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

KIND announced today an agreement to acquire soft-baked snack bar maker Nature’s Bakery. While terms of the transaction were not disclosed, sources told The New York Times that the deal valued Nature’s Bakery at $400 million. The acquisition comes just a few weeks after KIND itself was acquired by snack company Mars.

In yesterday’s Expert Analysis, we brought together a group of industry authorities to discuss the consumer behaviors, investment activity and retailer attitudes that are impacting the bar set. Now, we’re hearing from the brands.

November’s new product launches offered consumers a variety of better-for-you sweet treats, from a new edible cookie dough variety from Hungryroot to GoodSam’s line of sustainably sourced sugar-free chocolate. Check out the gallery for November’s notable new releases, including Om Mushroom’s single-serve functional coffee blend and immunity-boosting snacks from Nature’s Garden.

In this edition of Category Close-Up, a video series available exclusively to BevNET and NOSH subscribers, we’ll take a deep dive into the trends and news that have shaped the bar category in 2020. In today’s Expert Analysis part of the series, you’ll hear from a group of authorities about the consumer behaviors, investment activity and retailer attitudes that are impacting the bar set.

Los Angeles-based keto-friendly protein bar brand Keto Krisp is gearing up for growth as it aims to bring keto products to the “underserved” supermarket channel. The company, which added Barnana co-founder Matt Clifford as CEO earlier this year, is rolling out an umbrella brand, CanDo, to connect with consumers through a message of empowerment with a focus on co-founder Adam Bremen’s personal journey with the keto diet.

According to a 2018 report by the Harvard Business Review, Asian Americans are the least likely racial group to be promoted to management and C-suite roles. This statistic was the impetus for the 2018 launch of Gold House, a nonprofit collective of Asian and Pacific Islander (API) leaders, a group that encompasses 50 ethnicities, which aims to forge professional and familial bonds among its members and use those relationships to promote economic success, societal representation and unity in the Asian community.

In the last edition of Category Close-Up: Product Showcase we spoke with executives from ice cream brands about their latest product launches and the category at large. In this special bonus segment, you’ll hear from a few more brands about the market dynamics that are currently shaping the ice cream industry and what their companies have been up to over the last several months.

Plant-based dressing and condiment maker Mother Raw announced today the closing of a $6.1 million funding round to fuel the Toronto-based brand’s U.S. distribution growth as well as new sales and marketing initiatives. The round was led by new investors Forage Capital Partners and Export Development Canada (EDC), with participation from existing investor Whitecap Venture Partners.

After 150 years in business, Graeter’s ice cream CEO Richard Graeter says he’s still committed to using the same process his great-grandmother Regina used in the 1900s.But that doesn’t mean the family business is resistant to change: the Ohio-based company announced last week that it would launch a vegan version of its ice cream in collaboration with food tech company Perfect Day.

Every year, the fall season brings with it shorter days, crisper weather and grocery shelves packed with pumpkin spice products. This fall was no exception, ushering in a wave of new seasonal launches from brands across categories. From popcorn to pudding and soup to snack bites, brands found innovative ways to deliver the classic fall flavors to consumers this year.

Today, holding company HumanCo alongside venture firm CAVU filed an S-1 form with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, with the end goal of launching a SPAC known as HumanCo Acquisition Corp. The SPAC is seeking to raise $225 million on the NASDAQ stock exchange, eventually trading under the ticker symbol HMCOU. CAVU has committed an additional $25 million in private placement.

In this week’s Checkout, Ahold Delhaize and Centerbridge partners acquire FreshDirect; Farmstead raises $7.9 million to fuel its East Coast expansion; and Unilever announces its “Future Foods” initiative to support plant-based eating and reduce its environmental impact.

NOSH Live Winter 2020 will feature Retailer Speed Dating on Wednesday, December 16. For this round, brands have the opportunity to meet one-on-one with top retailers. Speed Dating provides a virtual platform for brands to receive feedback and create partnerships to do business.

Elite Sweets hit the sweet spot with its keto-friendly protein donuts, winning NOSH Pitch Slam 9 as the judges saw a strong opportunity for the brand in its better-for-you take on a popular indulgent snack.