In today’s newsletter:
To Educate or Not? The Problem with Food Authenticity
Moving a Brand: Putting Down Roots in a New Category
Next Phase of Kid Nutrition? Getting Beyond Functional
AI Updates: Food Industry
BFY Starts Cooking: Functional Ingredients
Tidbits: Quick links to fun food news
Did you miss last week’s newsletter? Find it here
The Problem of Authenticity
Herdez (a Hormel brand) is expanding their line to include ready-to-heat meals. The refrigerated entrees, available at Publix and Hy-vee, include a Chicken Shredded in Mild Chipotle Sauce and Carnitas Slow Cooked Pork. Ready in 10 minutes, the products have no artificial flavors or preservatives. Herdez will be expanding distribution later this year.
Bud Light has launched Chelada Tajin Chile Limon. This non-Clamato Chelada is a collaboration between Budweiser and the popular Mexican powdered chili seasoning. The addition of Tajin to the drink brings heat, salt, and lime. Bud Light also sells Cheladas with Clamato, Clamato Extra Lime, and Mangonada.
Dunkin’ is launching a breakfast taco for their AM menu. Tacos consist of warm flour tortilla, scrambled eggs, melted sharp white cheddar cheese, fire-roasted corn, lime crema, and optional crumbled bacon. Available now nationwide.
So What? Imagine for a moment that you were reading a book or watching a movie set in 14th century England. In the first few scenes, you are introduced to the cast of characters: Bartholomew the stable boy, Jasper the prince, Beatrice the sister, and… Tiffany the princess.
You’d probably do a double take. Tiffany doesn’t fit in the 14th century. What kind of historically inaccurate story is this?! It very well might ruin your ability to take the rest of the tale seriously. But you’d be wrong.
Tiffany is an ancient name (at least 800 years old) and you likely would have run into a Tiffany in 14th century England. The reason that you never see that name in Medieval fiction is because it doesn’t seem right to the average person. So, instead of educating people, writers just avoid it.
This has been called ‘The Tiffany Problem,’ when historical truth is at odds with the average person’s historical knowledge. While I doubt any of you reading this newsletter are writing 14th century fiction, the lesson here is extremely applicable if you are making and marketing products.
Most consumers aren’t coming to you to be educated, they are coming to be validated for what they already know. This is true for health and wellness, and it’s true for different cuisines. Your responsibility is to know how your consumer sees the world and present it to them appropriately. Sometimes that means searching out the most authentic ingredients and dishes, and sometimes that means putting authenticity aside and delivering on expectations.
Lifting and Shifting a Brand
Pillsbury is introducing two new soft baked cookies with General Mills cereal baked right in. The two new cookies contain a swirl of either Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cinnadust or Lucky Charms marbits. The cookies will be available in 18-ct packs nationwide.
Crumbl Cookies partnered with General Mills to offer a St. Patrick’s Day Lucky Charms cookie. The cookie contained white chocolate chips, vanilla marshmallow frosting, and Lucky Charms marshmallows sprinkled on top.
My/ Mochi is introducing a Cereal+Milk frozen mochi to its lineup. This introduction comes with a new line of smoothie filled mochi the company is calling “Mochi in the Morning.” All new mochi come 6 per box and are available in major retailers.
Burger shop Mooyah has launched a Froot Loop milkshake for a limited time only. The shake consists of “100% real hand-spun ice cream, strawberry puree and, of course, Kellogg's famous Froot Loops Cereal topped & mixed-in.” Available until May 28 at participating stores.
Halo Top (now a Ferrero Group brand) is launching a new line of frozen yogurt pops made with granola and fruit. Each 110-calorie pop contains Skyr-style yogurt and 4g protein. The pops will be available in two varieties: Triple Berry and Strawberry.
Burger King has partnered with Doritos (Frito-Lay) to introduce a new Cheesy Doritos Sandwich line in Spain. The new offering consists of a single or double beef patty or crispy chicken filet combined with cheddar cheese, Doritos sauce and Doritos Bites (embedded crispy-fried little triangles of Doritos cheese sauce) all on a cheddar-baked bun. The crispy sandwiches (as well as the Dorito Bites) are available for a limited time only at participating Spanish locations.
