’s signature dish. 19:30 – Jeff explains the potential impact WHO’s ruling on aspartame and why it might change the strategy for companies who already make or intend to release sugar-free products in the future. 27:05 – In the interview, Lukas sits down with the co-founders of allergen-friendly brand Every Body Eat to talk. CEO Trish Thomas and President Nichole Wilson explain how they define inclusive innovation and how they approach in-store growth 33:38 – Thomas and Wilson discuss how they prioritize being female founders and a Black-owned business when seeking investment. 41:50 – The two women share details about Every Body Eat’s production model and how the “concept of mattering” is used to empower their workforce. “The team who understands that they matter understands that good ideas come from anywhere and sees their ideas become best practice. And [they] take our cost of manufactured goods down 50% in the span of a year, because they know that they’re the ones that do it.“” Nichole Wilson, co-founder and president of Every Body Eat About the NOSH Podcast The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food. New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected]. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

  In a special dispatch from the World Business Chicago/Chicago Venture Summit, on this week’s NOSH Podcast Lukas talks to Midwest-based brands and investors about the advantages and challenges of being located in the middle of the country. Recorded in May, these executives share why Chicago’s proximity to manufacturing and distribution hubs can be a benefit in developing an inside-out nationwide growth strategy. In this episode: 1:20 – What unique opportunity does the Windy City offer to CPG brands? Bluestein Ventures managing partner Ashley Hartman and senior associate Amira Khatib break down the Chicago-based firm’s investment strategy and discuss where it looks for innovation. 6:00 – Then, Annie Slabotsky and Morgan Lerner, the co-founders of banana bread mix company GoNanas, dive into the benefits a certain incubator program had on the brand’s community building efforts. The pair also highlight how its network of Midwestern investors and founders helped the company to create a successful brand. 15:05 – Monique Hypes, co-founder of regenerative tomato soup brand Tomato Bliss, explained how the company’s mission to improve soil health in Michigan has been its biggest strength in growing the brand in both foodservice and retail. 21:32 – How can a little Midwestern kindness can be used as a strength in the food industry? Audre Kapacinskas, principal at S2G Ventures, shared why the VC firm is focused on funding sustainable companies and why Chicago’s centrality provides CPG brands with a manufacturing boost.   “If you’re building a CPG brand today and you’re thinking about how to differentiate, I think Chicago – and the Midwest in general – presents a lot of opportunity with which you could explore some of those different levers to differentiate yourself with.” “Generally in the Midwest, you have the typical Midwestern attitude of helpfulness and openness to collaborate than perhaps you would have in some of the more competitive markets.” -Audre Kapacinskas, principal at S2G Ventures   About the NOSH Podcast The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food. New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected]. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

On this week’s show, NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg and reporters Adrianne DeLuca and Lukas Southard chat about a recent move from Sonoma Creamery. The team also runs down some nutty news from Campbell’s and Orchard Valley Harvest. Later, Adrianne sits down with Neil Booher, VP of Crisis and Reputation Risk at PR firm Edelman to learn how business leaders should navigate crises that enter the public eye. Show Highlights: 06:27: Why did Sonoma Creamery cut its fresh cheese business? Adrianne walks through the historic brand’s recent move to shift focus to snacks and how that emerging strategy will play out on the innovation end. 09:21: Campbell’s Soup Company makes more than just soup, but no longer nuts. Lukas and Carol discuss the company’s sale of Emerald Nuts to private label player Flagstone Foods and spotlights a unique nut-centric advertising campaign by Orchard Valley Harvest. 22:20: In times of crisis clarity is key, but how do you maintain a position of clear communication during a crisis? Neil talks about the evolution of positions brand leaders should take when they find themselves combating controversial company headlines. 30:29: According to Neil, influencer partnerships led companies into uncharted crisis and risk management territory during the pandemic. Listen in for his tips on how to avoid landing on the top of a tabloid’s to-do list. “The maximum often is ‘it’s the tall blade of grass that gets cut.’ When it’s an industry wide issue … [you have to weigh] what is the value of being out there and owning the issue publicly and the risks that go along with that are pretty significant.” -Neil Booher About the NOSH Podcast The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food. New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected]. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

This week on the NOSH Podcast, the team begins by discussing the strategies brands use to boost perception of their sales strength as well as possible risks with this approach. Then reporter Lukas Southard describes what he saw and heard on his trip to Chicago, where he attended Naturally Chicago’s Pitch Slam and the Chicago Venture Summit: Future of Food, before the team discusses the impact of SPACs in CPG. In our featured interview FitJoy president Norman Taliaferro shares details surrounding the company’s recent $3.5 million fundraise, and the evolution of the company’s portfolio from protein bars to salty snacks. In this episode: 05:05 – Carol, Jeff and Lukas talk about “retail refereeing” when brands encourage consumers to buy up products in order to appear in a strong position with category buyers and managers. 09:00 – Lukas tells Jeff and Carol about his trip to the Chicago Venture Summit last week and how the Midwestern CPG community is trying to gain recognition as a hotbed for food industry innovation. 17:45 – The team talks about SPACs in CPG food and how the current investment environment has impacted the landscape for “blank check” investment opportunities. 20:15 – Carol speaks with FitJoy president Norman Taliaferro about how the brand pivoted into a new and completely different category, its struggles to stay afloat during the pandemic, fundraising and new innovation. “As everything goes in fundraising, it just takes twice as long as you think it will take.” “Getting on shelf – as hard as it is – is the easiest part of the process.” – Norman Taliaferro, FitJoy president About the NOSH Podcast The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food. New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected]. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts