Enlightened Ice Cream has partnered with online food zine Delish to launched their newest flavor, Triple Chocolate Brownie Dough. The new decadent flavor is made of chocolate ice cream, brownie bites, chocolatey chips and a fudge swirl. However, the ice cream has zero added sugar and only 7 grams of carbs for the whole pint. This is done, according to the brand’s website, via the following: 64g carbs - 13g fiber - 30 sugar alcohol - 14g allulose = 7g net carbs per pint. The product is available online and in stores.
Functional candy company CandyCan has launched their ‘candy with a purpose.’ The new gummy products provide the added benefit of helping consumers sleep or stay focused with added vitamins. Each serving of gummies has only 2g of sugar, 3 net carbs and no sugar alcohols. Sweetness is provided by stevia extract.
Amyris, a global synthetic biology company producing ‘clean chemistry’ products for the food and cosmetic industry, has launched Purecane, licensed through Ingredion. A one-for-one home cooking and baking replacement for sugar made of Reb M. One of the many sweetening components naturally found in stevia, Reb M is sought after because of its clean taste. However, while stevia naturally produces Reb M, it does so in low concentrations. Amyris uses yeast to ferment sugarcane to produce Reb M, a zero calorie, zero net-carb sweetener. Purecane comes in versions that replicate granulated, confectioners’, and brown sugar, as well as in packets for individual use.
Hot on the heels of launching Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cinnadust, B&G Foods is launching Twix Shakers Seasoning Blends at Sam’s Clubs. Both seasoning blends allow users to add the ‘essence’ of their namesakes to other foods. B&G provides examples of how to use the products , including Twix Over-Load Shakes, Twix BBQ Sauce, Sweet Potato Casserole with Cinnadust, or Bacon Strips with Cinnadust.
Linda Zink, Chief Marketing Officer of Quest Nutrition, recently told Food Navigator that the company did very well during he pandemic. While other snack companies struggled, Quest’s consumers utilized their flagship bars as a meal substitute—microwaving them and eating them with a fork. Net revenues for the company rose +45.7% to $127.1 million in three months to May 31, 2021. “…the idea of higher protein, lower sugar, lower carb snacks, is here to stay. I remember 10 years ago people asking me if it was a fad. It’s not a fad,” Zink said.
So What? Jeff Bezos has been quoted as saying, “I very frequently get the question: 'What's going to change in the next 10 years?' And that is a very interesting question; it's a very common one. I almost never get the question: 'What's not going to change in the next 10 years?' And I submit to you that that second question is actually the more important of the two -- because you can build a business strategy around the things that are stable in time…It's impossible to imagine a future 10 years from now where a customer comes up and says, 'Jeff I love Amazon; I just wish the prices were a little higher,' [or] 'I love Amazon; I just wish you'd deliver a little more slowly.' Impossible.”
Thinking like Bezos for a moment, I can’t imagine a future where sweetness isn’t wanted by consumers. It’s one of our primary tastes, its hardwired into us to crave it as infants, and its one of the last ones we lose as seniors. However, where sweetness will come from in the future is less assured. While health trends seem to indicate that no sugar/low sugar products, sugar alcohols and alternative sweeteners will be the norm, global sugar production is continuing to rise. How will this tension resolve?
The future of sweeteners, most likely, will not be a zero sum game. Just like handwriting a letter hasn’t gone away in the era of email and vinyl still has cred, sugar will likely always be with us. If you look at this recent report from MotivBase (available free to Culture Matters readers) the sugar-concerned consumer is still eating sugar, they are just being more mindful in what they include it in. In fact, it’s the control of sugar that really matters to this consumer because they feel that, up until recently, sugar inclusion in foods has been done secretively by manufacturers.
Therefore, the future of sweeteners will be about mindful and purposeful use. Real sugar, when the goal is indulgence and nostalgia, and alternative sweetener when health takes priority. With the latter, the search is still on, but it’s getting closer. The problem is that for a consumer that feels sugar has been foisted on an unaware public for years, gaining trust with an alternative sweetener isn’t going to be easy. Consumers need it to tick a lot of boxes to be considered: natural, environmentally friendly, zero-aftertaste, equal sweetness and measurability to sugar, etc. That’s why Reb M is interesting; it appears to do all these things. The MotivBase report shows that, while interest is currently low, its expected to skyrocket in the next 1-2 years by ~75%.
