Headlines

Moving from youngsters to yogurt, Once Upon a Farm co-founder and president Ari Raz announced today he has joined Coconut Cult as the company’s new CEO. Alongside this news, the brand also revealed it would discontinue its line of probiotic gelato.

During last month’s Category Close-Up: Product Showcase, the NOSH team interviewed executives and brand leaders from condiment companies, discussing individual company strategy and how changes within the category affect new product development and marketing. In this special bonus segment, you’ll hear from five more brands about the market dynamics that are currently shaping the category.

Vice Ventures founder Catharine Dockery spoke about the massive opportunity for CPG categories, such as cannabis, alcohol and sexual wellness, that have traditionally been shunned by institutional investors, how her firm utilizes non-traditional data to make informed decisions, why she believes a shakeup in beverage alcohol distribution is on its way and why she spends most of her day engaging in new business pitches.

In June, plant-based food and beverage brand New Barn Organics was acquired by national egg producer NestFresh in a move that promised to allow both companies to provide a broader range of products and give the brand a new runway for growth. Nearly three months later, that promise is taking shape.

Last Friday, food company Sovos Brands filed for an IPO, listing the size of the offering as $100 million, subject to adjustment. The Colorado-based company acquired, owns and operates the Rao’s, Birch Benders, Noosa and Michael Angelo brands. According to a filing with the SEC, the majority of Sovos’ sales were from the Rao’s line of products.

From better-for-you confections to frozen plant-based entrees, August’s latest new products offer consumers a range of low-sugar and grain-free options. Check out the gallery for the newest snack innovations from brands such as Barnana, Simple Mills and Get Real Foods and keto-friendly creations from Cappello’s, Keto Krisp and more.

In this week’s Checkout, Misha’s Kind Foods raises $3 million; Chobani debuts paper cup packaging for its Oat Blend yogurt line; Acosta looks at post-pandemic grocery shopping habits; and Hain Celestial reports its Q4 and 2021 fiscal year results.

Husband-and-wife duo Kaitlyn Brown and Daniel Fernandes believe the benefits of a cup of coffee go deeper than its caffeine-kick. In 2019 the pair founded Savorista, a brand dedicated to producing premium, naturally decaffeinated coffee, which now spans a product range that includes packaged coffee and single-serve individual pourover kits.

On this month’s Market Share we’ll hear from Russell Diez-Canseco, the CEO and president of Vital Farms, about the why the egg and butter producer’s decided to go public last year and how the choice allowed the brand to focus more on its mission.

In this week’s People Moves, VMG Partners brings on Brianna Rizzo as Talent Partner; Bumble Bee adds Connie Shepherd as SVP of Strategy and Business Development; and former Clif exec Liza Darnell joins The PLANeT Partnership as CMO.