In today’s newsletter:
Plant-Based is Receeding: What’s Next?
Newstalgia: The trend you know but didn’t have a name for
AI in the Driver’s Seat: What happens when consumers outsource to AI?
Colgate Experiments: The food-supplement barrier is weakening
Tidbits: Quick links to fun and interesting food news
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What replaces plant-based?
Natural, artisan pasta sauce maker Yo Mama’s has launched a new Alfredo Sauce product. Made with real butter, cream, and Parmesan cheese, the keto-certified product is marketed as free of added preservatives, gums, and fillers. Available on the company’s website.
Chickpea company Banza has partnered with Tabasco for a LTO ‘Hotter by the Bite’ Pizza. The high protein pizza contains traditional Tabasco sauce in the red sauce and the brand’s hottest Scorpion Sauce around the edge. Each package contains two pizzas. Available on the company’s website.
Vegan ecomm site Whisked by Jenna gave a sneak peak of their new look at Expo East recently. Packages of their Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies now announced Whisked Crispy in bold letters with vegan in small print. Cookies are available at Whisked by Jenna.
Good Planet Foods has launched a new line of olive oil-based block cheeses made with “real herbs and vegetables.” The cheeses are available in three varieties (Italian-Style Mozzerella, Mexican-Style Monterey Jack, and Greek-Style Feta) at retail locations.
Dr. Bronner’s (yes, the soap people) have launched a line of All-in-One Chocolates. The 70% cocoa bars are vegan and made with “West African cocoa grown using regenerative organic agriculture, award-winning Indonesian coconut sugar, Congolese cocoa butter, and Madagascan vanilla bean.” Available in six varieties including Salted Almond Butter and Smooth Coconut Praline.
Alternative milk company Lattini is launching a line of sunflower milks. The brand claims that the benefits of sunflowers, over other alt-milk bases, is that they are heartier and more pollinator-friendly than other alt milks. Available in Original, Unsweetened and Chocolate, the milks are dairy, nut, soy and gluten free.
Austin, TX-based restaurant chain HopDaddy’s Burger Bar announced that they will become the first burger chain in the United States to go 100% seed oil-free in partnership with Zero Acre Farms. Zero Acre makes a general purpose, high smoke point, mono-saturated cooking oil by fermenting sugarcane. Companies like Chipotle and Shake Shack have also shown interest and investment in Zero Acre.
Plant-based brand Fabalish has launched a new line of condiments including a Chipotle Mayo. Made with aquafaba (the liquid left after boiling chickpeas), the mayo is “soy-free, top-8 allergen-free and made with simple ingredients!” Available via the brand’s website.
Green House Foods has rebranded as Drumroll and has launched a new line of donuts. The new rebrand removes the focus on ‘plant-based’ and instead focuses on the flavors, protein (10g), low sugar, and calories. Available as Chocolate or Vanilla Glazed.
So What? New Hope Network had an interesting article last week where they pointed out something I’ve noticed as well: plant-based positioning is declining. Whereas, just a few years ago, many companies boldly proclaimed ‘plant-based’ front of pack, in equally sized font as their brand, now we are seeing a shift. Brands, like some above, have redesigned to move plant-based call-outs to a more muted supporting role. Similarly, new brands are minimizing the plant-based message in favor of focusing on ingredients, flavors, or other attributes.
Why? Some of it likely has to do with culture. ‘Plant-based’ and ‘vegan’ have developed niche cultural connotations that brands worry might limit their growth. In fact, if you look at this recent report by Kroger’s analytics team 84.51, you see plant-based interest is still surprising low:
However, I think this same survey shows what is winning: ‘clean.’ In fact, in my experience with consumers, I’m finding that ‘clean’ has become the de facto positioning in the BFY world. Even when consumers talk about ‘organic’ or ‘natural’ they fallback on the term ‘clean’ to describe the overarching benefits they seek from a product. The term ‘clean,’ both ambiguous and specific at the same time, has somehow become the most powerful term in food and bev. Why are ‘clean ingredients’ what everyone seems to want today?
‘Clean’ started out in the natural makeup world as far back as the 1980’s, and has been slowly percolating in natural food circles ever since. Unlike the term ‘organic,’ which like ‘plant-based’ and ‘vegan’ has been culturally stereotyped as ‘trendy’ and potentially elitist, you’re just as likely to hear ‘clean’ out of the mouths of Berkley Bowl Californians as Hy-Vee Midwesterners.
