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
Processing & packaging
Iran-US peace deal: What it means for food
The deal includes the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz
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
Nestlé doubles down on growth in bold strategy shift
Nestlé resets growth strategy with shift away from price hikes and back towards volumes, brands and execution
Nestlé Waters crisis deepens as new footage exposes scale of alleged plastic dumping
Nestlé Waters under mounting pressure over alleged plastic dumping and water contamination
Nestlé and Danone: Baby food pouches under fire as microplastics found
Microplastics detected in Nestlé and Danone baby food pouches spark safety concerns
The world’s oldest food and drink brands and how they’ve survived
Is there a recipe for long-term food and drink brand success? Let’s explore…
Why Haribo’s one-trick gummy focus is beating the world
Haribo is showing how a focus on core is driving global scale
Cracking TikTok: What FMCGs need to do to win
There’s real opportunity for FMCGs to sell big on TikTok - with the right tips and tricks on-hand
Iran war pushes global food markets toward crisis mode
The escalating Middle East conflict is pushing food inflation, energy prices and consumer confidence to a breaking point
Gut-friendly, prebiotic or high fibre? Navigating the terminology
Gut health soda Poppi is ‘prebiotic’ in the US, but ‘high fibre’ in the UK. What is going on?
Ozempic’s chocolate contradiction: Indulgence isn’t disappearing, it’s trading up
As appetite-suppressing drugs take hold, the real shift in snacking may not be how much people eat but how deliberately they choose to indulge
Why Mars is powering up M&M’s as it reshapes its global growth strategy
As Mars expands through mega‑deals, sustainability pushes and portfolio diversification, the company is placing a bigger strategic bet on M&M’s to anchor growth and relevance in a changing global snacking landscape
Why vertical farming failed - notes from a survivor
Four reasons why after more than $6bn investment in indoor farming, there’s just one man left standing
Mondelēz charts next growth wave across North America, Europe and emerging markets
The company is tailoring its strategy by region, courting value‑seeking US shoppers, fixing European chocolate margins and using Oreo‑led biscuits and cakes to unlock runway across China, India, Brazil and Mexico
Why GLP-1s have turned fiber-maxxing into a snacking strategy
As GLP-1 drugs suppress hunger and compress eating occasions, fiber is emerging as a way to make smaller snacks feel functional, tolerable and worth the calories
What does Hain Celestial’s sale of its North American snack business signal for the category?
After years of acquisitions and declining sales, the health-focused food company is narrowing its portfolio and using the proceeds to shore up its balance sheet
Clean label vs. functional foods: Can the two trends coexist?
Functional foods are often ultra-processed – but can they be clean label?
Finally, a big-name FMCG engages openly on ultra-processed foods
Although admitting it’s a risk, Oatly is addressing the UPF issue head-on
World’s biggest snack companies: who’s really got the crunch in 2026
In a near-$700bn global market, a handful of companies now decide what scales, what sticks and what survives, and in 2026, the power gap is only widening
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
Crack it, snack it, recycle it: Packaging that’ll rule 2026
Snack packs are finally starting to look like they belong in 2026 instead of 2006, and the pressure to keep evolving isn’t letting up
Should ultra-processed foods be defined by what they’re not?
Foods that do not meet the definition of ‘non-ultra-processed’ are UPFs by default
How Mars is developing new ingredients with AI
AI can do a lot more than offer guidance and write emails. It can help food companies find brand-new ingredients for product formulation
Clean-label: How ingredients lists can be made shorter
Companies are aiming to streamline their ingredients lists
UPFs surge unevenly across global markets - where’s next?
Ultra-processed diets aren’t equally dominant worldwide - but in some countries, they’re rising fast
Up the food chain
EFSA’s new boss: Why faster risk assessments are my guiding light
The newly appointed Dr Nikolaus Kriz has ambitions to optimise European food safety
Patents plummet in alt proteins: Has innovation ground to a halt?
Alternative proteins have lost a lot of popularity in recent years, and this is reflected in IP activity
General Mills, WK Kellogg & Ferrero spark a fresh fight for the breakfast bowl
Once the poster child for easy mornings, breakfast cereal has been losing shelf swagger. Now a new wave of innovation, investment and protein-packed reinvention is pushing the category back into the spotlight
SVZ sees health craze as opportunity, not threat
The ingredients company suggests that its focus on fruit and veg puts it in a prime position to benefit from consumer obsessions with health
Is mycoprotein too weird to win over consumers?
Despite its sustainability and health credentials, mycoprotein is losing ground. Is this an image problem - or something else entirely?
Healthy beverages
What’s the buzz around instant coffee?
Gen Z and Millennials are embracing the low-cost counterpart to ground and whole bean
Nestlé, Mondelēz, Hershey - How chocolate giants are coping with price hikes
The largest players in food are making bold decisions in an effort to boost growth