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

Oatly is ready to offer shoppers more than just milk, general manager Mike Messersmith told NOSH. Over the next two months the oat milk company will launch a line of ice cream into several national retailers. In 2020 the company will also bring online its largest facility to-date and double its current manufacturing capacity.

In case the paleo trend goes extinct, Steve’s PaleoGoods founder Steve Liberati is seeking new life for his product lineup through expansion and acquisition. In April, the company acquired raw and fermented drink and dressing brand Zukay Live Foods, which also produces Jacob’s Raw krauts, salsas and dressings.

General Mills is doubling down on the powers of digestive health. The corporation is deepening its strategic partnership with natural brand GoodBelly, launching a line of lactose-free yogurts and cereal this week under the digestive health brand. In yogurt, General Mills will take on fellow functional foods brand Activia — offering similar product benefits for a younger audience.

Catherine Nguyen founded Wild Willett Food to create healthy kids snacks for her family’s on-the-go lifestyle. The recently launched company offers a line of high protein fruit-infused beef jerky targeted at millennial parents who need snacks that can fuel their active children.

Farmhouse Culture has gone back to basics in order to grow. Over the past eight months new CEO Scott Lerner has revamped the fermented food business — including a new look, new headquarters, and a shift away from in-house production — in an attempt to move beyond its natural channel roots. “We’ve totally retooled the business,” Lerner told NOSH.

Stew Leonard’s president/CEO Stew Leonard Jr. spoke about the company’s focus on customer interaction and how it has helped the company create a unique and high-quality shopping experience.

Artisanal ghee brand 4th & Heart announced the close of a $7.6 million round of capital today. In a video shot at this summer’s Fancy Food Show, NOSH Editor Carol Ortenberg sat down with CEO Raquel Tavares to discuss her goals for the brand and how she plans to use this capital to expand access and awareness of ghee.

In a presentation at NOSH Live Summer 2019 in New York City, Heidi Traore, business development manager at National Co+op Grocers, discussed how the structure and ethos of co-ops benefits both communities and small brands.

This edition of Taste Radio Insider features highlights from interviews with six founders, creators and industry experts who joined us on the show during the first half of 2019. This episode is presented by BevSource.

Tony Wrubel is the co-founder of Aveyo Avocado Foods, a company delivering avocados in an easy and convenient format. The spoonable avocado snack is made with 5 ingredients or less and is free from all major allergens.

Halla, an AI company that provides retailers personalized recommendations for food ordering, is helping grocers further explore consumer shopping habits after closing a recent $1.4 million seed round. This will allow the team to scale the app’s offerings, gaining more in-depth personalization and forecasting data.

Although it’s only had product in a limited set of stores since February, Gathered Foods, producers of Good Catch plant-based seafood products, is hoping to avoid the operational bottlenecks that have plagued (and slowed the growth of) other plant-based food companies. The brand announced last week the close of a $10 million convertible note in order to continue building out a factory for its line of high-moisture extruded seafood substitutes.

As natural CPG expands further into conventional retail, are mass channels supportive environments ripe with opportunity? At NOSH Live Summer 2019, BevNET and NOSH editor-in-chief Jeffrey Klineman led a discussion with a panel of revered industry brokers about navigating retailer relationships.

Yogurt maker Chobani is collaborating with Fair Trade USA on a new label that certifies the milk used in its products is sourced from farms that meet “comprehensive” standards for animal welfare and employee rights.