To celebrate National Potato Chip Day, Baked Lay’s (Frito-Lay) partnered with Subway to produce a footlong Baked Lay sandwich. The 12” baked potato crisp was offered as a crunchy sandwich ingredient for one-day only at a Subway in Frisco, Texas. Subway and Frito-Lay used the event to promote and popularize the pairing of Baked Lays in a sandwich.
Kraft-Heinz is partnering with Absolut vodka to produce jarred Pasta alla Vodka. The new sauce, based on a viral Instagram post from Gigi Hadid, will be available as a Waitrose exclusive.
So What? For the last 3 years, I’ve lived in Colorado. Having spent most of my life in the Midwest, I was very unfamiliar with tumbleweeds (outside of old cowboy movie tropes). Come to find out, tumbleweeds are an ingenious way for plants to propagate themselves in arid climates where wind is common but animals aren’t. As part of their lifecycle, the upper ‘bush’ of these plants dries out, detaches from the roots and rolls with the wind, oftentimes miles away. Once a better environment is found, the seeds in the tumbleweed grow and start new plants.
I tell you this because I see the potential for a ‘tumbleweed strategy’ with current co-branding offerings.
Co-branding is everywhere today. The last several years has seen an explosion of food brands joining together to bring exciting, new products to market. We’ve seen Cinnabon partner with Duncan Hines on their Epic line, Hershey partner with Shelia G’s Brownie Brittle (Second Nature Brands) for a new Reese’s Pieces offering, and even Kraft Mac & Cheese with VanLeeuwen ice cream.
However, while most of these co-branded products were likely positioned purely as licensing opportunities (i.e., $$$), their success (or lack thereof) could provide important strategic learning. I’d suggest these brands could use a ‘tumbleweed strategy’ to identify new categories to build and addtional home. To do so, you’d need to identify three steps:
1. Identify the correct benefit or characteristic to put into the ‘seed’
If we use cereal, as an example, what is the best brand essence to ‘lift and shift’ to another category (e.g., Cinnamon Toast Crunch has Cinnadust, Lucky Charms might have brightly colored marshmallows)? Find these brand essences and pack them into as many licensed products as possible and send them ‘into the wind.’
2. Pinpoint the ideal form/flavor?
Where are you seeing growth in terms of form and flavor? (i.e., where are your seeds sprouting?). Staying with cereal, sweet frozen forms seem to be hitting the mark, both with branded as well as non-branded product, offering a potential vector for new growth beyond licensing.
3. Plant roots
While ‘license to learn’ is often espoused as a way to find areas where new products might grow, it is rarely used to make big investments. However, that could change. Cereal brands, who saw their volumes decline pre-pandemic, have been looking for an ‘escape hatch’ for years into the more lucrative snacking category. For example, both Kellogg and General Mills have launched multiple, modified versions of their RTE products for snack consumption (e.g., Kellogg Jumbo Snax and Cinnamon Toast Crunch Remix). While novel, these efforts don’t move the brands outside the aisle, instead often cannibalizing in-aisle shelf space. As cereal brands see growth with their test ‘seeds’ (ice cream, cookies, foodservice, etc.) they could take these learnings and make major investments, putting down new extensive roots and growing into burgeoning categories. The same goes for snack chips as a condiment (i.e., Lays and Doritos above).
The Next Phase of Kid Nutrition?
Startup Kiddiwinks has launched their plant-based milk for kids. The milk is made from a mix of chickpeas, oats, and chicory root, along with added vitamins, minerals and natural flavors. The milk supplies 6g+ of dietary fiber—often lacking in kids’ diets--and 8g protein. The milk comes in aluminum cans for easy recycling and is available in vanilla and chocolate flavors.
Raised Gluten Free, known for their free-from pies, has launched a new line of kid-focused cookie mixes. The mixes are non-GMO verified and free of the top nine allergens. Each pouch has illustrated instructions for kids to help make the cookies. Available in three varieties: chocolate chip, confetti, and double chocolate chip.
