News

Since its launch in 2016, Sonoma Brands’ Zupa Noma has refined its packaging, sales strategy and messaging. Now they’re trying for a new name and product approach, rebranding as Medlie and launching a line of vegetable “mashes” which are vegetable blends that can be eaten as a snack or used as a spread or dip.

Plant-based meat alternatives have remained a strong trend in 2019 as brands continue to innovate with products ranging from meatless chicken nuggets and coconut bacon to fish-free seafood and deli slices. Take a look at some of the new products featured at Expo West.

From cashews to almonds to pili nuts, brands are going nuts for nut-based snacks. While several brands are integrating nuts into sweet snacks like brittle and spreads, others are going savory to create plant-based cheese alternatives. Take a look at some of the latest nut innovations showcased at Natural Products Expo West 2019 in Anaheim, California.

Ashley Albert is the co-founder of The Matzo Project, a company that’s bringing artisanship and personality to a traditional Jewish food. Through humorous branding and fun flavors, the company is reaching beyond the Jewish consumer base and tapping into a wider audience.

Beverage veteran Lance Collins is ready to disrupt the cooler yet again — this time from a different angle, the fresh nutrition bar set. The founder of beverage brands BodyArmor, Fuze and CORE Nutrition announced today the launch of his newest CPG venture, Core Foods, which will launch its first product, Core Bar, at Natural Products Expo West.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner Scott Gottlieb resigned today, effective next month. According to The Washington Post, the move was unexpected. Gottlieb was reportedly well-liked in the government, but told officials he wanted to spend more time with his family.

If you’ve got a big megaphone, why not use it to inspire change? That’s what John Foraker and Jennifer Garner — co-founders of baby and toddler food brand Once Upon a Farm — plan to do. The company announced today a new line of Once Upon a Farm (OUAF) baby food purees that meet the guidelines for the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).

Dubbed the “Costco for millennials,” online retailer Boxed has made waves since its debut in 2013. In this episode, co-founder/CEO Chieh Huang spoke about the rapid growth of the company, how it curates its product assortment and why user experience has been central to its success.

RightRice has a new partner in its mission to to revolutionize an age-old center store category. The brand, which offers consumers a substitute for rice, today announced a $5.5 million investment led by Strand Equity, as well as some high profile social “capital.”

Chicago Bar Company, makers of RXBAR, announced today it will rebrand as Insurgent Brands, expand its product mix under the RX brand and launch a new “contrarian” sub brand. All of which will move forward under new leadership. Co-founder Peter Rahal told NOSH that the new product follows the RX strategy. “I’ve always taken a contrarian point of view to everyone else. RX was very contrarian. It didn’t fit with anyone else.”