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

When thinking about natural, organic or better for you brands, sometimes it can be hard to avoid getting swept up in a tidal wave of green juice, HPP hummus, and non-dairy cheese. But it’s the brands that are able to cross the divide between “health conscious” and “health aspiring” consumers that are finding some of the greatest traction in the marketplace. Jerry Bello, the CEO and founder of his current gig, Pasta Chips, is a master at crossing that divide, be it through discovery, investment, or a straight-up startup.

Project NOSH LA was filled with success stories from numerous brands. But, simply based on ingredient list, none was sweeter than Foodstirs.

At Project NOSH LA last week, a continuing theme was how brands can engage with millennials. Although this demographic is influencing purchasing decisions across categories, they also are more adept at filtering out marketing. Some companies create a millennial focused brand for monetary reasons. For Tom Bilyeu, the Co-Founder & President of Quest Nutrition, the reason was personal.

For years the convenience store evoked the image of a place to fill up your tank, grab some chips or Slim Jims, and perhaps hazard a trip to the restroom. But times are changing and consumers are looking for healthier options, as well as showing an openness to including these stores as part of their regular shopping rotation. As a result, retailers have had to adjust their mix in order to capture these dollars.

Baby food brand Once Upon a Farm is growing up, with a spate of new retailers, a new product line and an investment round to fuel that growth.

Growth, strategy, marketing and millennials dominated the conversation at this week’s Project NOSH L.A. event, held at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles.

At Project NOSH LA this week, Steve Hughes, Sunrise Strategic Partners CEO & co-founder, charts how volume declines and loss of earnings experienced by “Big CPG” firms have left them at a crossroads, as projections predict that upwards of $50 billion could shift away from those firms to smaller companies by 2020.

Yes, the World Series is still going, but Project NOSH’s first ever Pitch Slam, presented by ADM, is where the heavy hitters will be lining up today.

Schroeter, the president and co-founder of just-launched Sherpa Foods, will join the Project NOSH lineup to discuss what worked and what didn’t when he and co-founder Edmond Sanctis were growing Sahale Snacks, which was acquired by Smucker’s in late 2014.

Just a few short months after launching in Gelson’s and regions of Whole Foods Market, once online-only baking mix and kit brand Foodstirs has announced two milestone developments to facilitate its growth. Not only has the company closed its first major round of funding, but it has also added CPG veteran Greg Fleishman as COO and co-founder.

On Nov. 2, hundreds of brands, investors and suppliers and service providers will gather at the Skirball Center in Los Angeles to discuss the natural and better-for-you food industry. But the day before on Nov. 1, a limited number of brands will take part in a special Boot Camp event for early stage brands.

After a September quarterly earnings call in which it reported a decline in overall soup sales of 3.8 percent, The Campbell Soup Company — and in particular its fresh focused C-Fresh direction — has a new, premium arrow in its quiver: refrigerated, ready to serve soups. This month Campbell’s announced that its brand Garden Fresh Gourmet, which operates under C-Fresh, would launch four new refrigerated soups.

In the fall of 2015, Hain Celestial-owned Celestial Seasonings tea altered its familiar packaging. Now, just over a year later, the brand has announced that due in part to consumer feedback, it’s going back to “new” packaging that’s virtually the same as its older packaging.

Project NOSH L.A. is just around the corner and it’s almost time to get down to business. But you know what they say about all work and no play. So following a full day of programming, learning, networking and sampling, Project NOSH L.A. attendees will get to unwind with an exclusive afterparty powered by the team at FoodForce.