FoodStuff by Kevin Ryan
Will Colorwashing be the new Greenwashing? Plus, Snack Brands are Missing One Key Ingredient
Here is what’s in today’s edition (and the last edition, in case you missed it):
Benefit Pivots: Is your brand stuck on yesterday’s benefit?
Colorwashing: So you are removing artificial color? This could backfire
Snacks Need More: For snack brands to grow, they need to be more like meals
Speed-Style: Convenience in baking is shifting from effort to identity
Signals from the Shelf: Launches that represent signs of things to come
Gut Reaction: My hot takes on new offerings
Tidbits: The latest in food industry news, from the profound to the funny
Products Shown: Brightland Paint & Pour Gift Set; O Olive Oil & Vinegar squeeze bottle; Ruly Energy Gummies; Albert Heijn hybrid milks; Four Sigmatic + Honey Mama’s Focus Fudge Chocolate Truffle Bar; GOODLES single-serve mac & cheese microwavable cups; All In Food (formerly This Bar Saves Lives) Starbucks launch; Pretzelized Mediterranean Herb Pretzel Pita Chips; MOSH plant-protein bars.
Has Your Brand Missed the Benefit Pivot?
Gather round everyone as I tell you what it was like to shop for a computer in 1995. Back then, you’d walk into a Best Buy with a ‘spec sheet’ you’d cribbed out of PC Magazine telling you what to look for in megahertz, RAM, hard drive space, and ports. You didn’t understand the numbers, but you knew that choosing the wrong ones made the difference between a fast machine and a very expensive way to play Minesweeper.
But then something happened. By the early 2000s, even the cheapest computers got fast enough and consistent enough for most people that no one really cared (or even looked) at numbers anymore. The benefit landscape had pivoted. Consumers had reached a saturation point with these functional benefits. Instead, consumer attention shifted and they started choosing computers based on how light they were, how they looked on a desk, or whether they came in neon green. The benefits that had originally built the category were no longer the benefits that were moving it forward.
That same kind of shift is happening across food and beverage right now.
For years, brands competed on measurable benefits: grams of protein, fiber content, sugar grams, whole grain counts, or antioxidant claims. More was more. But now, much of the aisle has caught up. The average shopper no longer needs to squint at labels to find a product with “enough” protein or “less” sugar; they’re everywhere. Once key benefits in a category hit ubiquity, they stop driving decisions. A bar with 12g of protein isn’t special when every other bar has 10g. Similarly, once an olive oil tells you it’s cold-pressed and single-sourced, most people just choose by taste. How much more virgin can an oil get?
So, consumers shift away from the metrics that so long defined the category. Toward how it feels to eat it. Toward the experience of health…or freshness…or appearance for them.
In other words, consumers move from claims to context. Now that the product does enough to do the default job of the category, consumers go looking for benefits that fit their context and their lives.
What does a benefit pivot look like in practice? It means reframing your product around the next benefit that consumers actually care about. Not just features, but new priorities. That could mean:
Repositioning around emotional outcomes. Not “high protein,” but “keeps you satisfied longer” or “makes healthy feel indulgent.”
Shifting from solving problems to delivering identity. From “low sugar” to “the snack that fits your 3PM recharge ritual.”
Leading with experience over efficiency. From “added fiber” to “feels freshly made, every time.”
Elevating under-leveraged strengths. Maybe it’s flavor variety, brand tone, sourcing transparency, or cultural relevance (benefits that haven’t yet peaked!).
This shift doesn’t mean functional benefits are dead. In some categories, functional still hasn’t hit its ceiling for consumers. However, just like with computers, once a benefit hits saturation, it stops selling. It still matters, but it no longer earns attention on its own.
The strategic risk is assuming you can keep leading with the same benefits that got you to this point. That’s how brands get stuck. They over-invest in delivering “more” of something consumers already have enough of.
What should brands do instead?
Spot the saturation: Keep a finger on the pulse of the category and the consumer and know when your foundational benefits have peaked in value.
Lead the pivot: Better yet, don’t wait for the category to change, be the one to change it. Have enough consumer insight to know when needs have changed and be the first to talk about and offer them.
Identify new cues: Focus on the emerging benefits that consumers feel rather than measure (ease, satisfaction, identity, pleasure)
Build the bridge: Connect the old and new benefits so you don’t lose your base but reposition for growth.
Categories that last are the ones that learn to pivot, away from what worked in the past, and toward what will matter next.
Will Colorwashing be the New Greenwashing?
Last week, General Mills , Kraft-Heinz, Conagra, J.M Smucker and Nestle all announced plans to remove artificial colors from their U.S. products by 2026-28 (depending on company and category). Saying this is going to be a huge task is an understatement. While I guarantee that each of these companies have had on-going projects on this topic active for years, pulling the trigger is something else entirely. Hundreds of SKUs will need reformulating and tested (natural colorants are notoriously unstable). Plus shelf appeal, consumer expectations, and supply chain performance will all need to be assessed. It’s going to be a slog.