British anthropologist Mary Douglas once said that “Dirt is matter out of place,” meaning that the difference between something being ‘dirty’ or ‘clean’ comes down to order. Freshly washed hair on your head = clean. But that same hair in a bowl of soup makes the whole thing ‘dirty.’ Things that are clean are in their correct place. ‘Clean ingredients,’ therefore, are ingredients that are controlled and predictable.
In a world increasingly seen as chaotic, 'clean' food becomes a microcosm of control, an enclave of order that consumers can establish for themselves.
For BFY brands, ‘clean’ hits at the heart of their core essence much better than plant-based ever could. In fact, if I was running strategy for a ‘clean ingredient’ CPG company or retailer, I’d lean into that sense of order and predictability, making it a cornerstone of the brand message.
Why ‘Newstalgia’ is the Trend of the Moment
Japan-based Fuwa Fuwa Dessert Café is continuing to expand operations in the US, Canada and the UK. The café (which translates to ‘fluffy fluffy’ in English) is known for their pillowy souffle pancakes. Made by folding egg whites into batter and slowing cooking, the pancakes have become a hit with Western crowds. Recently, the chain has expanded beyond pancakes to introduce Basque-style burnt cheesecakes and croffles (aka croissant waffles) in sweet and savory varieties.
Speaking of croffles (a South Korean invention), Croffle House in NY has announced 12 new varieties of their signature pastry. Each croffle consists of an all-butter laminated dough pressed in a waffle iron and topped with flavors like Nutella Banana, Strawberry, Green Grapes, Mango, and Blueberry Cheese. Their newest variation is a Sweet Potato Croffle, topped with a sweet potato mousse, whipped cream and poundcake powder (I can only assume dried and sieved pound cake).
Vancouver's Kozak Ukrainian Eatery has become a viral hit with their Croissant Cubes. Made of buttery, flaky croissant dough baked into massive blocks, the cubes are often filled with creams, custards and fruit and topped with brightly colored icings, nuts and botanicals. Their newest entry is a Pistachio Cube Croissant.
West Hollywood-based restaurant Barney’s Beanery has announced the launch of the brand Juicy Lucy in retail. Based on the famous Minnesota burger classic, the product line-up consists of three varieties of cheese-stuffed frozen burgers (Bacon BBQ Cheddar, Jalapeno Cheddar, and Three Cheese). Distribution has yet to be announced.
Tech-based Voyage Foods has announced a major expansion into Walmart. The company’s Peanut-Free and Hazelnut-Free Spreads will now be available at 1,200 Walmart’s nationwide (and Walmart.com). The company uses their proprietary upcycling technology to produce classic products like peanut butter, Nutella, chocolate, and coffee, but without nuts, cocoa or coffee beans. Free of the top 9 allergens, the products are made from a blend of seeds and legumes.
So What? One of the hottest trends in interior design this year is ‘newstagia,’ the balancing of new home décor with vintage items. Since taking off a few years ago, newstagia (sometimes labeled ‘nowstalgia’) has made its way into fashion, media and now food.
As the products above attest, there is a desire to create the new by tinkering with the old. While ‘familiar with a twist’ is an age-old innovation tactic, I think there are a few reasons why newstalgia is especially impactful today:
1. Comfort Meets Innovation: Consumers often gravitate towards what's familiar, especially in uncertain times. Yet, they also crave new experiences. Newstalgia can be a bridge between these desires by infusing traditional foods with a modern twist or incorporating modern dietary preferences into classic dishes.
2. Storytelling and Authenticity: There's a growing interest in the stories behind the food and beverages people consume. Newstalgia allows brands to delve into historical recipes, traditional preparation methods, or local ingredient sourcing, while adding a contemporary flair or narrative that resonates with today's consumers.
3. Experiential Engagement: By blending the old with the new, there's potential to create more engaging and memorable experiences. For instance, giving a vintage or retro feel to packaging, marketing, or the dining experience, even when the offering is new or novel (e.g., the 1960’s trend of tableside flambéing is back, with a twist). There is a fun and playful aspect to this approach, breaking the rules while still being safe.
AI is the New Consumer Gatekeeper
Earlier this month, Walmart announced the launch of a series of AI tools meant to help streamline the customer process of planning and shopping for household items. The company believes “generative AI (GenAI), a type of artificial intelligence that can generate text, images or other media from the data it’s trained on, can help Walmart customers spend more time doing the things they enjoy and less time scrolling, tapping and searching.” Walmart says they are rolling out tools that use speech, visuals (such as a virtual make up simulator) and AR to condense the shopping journey.