So, don’t count sugar out just yet, but get ready for a sea change in more natural alternatives.
(Thanks to MotivBase for allowing for the distribution their report here. I’d highly recommend contacting Jason at MotivBase and scheduling a walk-through of the report if you are interested or would like to understand this data in terms of your brand)
Novel is Overrated
Restaurant entrepreneur and food influencer Michael Chernow is launching a new brand called Kreatures of Habit and a new product line called PrOATagonist Oatmeal. Created to be “an optimized approach to everyone’s favorite instant oatmeal,” the individual sachets each contain 30 grams of protein along with a mix of gluten-free rolled oats, pea protein, roasted salted pumpkin seeds, maple sugar, brown flax seeds, chia seed powder, Himalayan pink salt, amylase blend, stevia, bacillus subtilis probiotics and 7,000 IU’s of vitamin D3. Each pack is ready in less than 3 minutes and is available in vanilla, blueberry-banana and chocolate.
After a limited launch early in the pandemic, celebrity chef Ming Tsai has finally launched his new line of MingsBings into nationwide retail. Bings, for those of you not lucky enough to have enjoyed a hot, delicious jianbing from an early morning street vendor, are a family of crepe-like traditional Chinese breads wrapped around a filling. MingsBings are an all plant-based version of this classic snack (the brand’s tagline, ‘Eat more super’). Flavors include original veggie-filled, a Mexican-flavored Fiesta Bing, a Cauliflower Buffalo, as well as a Cheeseburger Bing and a Sausage and Pepper Bing.
So What? In 2015, Israeli historian and professor Yuval Noah Harari wrote a book called Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind. It was an instant bestseller, topping out at 12 million copies sold in that year alone. Readers love it, with a 4.5 star average out ~50K reviews. However, in academic circles Hariri is almost reviled. “The Crushing Banality of Yuval Noah Harari,” one critic titles his piece. Writing in the Literary Review, Dominic Sandbrook said, “This book’s natural habitat is the airport bookshop, its natural reader the ambitious businessman who has a four-hour flight ahead of him but has forgotten his charger. [This book] strikes me as almost completely worthless.”
What’s Harari’s crime? For most of his scholarly critics, it boils down to the fact that he’s done no new research. Sapiens is just a creative rehashing of stories told a thousand times before. Where’s the new findings or the brilliant twists of more respected authors they say? In fact, if you look throughout the literary world, this is the same criticism leveled at authors like Malcolm Gladwell or Bill Bryson. They aren’t real authors, critics lament when they sell millions of copies, because their material isn’t novel, its just cleverly repackaged.
Of course, these same critics exist outside of the book world; I’ve run into them in CPG. They are the ones that sit on the sidelines and nix every idea as ‘been there, done that, bound to fail.’ They believe that only novelty wins. However, I beg to differ. In my experience, the package and the story can revitalize the stalest of concepts.
Fortified, high-protein oatmeal, RX is doing it. Meat and vegetable snack pastries, its been done by everyone from Lean Pockets to Amy’s. So why would you launch PrOATagonist Oatmeal and MingsBings? Because unlike what your critics tell you, a profitable idea doesn’t need to new, it just needs to bring an idea to life in a compelling way.
Don’t always listen to the critics.
Authoritative Food Revolution?
New founded, LA-based Sunnie has launched a line of snacks, lunches and bundles for kids. The brand differentiates itself from similar products (think Lunchables) with a focus on cleaner, simpler ingredients (plant-forward, nut free, no refined sugar, etc.) and a dedication to kid enrichment. The DIY snacks and bundles were specifically designed to engage kids senses and build on children being ‘independent eaters.’ Varieties of lunches include Taco Kit and Pizza Packs, Snacks include Granola Bites and Hummus Dippers.
Canadian greenhouse produce grower and distributer Pure Flavor has launched a new line of packaged miniature (aka nano) cucumbers called Uno Bites. Designed for one bite enjoyment, the company is marketing the tiny cucumbers as perfect for children’s little fingers.