Bobo’s, the fast-growing CO-based snack bar maker, debuted a new line of soft-baked PB&J stuffed sandwiches at Expo West. The products consist of peanut butter oat crust with either grape or strawberry filling. The products contain 17g whole grain, are gluten free, vegan and non-GMO. Expect these on shelf starting in April.
Startup Tiny Sprouts has launched a line of organic super seed boosters. The line serves as mix-ins for children as young as six months, with the company selling a shaker dispenser for easy use. The products contain mixes of flaxseed, chia, hemp, probiotics, apple powder and spices to help with digestion, gut health, and immune health. The four varieties are each gluten-free, plant-based, organic, and contain no salt or sugar. Available via the company’s website.
So What? I’m not surprised at the increase in wellness and health-oriented food products targeted specifically at young children. As Gen Z begins to become parents, their strong belief in the connection between food and health is bound to be translated to their approach to kid nutrition. Products like the above showcase emerging food+health themes common with Gen Z: immunity, bone, and gut health.
However, what I’m surprised we are not seeing yet are food/bev products that help kids with emotional concerns, like stress. Managing anxiety and related issues are very important for Gen Z, and a recent Pew study showed that parents see mental health as their biggest concern when it comes to their kids. In fact, mental health is the fastest growing marketplace category according to VC firm Andreessen Horowitz:
Products do exist, but the majority are supplements (such as Kid’s Mood Boost from Hello Bello, Dax Shepard and Kristen Bell’s kids brand). I’m curious when we will start seeing more messaging or marketing that connects food/beverage products to kid’s mood management. Perhaps adaptogens (e.g., ashwagandha, mushrooms) are seen by parents as too heavy handed when it comes to children, or taste issues are too difficult to overcome, or (most likely) companies are concerned about the legal aspects of the accompanying messages. Whatever the case may be, it feels like an area ripe for innovation if chartered correctly.
AI Updates: Food Industry
News about artificial intelligence is flooding our feeds, to the point that it’s almost overwhelming and hard to keep up. The arrival last week of the much improved ChatGPT-4 (which passed the Bar exam, GRE, and AP tests with flying colors), shows that advancements are exponential in this space. Therefore, for at least the next few newsletters, I thought it might be helpful to highlight a few AI advancements potentially impacting the food/beverage industry:
ChatGPT Gets an App Store? OpenAI (ChatGPT’s parent) has started a plug-in page where companies can integrate ChatGPT with their service offering. This means its now possible to have ChatGPT make you a restaurant reservation (via OpenTable), order groceries (via InstaCart), or buy a saucepan (via Shop). In addition to simply connecting existing apps to the power of ChatGPT, the biggest upgrade here is that ChatGPT can now use the internet (previously it was isolated). That means that you can ask the system to find a recipe to make a cake, order the groceries and equipment necessary to make said recipe, and convert the recipe to work at high altitudes (via Wolfram). Just as the App Store made the iPhone the most successful product on Earth, the App Store is likely to make ChatGPT immensely more powerful (Note: the plug-ins are currently only available to select users but that will change soon. Plus, more plug-ins are likely coming as well).
So What? Now that these AI systems are connected to the internet, it opens up intriguing possibilities. Instacart is testing an Ask Instacart feature that allows users to pose questions on budget, health, nutrition and prep time as they are creating their grocery lists (potentially via voice, Amazon is said to be integrating ChatGPT-like functions into Alexa). What’s being built here is a very powerful personal assistant that could serve as the ultimate gatekeeper between manufacturers and consumers. Soon, companies will need to first market products to the AI before getting access to the consumer.
Who Owns AI’s Creations? Last week, the Writers Guild of America (whose members author the bulk of TV shows and movies) wrote a report proposing that writers can use ChatGPT (and similar AI) to write screenplays as long as the human maintains credit for the work. The Guild wants to see AI treated as a tool and not ‘source material,’ and therefore not open to residuals. The proposal needs to be approved by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).
So What? The Guild is ahead of the world on this issue, but we’ll all be catching up soon. If AI writes 95% of your social media copy, your back panel, and the ideas and formulas for your pipeline, we need to understand who owns what. Companies must codify how they are going to view AI use among their employees and contractors. I’d suggest taking a ‘wait and see’ approach as the technology advances, but already some big corporations are just outright banning the use of these programs (a heavy-handed approach IMO).
