From Around the Food Industry....

• Snapple, Pepsi and Mountain Dew are all planning on using sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) in their products.

• Dairy drinks promoted with a health benefit account for more than 70% of global launches, with most of innovation occurring in Western Europe (28%) and Asia (24%), followed by Latin America (18%).

• The sixth-largest local and national radio advertising spending category in 2008 was grocery and convenience stores; they decreased their radio advertising by 3% compared with 2007.

• According to new consumer research from Mintel, the number of Americans who say they almost always or regularly buy green products remains unchanged since last year (36%). The number had tripled the previous year from 12% in 2007. Cost emerged as the leading consideration in making purchasing decisions over environmentally-friendly products.

• Sushi lovers rejoice! An extract from the edible mushroom Flammulina velutipes may prolong the shelf-life of tuna meat, while also stabilizing its color according to Japanese researchers.

• The value of French wine and spirit exports declined 0.3% in 2008 after sales fell in the last 3 months. Exports of Champagne and wines from Burgundy fell; table wines and Bordeaux were up. France exported in total $11.7bn of wine last year.

• Food marketers and CPG houses like PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay and Kimberly-Clark are now timing their specials and coupons for the start of the month when consumers have more cash in their pockets.

• Brand managers love to convince their bosses they’re doing something by re-designing the packaging as part of a “brand makeover.” Like firing a losing team’s coach, it’s the lazy solution, and PepsiCo’s Tropicana Pure Premium orange juice brand has admitted as much by announcing it will return to the old packaging and logo of an orange with a straw in it that was replaced in January following complaints from consumers who found the new containers “ugly” and “stupid.”

• Nestlé will expand its Nespresso line of pod coffee in select U.S. cities "in line with the potential of the market," according to a spokesperson. The line grew 30% in 2008, making it the company’s fastest growing brand. The brand is distributed in 50 countries, and while strong in Europe, has not done as well in the U.S., where SaraLee, in partnership with Philips, dominates with its Senseo coffee pod system owning a 44% market share of pod sales.

• General Mills will begin phasing out rBST milk in its popular Yoplait brand due to consumer pressure to drop hormone-laced milk products. Dannon has followed suit and pledged to remove milk from bovine growth hormone-treated cows.

• A new study from the U.K. seems to indicate that peanut butter allergies can be overcome by gradual exposure to peanuts and not total avoidance as has been the practice to date, and food labeling laws in the EU require the notification of any use of the ground nut.

• And in other matters relating to children and food, probiotics have been widely embraced by parents eager to boost their offspring’s immune system, despite the lack of hard evidence showing the benefits. Yogurt manufacturers like Nestlé and Groupe-Danone’s Stonyfield Farm YoBaby line are pushing the connection in products aimed at children. One selling point is the rising number of Caesarian-section births that prevent babies from picking up healthy bacteria from the mother’s birth canal.

• And in a case of blurring the distinction between commerce and entertainment, 2 Campbell Soup executives have appeared as themselves on ABC Daytime’s "All My Children." Denise Morrison, president of the soups, sauces and beverages division, and Lisa Walker, vice president for soup innovation, will cut the ribbon on a new hospital wing donated by the company in a three-show integration story line.

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