Food Industry News, Insights, and Education for the CPG Community

While the CPG community is making its way back to Anaheim for the first in-person Natural Products Expo West since 2019, many brands are geared up and plenty of new product launches are already rolling in. Here’s an early preview of some of the new products debuting at the show you should check out.

Over the past two years visibility and support for mission-driven companies has been on the rise as consumer demand for purpose-forward products increases. To further support these interests, CPG companies and retailers both large and small have introduced a range of opportunities to help jumpstart emerging brands for long-term success.

Something is brewing and it isn’t just sauerkraut. A new company, Fermented Food Holdings, Inc. (FFH), has big plans for the fermented foods set, announcing Friday it had acquired two stalwarts of the category, Katalina Holdings (the makers of Bubbies) and Wildbrine, as it seeks to build out a larger platform of fermented products

In this distribution roundup: Clio Snacks rolls out to Kroger stores, adding three new SKUs; Mason Dixie brings breakfast sandwiches to Sprouts; CHKN Not Chicken expands retail reach; and more.

Though sugar may be consumers’ “Public Enemy Number One” in the move towards healthier eating, high calorie oils and fats are not far behind. However, a new industry group is hoping to change that perception and further educate consumers about the benefits of healthy fats – such as ghee, avocado oil, coconut oil, olive oil and nut oil – in their own products.

Better-for-you sweets and format innovation were the dominant themes among this week’s new products. While Honey Mama’s branched out of chocolate bars, Outshine looked to the shelf-stable category for its newest snack product. Check out the roundup for the latest new offerings from brands including Fly by Jing, Tea Drops and Kashi.

In this week’s Checkout: Misfits Market Expands to all lower 48 states; The United Nations commits to addressing plastic pollution with a new treaty by 2024; Flashfood closes a $12.3 million funding round and 7-Eleven adds a grab-and-go plant-based burger to its menu.

Nutrition, health and wellness financings increased 25% in 2021 as M&A activity returned to pre-pandemic levels, according to the latest Healthy Living Consumer Products webinar by advisory firm Whipstitch Capital and SPINS today.

To help our audience of retailers, investors and brands find our BevNET and NOSH Insiders that are exhibiting, we’ve produced a special pre-show Expo West 2022 Booth Guide featuring the company names and booth numbers of our Insiders, both alphabetically and numerically.

Two of Canada’s major cannabis producers are coming together after Tilray Brands agreed to take on $211 million of debt from HEXO, a resolution that will allow the latter brand to shake off its “crippling overhang” by providing Tilray with “significant equity ownership position,” according to a press release.

Six months after being sold to ingredient company Milk Specialties Global (MSG), Minnesota-based protein snack maker Kay’s Naturals has discontinued its branded product lines as its new owner looks to focus on expanding its extruded protein production capabilities.

In this edition of Category Closeup, BevNET reporter Brad Avery and a panel of CPG leaders take a look at one of the fastest growing (and most misunderstood) trends currently emerging within the food and beverage space: web3. This disruptive, decentralized technology platform – which includes NFTs, cryptocurrencies, blockchain and Metaverse – has emerged as… Read more »

Legal cannabis sales worldwide are projected to rise 22% this year to over $35 billion, up from $29 billion in 2021, according to a report by Colorado-based cannabis market data supplier BDSA released today. The rapid rise in sales – covering all categories including flower, vapes, tinctures, edibles and beverages – is expected to continue… Read more »

After changing people’s perceptions of tea and kids juice drinks with Honest Tea and burgers with Beyond Meat, celebrated entrepreneur Seth Goldman is now taking on kids snacks, announcing today that his latest company, Eat the Change, is launching Cosmic Carrot Chews, a line of plant-based snacks aimed at younger consumers.