AI and brand ownership: Last week, Coca-Cola was one of the first large brands to announce a direct partnership with OpenAI called “Create Real Magic.” The company (along with Bain & Company) launched a website inviting consumers to utilized OpenAI’s Dall-E, along with Coke brand images, to create new AI-powered art. The images can then be uploaded and 30 creators will be selected for the Real Magic Creative Academy at Coke’s headquarters in Atlanta.
So What? Admittedly, this first brand use of AI (not counting Ryan Renolds Mint mobile commercial) is not that much different than other co-created consumer campaigns we’ve seen in the last few years. However, it speaks to future potential. Seeing the revolutionary aspects of the technology, and the consumer excitement, Coke is showing an openness to utilizing AI as a consumer engagement tool. While I’m sure AI will have its share of negatives for brands, I believe Coke is on the right track with jumping on-board and experimenting.
Better-for-You Ingredients
Bay State Milling has launched Wingold Wellness Multi-Purpose Flour. The 100% wheat flour has 3X the prebiotic fiber of traditional wheat flours without a decrease in taste or functionality. Using the company’s Healthsense High-Fiber Wheat Flour technology, the flour is currently only available to manufacturers and foodservice providers.
Good Culture, a company known for updating the cottage cheese category, is introducing a probiotic line of milks. In partnership with Dairy Farmers of America, Good Culture is producing and extended shelf-life (ESL) milk with 1 billion probiotic cultures per 12-ounce serving. Available as both Whole and 2%, the milks will be available in select East Coast retailers before nationwide expansion.
Kikkoman has launched Umami Joy Sauce [my vote for best new product name of the year!]. The new sauce is made without the addition of traditional soy and wheat, instead the company has used tomato extract in combination with their fermentation process to produce an umami-rich sauce. The new sauce is being marketed to appeal to people who are allergic or sensitive to wheat and soy, but also those that want greater umami flavor in their food. The brand recommends using the sauce for cooking, seasoning and as a condiment.
Non-dairy company Elmhurst 1925 debuted an oat-based sour cream recently at Expo West. The product contains only six ingredients including a base of oat milk and hemp protein. Using their HydroRelease technology, the company was able to thicken the plant-based products without the use of added emulsifiers, gums or stabilizers.
So What? Most people source food from home. In fact, when you look at the numbers, its surprising to see how many people are actually cooking ‘scratch’ meals on a weekly basis:
If you add to this the data from NPD (now Circana) that wellness influences 21% of all eating occasions, you start to see the need for more wellness staple ingredients that allow consumers to produce their own nutritious meals. While functional finished products and BFY complete meals aren’t going away, the need for wellness staples is likely to be a growing opportunity.
Things I’m Watching
Wild Earth, the leading DTC plant-based dog food vendor in the US, introduced two new plant- and fungi-based dry dog food formulas at the Global Pet Expo 2023 in Orlando last week. The new blends come in both a Performance Formula (Veggie Chicken ‘n Kabob flavor) as well as Core Formula (Golden Rotisserie and Classic Roast flavors). Dollar General has reformulated and relaunched their private label pet food as Nature’s Menu. The new line is touted as “premium brand pet food at a value price.’ DG claims their pet food is made with all-natural ingredients with meat/poultry as the #1 ingredient.
So What? Pet food is often a harbinger of things to come in the rest of the food industry. If consumers can be comfortable with fungi-based pet food or trust the legitimacy of the oxymoron of ‘super-premium value’ dog food, there is potential to do the same with other products.
TIDBITS
Toblerone will drop its iconic Matterhorn image from packaging to comply with Swiss labeling laws
Man sues Buffalo Wild Wings, says boneless wings are just chicken nuggets (BWW responds “they also have 0% buffalo”)
What state has the most expensive Big Mac in the US?
Engineers create 3D printed cheesecake cooked with lasers (opening up new potentials in food construction)
Childhood favorite SunnyD expands into RTD cocktails with vodka seltzer
The physics of Oreo cookies: why the crème tends to stick to one side
Little Caesars introduces corncob crust pizza with 2-liters of liquified butter for dipping (April 1 campaign)
Something to Think About