Happy Family Organics, a majority Danone-owned company, has launched Happy Baby Mixes. The company says that the mixes contain ingredients “thoughtfully chosen for baby, with 0g added sugar, 100% whole grains, and iron to help support brain development.” Consumers simply add water and a veggie or fruit puree and the mix is ready in under 5 minutes. Currently, the mixes are available in two varieties: Pancake & Waffle Mix and Apple Carrot & Cinnamon Muffin Mix.
UK-baby formula producer Kendamil has launched a limited release ‘baby milk ice cream’ made with their formula. The ice cream, made for adults, was produced in response to consumer research the company did wherein parents were found to have a perception that baby formula has a ‘fishy,’ ‘bitter,’ or ‘medicinal’ flavor. A company survey found that 1/3 of parents had never tasted their baby’s formula to test these beliefs. The ice cream gives parents a way to sample their child’s formula without taking the bottle.
So What? There are a lot of trends in the parenting world, but one that appears to be consistent lately is the authoritative parenting style. Popularized in a 2013 book, and praised on popular parenting websites as the ‘it trend,’ authoritative is not the ‘carrot’ approach of permissive styles or the ‘stick’ approach of strict authoritarian styles. Instead, the authoritative style values:
· Nurturing kid independence
· Providing measured rewards for significant actions
· Not over sacrificing for children—teaching kids that parents have needs too
· Gaining empathy for children’s experiences and building learning around their unique needs
As you can see, the authoritative style isn’t child-centric or parent-centric, but a hybrid of the two. What I find interesting is how the growing popularity of this style will affect consumer packaged goods. I believe the products highlighted above already contain echoes of this style coming through.
Kid independence is paramount, focused on allowing kids to create and explore. However, not just in a fun-and-games way, but in a directed approach. Kid treats are a compromise, a balance of parental health priorities and child tastes. However, empathy for the child’s experience is probably the most interesting development. While permissive styles allow the kids to call the shots without insight into what’s driving them (and authoritarian styles don’t bother to ask) the authoritative style seeks to understand.
As the infant and toddler food and beverage market continues to grow, it will be interesting how marketing and development will be altered based on the potential shift in parenting styles. If Authoritative Style predominates, will that mean a rehauling of established brand missions to better align with parental beliefs?
Brands I’m Watching
To celebrate national waffle day (August 24th), Kellogg joined together two of their brands for a limited time offering. The company debuted an Eggo and Incogmeato Chik'n and Waffle combo pack for a US-based sweepstakes.
Starting September 1st, Panera is introducing a new beverage to their lineup based on one of their most popular pastries. The new Cinnamon Crunch Latte features espresso, foamed milk, and cinnamon syrup, topped with whipped cream and the crunch topping from the chain’s fan-favorite Cinnamon Crunch Bagel (the company claims they sell 5,000 Cinnamon Crunch Bagels every hour every day).
So What? One of the powers of a ‘house of brands’ is leveraging the enterprise portfolio to lift a new brand using an existing brand’s cred. While you’d think that this would be standard operating procedure, its surprisingly rare. Sometimes it comes down to P&L allocation (i.e., if that Eggo+ Incogmeato product went into production, which division would get the profit?) but more often then not, it comes down to divisional silos. While there are benefits for each brand to be run independently, you often sacrifice powerful synergies. How to get over this? I’ve seen two approaches work well—the hard sell and the soft sell. The soft sell is to include more cross brand representation in ideations and planning sessions. The hard sell is through metrics, setting in a place a particular number of collaborations per year as a definition of success. Of course, both are only possible when senior leaders throw their full support in.
Chobani last week announced that they were ‘innovating away from plastic’ with the introduction of a new paper-based cup. The move is currently only with the brand’s oat-based yogurts, but the company promises not to stop there. Technically, Chobani's paper cup is 80% paperboard, made from responsibly sourced and renewable material, but the cup has a thin plastic lining to maintain the quality of our product. So What? The eyes of many brands will be carefully monitoring this Chobani launch. Will the switch to paper sway more eco-friendly shoppers to their side, solidify the brand’s loyalists, or just stop attrition in shopper ranks? Many companies are considering, or have already pledged, a move away from plastic, but have yet to make the leap. Personally, I’m holding my opinion on this move until I literally hold the product. A large, unspoken component of food satisfaction is in the interaction of the consumer and the package, its heft, its roughness. Packaging tells a tactile and visual story about a product before you ever taste it. Will this paper cup tell the story that Chobani wants to say?