But here’s the irony: despite the effort and expense, this move might not earn praise for the manufacturers. In fact, it very well might trigger the opposite: a perception that their hands were forced and it’s all simply slick marketing (what I’m calling colorwashing, like greenwashing).
Data shows that while many Americans support banning artificial colors in theory, most don’t actively track them in the foods they buy. That disconnect creates risk: by drawing attention to something consumers weren’t scrutinizing, brands may end up spotlighting inconsistencies in their own products.
Colorwashing could be the new greenwashing
In 2003, the California Coastal Records Project (a non-profit that aims to document the erosion of the state’s coastline with aerial photos) was sued by Barbara Streisand for not removing photos of her coastal Malibu home from their website. Prior to her lawsuit, images of her home had only been downloaded 6 times from the site (twice by her attorneys). However, due to the attention her lawsuit generated, the website views jumped to 420,000! This phenomenon is now called the Streisand Effect and it is one that CPG companies need to keep in mind in the coming months.
When all is said and done, brands that spend so much time and money removing artificial colors will be tempted (maybe even told by management) to advertise their efforts. There needs to be a ROI on this massive investment! However, I’d suggest caution. When a brand calls attention to a single reformulation as proof of a ‘cleaner’ label, it risks implying that everything else is equally clean, even when it isn’t. For skeptical consumers and watchdog media, that creates a tantalizing contradiction to investigate.
We’ve seen this play out before. In 2014, Subway publicly removed azodicarbonamide (a dough conditioner that happens to also be used to make yoga mats) from its bread. The problem? Most customers didn’t even know it was there until the company highlighted it. Renovation became revelation. Rather than feeling reassured, consumers and critics began scrutinizing everything else about Subway’s offerings, examining their breads that didn’t even have the ingredient, "Maybe there are some people who think Subway is healthy now, that's my concern," said one critic at the time.
What Food Brands Should Do Instead
I’d only suggest brands make a big deal out of color reformulation if they are using it as step #1 in a larger ingredient clean-up operation. Even then, there is the risk of your messaging being viewed as colorwashing. To avoid it, I’d suggest the following:
1. Details, Not Declarations
Be specific. What dyes are being removed, what are they being replaced with, and when? Give quarterly updates, not one-off headlines.
2. Don’t Trade One Problem for Another
Natural colorants can be less stable, more expensive, and require more processing. Be transparent about tradeoffs and avoid reformulating with ingredients that introduce new concerns.
3. Connect Dye Removal to Broader Reform
As I mentioned, make this part of a comprehensive plan. If artificial dyes are gone, what else is being cleaned up? What’s next on the list? What are you planning? Connect the dots and show intended action.
4. Turn Critics Into Collaborators
The wellness press isn’t just niche media, it’s also a pulse check on cultural sentiment. Invite critics into the process. Share challenges and open up. Trust me, if you do this behind locked doors the rumors will be far worse than the reality.
5. Prepare for Scrutiny
Even with all the above, if you are a brand that isn’t know for being ‘clean’ label, your announcement will be met (at best) with cautious scrutiny and (at worse) open mockery. Prepare for the worse.
Products Listed: Trader Joes Patio Chips; Lay’s summer re-launches; Cheez-It and Town House stamped crackers; Magnum ASRM experience campaign; new flavors (Everything Bagel And Chili Cheese Fries); Rollover hotdog Superman tie-in
Snack Brands Are Missing One Critical Ingredient
We’re living in the golden age of snacking. Everywhere you look, there's a new bar, bite, cluster, crisp, or pop that promises convenience, flavor, and (likely) a lot of protein. Meals, those once-reliable markers of time and emotion, are dissolving into a stream of grab-and-go moments. Breakfast becomes a yogurt pouch in the car, lunch is a handful of trail mix during a Zoom call, and dinner has us often alone together in front of the TV.
However, as we lose meals, we are losing the rituals associated with them.
By rituals, I'm not talking about just the formal use of salad forks, or the tradition associated with cutting the Thanksgiving turkey. I'm talking about the everyday ceremonies that punctuate our lives: the quiet morning coffee ritual that eases us into the day, the family dinner that draws us together after scattered hours, the Sunday brunch that allows for conversations with friends. These small acts of intentionality help us transition from work to rest, from solitude to connection. They offer us pockets of control in busy days and anchor us to something larger than our individual hunger. When we replace these moments with hurried snacking, we lose more than nutrition, we lose the rhythm that makes us feel grounded, even if we can't quite name what's missing.
