Ingredients

PepsiCo, Danone & Nestlé: how AI is powering F&B growth

AI is transforming how F&B giants cut costs, boost efficiency and innovate faster — turning data into a powerful competitive edge

Heatwave winners and losers: what’s selling when temperatures rise?

Clear food and beverage trends emerge during a heatwave

Tate & Lyle agrees £2.7bn takeover by Ingredion

The deal between the two ingredients companies creates a global powerhouse

How sustainability is becoming ice cream’s next growth ingredient

Premium indulgence and snacking are driving momentum at ice cream major Froneri – and sustainability is underpinning both trends

Coca-Cola navigates K-shaped economy with AI

President and CFO John Murphy says the company is moving beyond a pre-COVID volume mindset to stay relevant with both premium and value shoppers

Opinion

How the Arla–DMK merger will strengthen Europe’s whey power

With Arla and DMK merged, Europe’s whey processing power will be even more formidable

Soup-To-Nuts Podcast

Inside the race to create the next viral flavor in snacking

Executives from Just Born, Hawaii Host, SNAX-Sational Brands and Xaca Cantina share how they use heat, global flavors, strategic collaborations and accessible formats to turn consumer curiosity into repeat purchases

IFF sells bulk of food ingredients business to refocus on health and wellness

The global ingredient supplier’s deal reflects a broader trend of how companies are streamlining their businesses to meet shifting health and wellness preferences

Confectionery trends: Balancing better-for-you trends and indulgence

Cargill joins alternative chocolate race with Barry Callebaut and Nestlé amid cocoa volatility

By upcycling grape seeds, Cargill’s new NextCoa offers CPG brands a vegan, allergen-free option as major manufacturers hedge against soaring cocoa costs

The F&B jobs AI is targeting, but is it really that dire?

AI is accelerating reformulation, automation and data-led decision making at a pace that is already reshaping roles across the food and drink workforce

Inside the science of making healthier food consumers will actually buy with ADM

ADM argues food makers can no longer tackle sugar, sodium or clean label goals one at a time without risking taste, texture and cost

Processed foods aren’t going away, but they are evolving

In the gap between consumers’ intention and reality, is there room for processed food in a healthy diet?

Added fibre: Why fortification is harder than it looks

Adding fibre to foods and beverages could help close the ‘fibre gap’, but reformulation challenges threaten taste and texture

FN+

What if chocolate’s flavour was never really about cocoa?

As cocoa markets spiral through another year of chaos, cocoa-free alternatives are shifting from novelty to necessity

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Will cocoa alts ever be sexy? Hershey backlash opens the debate

As cocoa markets fluctuate, Hershey’s controversy shows that while alt-chocolate is advancing fast, taste and transparency remain make-or-break for consumers

AgNavigator: same agtech backbone, bigger industry picture

William Reed, publisher of FoodNavigator, has unveiled a new title for its market-leading agtech and agrifood title

FBIF 2026

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Not Just a Flavour Strategy: How KitKat Embedded Itself in Japanese Culture

From ‘Japanisation’ to deep cultural alignment, Nestlé KitKat is one of the few foreign brands to have thoroughly cracked Japan’s competitive chocolate market

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Oral GLP-1 breakthrough: What it means for impulse-driven food categories

Food and beverage brands face consumers staying on appetite-suppressing drugs for longer

Functional boom reshapes health as supplements hold firm

As food, drink and supplements converge, brands that prove real benefits and earn trust will win in a fast-expanding, scrutiny-heavy health market

Mars powers production growth with $253.6m smart factory investment

Mars bets on smart manufacturing, using £190m UK factory upgrade to boost output and strengthen grip on global confectionery and snacking market

Sustainable sourcing: From upcycling to carbon neutral to sustainable packaging

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Non-GMO Project: Ultra-processed foods are harming the planet, not just our health

GMOs and ultra-processed foods are “nested” in the same industrial food chain, warns the Non-GMO Project’s Hans Eisenbeis, who argues that monocrop agriculture and food waste make UPFs an environmental liability

Letter from the editor

Sustainability at a crossroads

From upcycling to carbon-neutral claims, the food industry weighs real progress against rising costs, scrutiny and skepticism

Sales stall, shares fall: What’s next for Barry Callebaut?

Barry Callebaut’s size has long been its strength. But with volumes down and shares under pressure, cracks are starting to show

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Winners and losers of the UPF backlash

Who is benefitting from consumer scepticism around UPFs - and who isn’t?

