FoodStuff by Kevin Ryan
How the instant ramen craze is changing soup season
Here is a link to my last newsletter, in case you missed it.
Very busy past few weeks here at Malachite, so this issue of FoodStuff is lean. Hopefully more in the weeks ahead!
New Product Quick Hits: Bite-sized insights on the latest products
Gut Reaction: My quick take on the best (and worst) in new launches
Tidbits: The latest in food industry news, from the profound to the funny
NEW PRODUCT QUICK HITS
Gut health has been slow to emerge in Western markets but its finally getting some traction in shot and squeeze formats. The Collective and Activia are launching a yogurt pouch and kefir shot, respectively, in the UK. Whereas Dally is a new pre/probiotic konjac jelly pouch launch in the US.
The central question has been, how do consumers want gut health delivered: silently hidden in everyday foods or as a quasi-medicinal shot or squeeze. The market tends to be trending toward the latter (very similar to where Latin American and Asian markets have already settled). I have a hypothesis that new nutritional benefits and substances (like those associated with gut health) need to be consciously dosed by consumers, whereas known elements (e.g., vitamin C) can be ‘sprinkled on top’ of standard foods. Time will tell.
We are entering another soup season, but this is the first one that is AB (After Buldak). Since the Western craze for ramen, and especially spicy instant ramen like Buldak, has rolled through TikTok, I think we are now just starting to see the result on the soup category. A-Sha has a partnership with Hot Ones Challenge to make a spicy soup. Campbell’s is extending their Spicy line with Hot Chicken, and even Walmart is in the mix with a new Hatch Chile Corn Chowder (not particularly spicy but boldly chile-forward for a Walmart own-label). What brands have heard is that younger generations are cool with soup, it just has to be spicy and boldly flavored.
However, a more interesting lesson, that I’m not sure big brands have learned yet, is that the popularity of instant ramen might be reinvigorating the ‘instant’ soup category. Previously written off as a value-based wasteland, I’ve seen a number of startups recently making a play for ‘premium instant.’ For example, Nooish is a new instant matzo ball soup that is just launching online. At $10 per bowl, this is far from the dried noodle bricks sold to broke college kids. Could we be seeing the start of a premium dried soup trend in mainstream grocery?
Have you been paying attention to the rise of the fast-casual Mediterranean-inspired restaurant chain Cava? It is on fire! It IPOed last year, with stock starting at $22/share, and is now going for $128/share! In fact, Cava has the highest P/E ratio in this sector. While that’s great for investors, it also speaks to changing consumer tastes. I’m starting to see a lot more Mediterranean and Middle Eastern foods going mainstream, items like Toom garlic dip and Bezi lebneh. Bowls as well, the main format of chains like Cava and Chipotle, are inching into grocery (see Bettr Bowl).
Based on the wide demographic spread of customers at Cava, from Gen Z to Boomer, and the bold tastes and health halo (i.e., Mediterranean = health), we’ll likely see a fast tracking of items like harissa, tahini, and za'atar into Western cuisine. If you are in major cities, this likely isn’t news to you, but to average consumers, this is a step into the unfamilar.
People often don’t know what they are having for dinner until they look in the fridge at night. Products that can only be made one way, can often feel limiting. That’s why I’m liking these new products from Fresh Express and Fry’s. The Fresh Express product is both a traditional value-added salad kit but ALSO a stir-fry kit (with sauce and toppings). Fry’s product is a plant based mince (think vegan ground beef) that can be formed into meatballs, loafs, or simply cooked as-is for inclusion into meals.
Giving consumers options feels like a great way to get into their rotation. By not making them decide at shelf what dinner must be, you let them push that decision closer to the moment of making. This means greater flexibility during busy weeks.
GUT REACTION
TIDBITS
Canada's Couche-Tard makes preliminary takeover bid for Japan's Seven & i (aka 7-11) (and 7-Eleven says, no thanks)
The current vogue for restocking in TikTok videos (and what it says about our cultural anxiety)
Related: Fridgescaping—the latest TikTok trend
Chick-fil-A in talks to start a family-friendly streaming service
Jack Daniels said they are canceling their DEI initiatives (e.g., remove diversity goals, end LGBTQ-friendly rankings, etc.)
Amazon lowers prices on annual grocery subscription plan
In its bid against Amazon Prime, Walmart+ has partnered with Burger King to offer subscribers discounts and four free Whoppers a year.
Why oranges are sold in red net bags
The high price of rent is causing Boomers to bunk up together: the advent of ‘Boommates’
Ever dream of eating a meal in the slammer? Ohio prison serves a 5-course dinner open to the public (actually a great story of teaching inmates new skills)
Australians can now ignore their bosses after hour texts (kind of)
Why parents are serving their kids dinner at 3:45pm
TikTok’s latest dating trend involves supermarkets, shopping carts and pineapples
Dinner sausage sales are growing, analysts predict it’s a sign of a coming recession
Has the popcorn bubble popped? Campbell’s sells Pop Secret
Table for one? Restaurants get serious about solo diners
Pizza Hut becomes the official sponsor of…dominos?!
Why grapefruit messes with so many medications
Giving robots mushroom minds (have these scientists not seen The Last of Us?)
If you ever needed an interactive map with all the Taco Bells prices across the country, here you go
What the skibidi? Do you have enough rizz to take this Gen Alpha slang quiz?
A (controversial) ranking of the top 50 breakfast cereals of all time
The rise of mid-day commuting
If you ever thought, “I want to be a Chipotle napkin for Halloween,” now is your chance
Liberal and Conservative Americans are even split among food brands, according to a YouGov survey
A very opinionated ranking of apple varieties (I’m not sure if I can eat Opals again)
Baking soda is becoming the new ‘it’ ingredient for performance and fitness pros