Snacks, in their current form, aren't cutting it. While snacks can have their own associated rituals, most snack innovation today is more focused on bolder flavors and added functional ingredients than emotional levers.
There have been some attempts though. For example, chips flavored to taste like full meals or meal memories (like the Patio Chips from Trader Joes) or crackers inspired by condiments or nostalgic moments (Goldfish Awesome Sauce or Townhouse Star Spangled). These aren’t just novelty flavors. They're trying (consciously or not) to bring the emotional weight of their association, to evoke the sensory memory of sitting around a table or exploring cultural touchpoints, even if you’re actually sitting at your desk.
This isn't just a cultural curiosity, it's a massive market opening. The global snack food market is worth over $400 billion and growing, but most brands are still competing on the same tired battlegrounds: better-for-you ingredients, bolder flavors, or cheaper prices. Meanwhile, consumers are paying premium prices for experiences everywhere else, from $20 Erewhon drinks to $200 yoga classes, because they're hungry for moments that feel intentional. The brands that recognize snacking as an emotional need, not just a nutritional one, will capture disproportionate value. They'll build the kind of loyalty that comes not from habit, but from meaning. And they'll do it in a space where most competitors are still focused on protein content and ingredient lists.
The brands that get there first will have a significant head start. And the possibilities are vast. For example, why stop at flavors that imitate meals? What about snacks that play on rituals from other moments entirely? Imagine a snack that captures the ritual of the after-work martini, not just the taste, but the moment of transition. Maybe it's a two-part experience where you sprinkle olive dust over snack crackers that have gin botanicals and a vermouth tang, then shake? Engineering a brief pause and intentional action mimics the ritual of preparation that signals the end of the workday.
What Snack Brands Can Do:
Design for moments, not just flavors. Consider when and where the snack will be eaten, then build packaging and messaging that frames that moment with intention.
Borrow cues from other rituals. Think tasting flights, tea service, mezze platters, or tiffin boxes. What elements can be translated into a snack context? Not just flavors!
Create sequences or progressions. A snack that evolves over bites (like a mini tasting menu) adds depth and keeps the experience interesting.
Build in sensory triggers. Scent, sound (crunch), and even texture shifts can act as mini-rituals in themselves.
Offer a repeatable gesture. Something simple, like peeling back a wax seal or pouring contents into a specific tray, can build a ritual loop over time.
Invent new rituals in the act of eating. Think dipping a chip into a liquid and then into a powdered seasoning for a two-stage flavor hit. Or imagine a bag of components meant to be combined, lock-and-key shapes that snap together for a custom bite. Ritual doesn’t have to be solemn, but it should be satisfying.
If brands want their snacks to win the future, they have to do more than fill our stomachs. They have to fill the vacuum our meal rituals left behind.
Signals from the Shelf
Products: Aeon Zero Cocoa Snack; Fazer Raspberry Dream; bettergoods custard-filled waffles; M&S strawberry & cream sandwich
GUT REACTION
Products: Benton’s Pork Dryer Sheets; Bee Up fruit snacks; NatureMade + HelloFresh;King Krumb cookies; Prime Bar;
TIDBITS
Food Industry
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In-N-Out Burger has the highest employee satisfaction scores for the 10th straight year
Bojangles Is Exploring a Sale While the Fried-Chicken Market Is Hot
Yelp released their State of the Restaurant Industry Report
Circana announces their 2025 Pacesetters Report
Wait, is Walmart cool now?
Starbucks shakes up pricing for extra syrups, sauces under new CEO
Logan Paul's Prime sales plummet in a key market as the once-popular drink has growing pains
Walmart tests dark stores
Is the $36 billion Mars-Kellanova merger at risk of collapsing?
Rite Aid’s Thrifty ice cream brand gets sold to a business entity linked to Monster Energy executives
Unilever weighs up sale of loss-making snacking brand Graze
Spice giant McCormick warns tariffs could cost them $90M a year
Infomercial exec Yasir Abdul emerges as prospective buyer for Meati
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What is meal sequencing? Health experts explain whether the rising diet trend works.
The Healthiest Time to Eat Dinner, According to Experts
A New Meatpacking Plant’s Novel Pitch to Attract American Workers
The anti-stress drink popular on TikTok: the Cortisol Cocktail
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Fun & Odd
Joey Chestnut heading back to Nathan's hot dog contest, explains deal
The passionate consumers that want General Mills to bring back Pizza Spins
Wacky Cake, the Depression era recipe that is gaining popularity again
Mexico’s Wild Reinvention of Sushi Is Spicy, Cheesy, and Totally Delicious
Ozzy Osbourne Sells His DNA on Liquid Death Cans for the Low Price of $450: 'Clone Me, You Bastards'
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Kellogg sues Ohio food truck, seeks all profits