FIC 2026

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Flashy and sweet: Brands tap health trends in artificial sweetener push

Leveraging weight loss, gut and dental health trends, Chinese firms are increasingly creative in reframing artificial sweeteners as a health aligned choice

FIC 2026

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‘There are no bad additives, only bad humans’: Experts urge fairer view of processed foods

Top Chinese food science leaders have urged consumers and industry to make fairer judgements of processed foods and additives, calling the sector badly misunderstood

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Artificial sweeteners: Why the science war is raging on

New health studies are reigniting a global battle over artificial sweeteners, leaving brands, regulators and consumers divided

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Can brands cut sugar without killing taste, texture or trust?

As sugar shifts from ingredient to liability, food and drink manufacturers are rebuilding sweetness from the ground up using rare sugars, fibres and fermentation-driven innovation

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Food and mental health in China: 2026 trends that brands should watch

China’s growing focus on mental wellness is shaping food trends, driving demand for fresh foods, dairy and lower-sugar options that balance health and indulgence

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Gut health trend enters new era

The gut health trend is entering its next phase – one shaped by sharper science, smarter consumers and big opportunities

Olipop ramps up focus on flavour innovation as functional beverages boom

Flavour innovation is top-of-mind for the gut health superstar as US consumers value taste above all

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The packaging crisis about to hit food and beverage

Attacks on the world’s busiest oil shipping channel are set to drive unavoidable spikes in plastic packaging prices

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Why the sleep crisis is food and drink’s next big global battleground

Sleep deprivation is becoming big business as consumers obsess over how much shuteye they’re getting, but how is the market responding?

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Chocolate without trees? The science racing to reinvent cocoa

From cacao cells grown in bioreactors to fermentation-built chocolate flavours, scientists and startups are experimenting with ways to produce cocoa ingredients without growing cacao trees

Diageo’s cocktail focus: A shift to moderation and wellness

Diageo’s World Class Cocktail Festival presents traditional spirits through lighter serves and localisation amid growing health and moderation trends

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Sweeteners under fire as scientists probe neurological risks

New research linking popular sweeteners to cognitive decline has again raised concerns over their safety. What does this mean manufacturers?

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Confectionery sector braced for shortages as Iran conflict escalates

As conflict disrupts key trade routes and energy supplies, the confectionery sector is among the first to feel the strain. How vulnerable are manufacturers, and what can be done to protect the industry?

Vietnam’s coffee crisis threatens to upend global supply chains

Despite consumer coffee prices slipping, Vietnam’s brewing supply‑chain crisis threatens a painful whiplash for manufacturers as climate chaos, shrinking yields and land pressures trigger a new wave of cost volatility

Cocoa whiplash: How a record price spike turned into a demand slump

The market has swung from historic shortage to surplus projections for 2025/26 in under two years

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Iran Conflict: What does this mean for global food sector?

The ongoing tensions in Iran could disrupt supply routes and drive volatility across key food commodities such as rice and meat

Inside the $330bn functional food frenzy fuelled by PepsiCo, Coke & Nestlé

From PepsiCo to Nestlé, global giants are racing to cash in on the booming functional food craze, but with trends shifting fast, the stakes have never been higher

The ‘untapped potential’ of functional chocolate

Functional chocolate is stepping into the spotlight. Discover the ingredients, trends and early innovators reshaping the future of indulgence

Cheap virgin plastic and imports squeeze US PET recyclers

Experts warn low-cost virgin PET and rising imports are hurting US recycling programs and driving prices to record lows

Global Food Tech Awards 2026

Global Food Tech Awards 2026: Americas shortlist reveals industry giants

The Americas are making noise on the global food tech stage in this powerful top 10 line-up of finalists

Boardroom clash behind Barry Callebaut CEO shake‑up

Leadership shake‑up at Barry Callebaut reveals deeper strategic tensions at the world’s biggest chocolate maker

Clean label vs. functional foods: Can the two trends coexist?

Functional foods are often ultra-processed – but can they be clean label?

Kroger, Hy-Vee and UNFI make better-for-you private-label plays in 2026

Store brands nearly triple the dollar sales growth of national brands, as grocers position wellness-focused products to capture health-conscious shoppers

Barry Callebaut appoints ex‑Unilever boss as new CEO

Barry Callebaut shakes up its leadership as Hein Schumacher steps in during a pivotal moment for the world’s largest chocolate maker

Cocoa crunch: How shortages are rewriting chocolate’s future

As climate, disease and regulation strain global cocoa supply, manufacturers are turning to low‑cocoa and cocoa‑free innovations to protect margins and future-proof their portfolios

China taps tourism and e-commerce to boost rural tea and oranges

China promotes tea and navel oranges in its latest round of belt and road initiatives to boost rural economies in days leading up to the festive season