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

Consumers’ salty snacking appetites seem to grow with more time spent at home — and brands, facing decreased store trip frequency, have quickly had to adjust their retail channel strategy and product mix to help keep them satisfied.

The eleventh round of Elevator Talk Livestream features leaders from Suji’s, HARVST, Renewal Mill, Nightfood, Kefla, Gharana Foods and more. Watch founders and CEOs jump into the livestream and provide a brief recap of recent news and updates. This week’s special co-host is Lauren Jupiter, managing partner at AF Ventures.

PepsiCo is pivoting to meet consumer demand online with the launch of two new ecommerce platforms — snacks.com and pantryshop.com. The two storefronts will allow the company to give consumers easy access to the familiar and “comforting” brands they are seeking out during the Covid-19 pandemic, said Gibu Thomas, SVP and head of ecommerce for PepsiCo.

This week’s Office Hours features industry veterans Alan Murray and Brad Barnhorn, who, drawing upon years of experience working with brands as board members and operators, offer advice on forecast planning, organizational strategy and leadership during the pandemic.

Mondelez wants to teach consumers that more isn’t necessarily merrier when it comes to snacking. In its ‘Snacking Made Right’ report and on an investor call Friday, CEO Kirk van de Put outlined plans to promote balanced, mindful snacking and outlined the company’s wide-reaching sustainability strategy.

Snack brand Clif Bar last week announced the hiring of Sally Grimes as its new CEO, effective June 1. Meanwhile both Miyoko’s and Snacklins brought on two new sales executives.

In this interview, BevNET managing editor Martin Caballero speaks with Jonathan Miller, general counsel for the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, to get an update on the group’s efforts to open a path for CBD to be recognized as a legal food and beverage additive by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

As consumers cook at home more, the shift is powering B&G Foods — and fueling its pipeline of plant-based innovations. In its first quarter earnings call this week, B&G reported strong net sales growth and further plans for frozen food brand Farmwise, which it acquired in February.

Office Hours is returning on Tuesday, May 12 at 3 p.m. ET. Industry veterans Alan Murray and Brad Barnhorn will use examples derived from years of working with brands as board members and operators to offer advice on forecast planning, organizational strategy and leadership during the pandemic, while fielding questions from viewers at home.

If you’ve subscribed, thank you. Today is the first day of your full access to our existing and expanding platform. If you’re still waiting, we’re excited to have you join us. For 24 years our mission has been to provide the stories and information that help food and beverage professionals navigate the industry. This new subscription model will support our team’s commitment to providing you with independent journalism that serves and informs the food and beverage community, and will enable us to extend our capabilities even further to fulfill that mission.

Tessa Wanders is the founder and CEO of Hey Frida, a San Francisco-based food startup offering low-carb, functional snack bars. The brand has two SKUs, Beauty Bar featuring collagen and Relax Bar featuring collagen and L-theanine.

In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, it seems many Americans are strapping on their aprons and marching to the oven with a goal of learning to bake. But why have sourdough breads, brownies and chocolate chip cookies captivated the nation? And is the “made from scratch” ethos similarly powering the baking mix brands that allow kitchen dwellers to cut out a few steps?

While production issues currently plague the meat industry, plant-based meat companies are growing. In their respective quarterly earnings calls this week, executives from meat company Tyson and plant-based brand Beyond Meat discussed powering through a pandemic — and trying to develop future strategies despite looming uncertainty.

The tenth round of Elevator Talk Livestream includes leaders from DiNoci, LiveKuna, lil’gourmets, IWON Organics, Craize Corn, Superseedz, Alta Goods and more. This week’s special co-host is Megan Bent, the founder and managing partner of Harbinger Ventures, who will offer feedback for each brand.