Pizza Hut India has launched a new campaign called “Your Mood, Your Pizza.” The company has installed AI-powered mood detector kiosks throughout shops in India’s largest cities that study facial cues and expressions of customers and gives them recommendations for pizzas that best match their moods (all facial data is subsequently erased, according to the company).
So What? People hate to make decisions. Walk through any supermarket and you’ll see people literally holding two brands in their hands, weighing the pros and cons. However, what if this decision could be outsourced? What if the ‘paradox of choice’ was made simpler via AI? I think we are heading in that direction.
Launches like Walmart’s and Pizza Hut’s above point to a future where AI makes choosing easier. Instead of dozens of pasta sauces, what if AI could take you (and your family’s) tastes and sensitives in mind and whittle down your choices BEFORE you shopped? I suspect that if given a choice, a lot of consumers would love to offload this task to a ‘trusted AI.’
In this future, this potential AI holds immense power, especially if it’s in the hands of retailers. Unlike today, where a consumer is confronted with a grocery store aisle full of all available brands, this future consists of a digital aisle that has been pre-sorted by AI. If the AI ‘feels’ you wouldn’t be interested in a product or brand, it just doesn’t exist. Here, AI creates choice reality.
There is even the very real possibility that future consumers will completely offload the shopping of staples to AI, simply giving it parameters like taste, packaging and cost. In this scenario, the AI alone chooses what goes in the basket, completely by-passing the consumer.
All of which points to a near future where marketers are marketing not just to consumers but AIs themselves. Brand managers and advertisers will need to understand the right benefits, messaging, and keywords that AI-shopping assistants are seeking for their consumer masters; in some ways, we are trending toward an extremely personalized version of SEO.
Things I’m Watching
UK-based Nourished, a 3D printing personalized nutritional supplement company, has partnered with Colgate to produce Nutri-Stacks, a line of oral health chews. The supplements consist of individually wrapped stacks of 7 “scientifically backed ingredients” that are designed to aid in healthy teeth and gums, but also the mind and body. The four varieties (Colgate Energy, Focus, Immunity, and Glow) all feature an oral health prebiotic combined with other active ingredients. Currently only available in the UK via the Nourished website.
So What? Supplements have been sliding into food and beverage territory for some time now. However, this approach via oral health feels different. While clearly not food, it’s also not medicine, making this new Colgate experiment feel halfway between gum and a vitamin gummy.
Honestly, the reason I find it intriguing is that Colgate went beyond their current brand guardrails and extended into benefits like energy and immunity. A bold choice. Will it work? I have no idea. However, I give the brand credit for trying. At least it’s not as egregious as their past brand stretch products.
UK-based OGT (One Good Thing) has launched a first of its kind wrapper-free protein bar. Instead of a plastic wrapper, each bar is surrounded with an all-natural, waterproof, edible coating (made from beeswax and other natural ingredients). The product comes in a box (which uses 70% recycled material) of 6 or 12. The company offers 14 different varieties. Available via the company’s website.
So What? I don’t expect any large CPG company to replicate a wrapperless snack anytime soon. However, there is something interesting here. What makes OGT’s proposition possible is its direct-to-consumer (DtC) business model. No one wants a granola bar that’s been sitting naked in a Walgreens for weeks. However, that being said, this move opens the door for radical packaging innovation possibilities (not to mention cost-savings) for any DtC brand. Additionally, what if companies combined this edible coating technology WITH sustainable wrapper technology? The problem with most green packaging is that it doesn’t have the low O2 permeability that makes metalized plastic so useful. However, if you coated bars in a thin layer of edible coating along with a green wraper, you suddenly might have a low-carbon winner that works with the modern distribution chain.
TIDBITS
Trader Joe’s sues Trader Joe
Whole Foods announces their trends for 2024
Tesla is now selling beer
SweetGreen’s new ‘kale-shooting’ robots
Prices for Girl Scout cookies are going up again
Why pumpkin and squash are the climate-resistant superfoods of our near future
Which fast food place has the fastest drive thru?
Microsoft’s new AI assistant can attend meetings for you!
Uber Eats 2023 Craving Report
Could government owned grocery stores be the answer to food deserts?
Tyson invests in insect company
Which US State’s customers tip the best and the worst
Baby care and snack company Hello Bello, founded by Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard, files for bankruptcy
What the colors of bread closure tags mean
Bud Light attempts to change its image with a deal to be UFC’s new beer
Chicken as flashpoint in German Oktoberfest
Let the arguments begin: How to load a dishwasher correctly
Companies using synthetic consumers to build new products