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• Whole Foods Market has signed on to the Non-GMO Project, a non-profit collaboration of manufacturers, retailers, processors, distributors, farmers, seed breeders and consumers, promising to employ the Non-GMO’s (genetically modified organism) Product Verification Program for its private label products.
• In the licensing arena, TV’s “Deadliest Catch” fishing boat captains Johnathan and Andy Hillstrand have teamed up with Trinity Design Group to create labels for a line of Bloody Mary mix manufactured and distributed by Lakeland, FL-based Hot Wachula’s Inc.
• Those who think the European Union food regulators need to “get a life” can take some small comfort by new rules which will remove specific marketing standards for the size & shape of most fruits and vegetables. Cabbage, onions, cherries, avocados and zucchini can now be sold without restriction, though specific marketing standards will apply to the 10 most popular fruits and vegetables, including apples, citrus and tomatoes. Funny-looking versions will have to be labeled as “non-standard.”
• General Mills, Inc. has launched a line of gluten-free Betty Crocker dessert mixes almost 1 year after the company entered the gluten-free category with a reformulated Rice Chex cereal. The mixes will retail for $4.49, about $2 more than traditional Betty Crocker mixes. Up to 12% of the U.S. population is looking to eliminate or reduce their gluten intake.
• As McDonald’s goes, so goes America? The U.S. dairy industry will be looking to The Golden Arches’ espresso coffee drinks (which can contain up to 80% milk) for its next boost in sales. Per capita milk consumption rose three years ago for the first time in 20 years due to McDonald’s introducing milk in re-sealable plastic bottles in 2004.
• Researchers at California State Polytechnic University-Pomona found that young children were unable to tell the difference between regular burritos and chocolate-chip cookies and those formulated with a whole grain and soluble fiber boost. This may lead to reformulating foods to include more healthy ingredients as a way of short-circuiting diseases in school kids from disadvantaged backgrounds.
• The website Serious Eats claims at least 10 gourmet street vendors in New York City are using Twitter to alert patrons of their arrival at a specific location or their routes for the day. The owner of Rickshaw Dumpling Bar, for example, begins sending out tweets to nearly 2,000 followers mornings alerting them where the truck will be parked that day.
• The “Yuck” Factor— you know you’ve lived too long or the emperor really DOES have some cool new clothes when trendy restaurants start incorporating mass market cereals and breakfast foods in dinner offerings: NYC’s The Oak Bar has Rice Krispies in foie gras to temp jaded palates, and Eleven Madison Park has oatmeal in a lobster casserole.
• Jamba Juice is selling off up to 150 of its company stores outside California to franchisees. The new owners are pledging to expand the number of outlets.
• Beekeepers are reporting up to 90% losses of their colonies from Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), a mystery condition that threatens to harm the food chain due to the importance of bees in pollinating crops. No cause has been discovered as yet, though starvation, viruses, mites, pesticide exposure and climate change have all been advanced. Now the food industry is making plans to implement honey substitutes. Bell Flavors & Fragrances is looking at both natural and artificial honey flavors that would reduce the amount of honey in recipes. In addition, Häagen-Dazs Ice Cream has launched the “Häagen-Dazs loves Honey Bees” campaign to raise money for research. While the company does not use honey extensively as an ingredient, it claims more than 40% of its flavors are dependent on honey bee pollination. Finally, the USDA (US Department of Agriculture) is providing $4MM to the University of Georgia to study the causes of CCD.
This blog includes excerpts from a weekly round-up of food industry & food licensing news provided free to Broad Street Licensing Group's clients, and as a paid subscription service (6 months $695; 1 year $1,125).
Too busy to keep up with the news wires & publications about the food business? If you or your company would like to subscribe to our news service, call Danielle Foley at Broad Street Licensing Group (tel. 973-655-0598) and ask for your free sample or click on our website.
• In the licensing arena, TV’s “Deadliest Catch” fishing boat captains Johnathan and Andy Hillstrand have teamed up with Trinity Design Group to create labels for a line of Bloody Mary mix manufactured and distributed by Lakeland, FL-based Hot Wachula’s Inc.
• Those who think the European Union food regulators need to “get a life” can take some small comfort by new rules which will remove specific marketing standards for the size & shape of most fruits and vegetables. Cabbage, onions, cherries, avocados and zucchini can now be sold without restriction, though specific marketing standards will apply to the 10 most popular fruits and vegetables, including apples, citrus and tomatoes. Funny-looking versions will have to be labeled as “non-standard.”
• General Mills, Inc. has launched a line of gluten-free Betty Crocker dessert mixes almost 1 year after the company entered the gluten-free category with a reformulated Rice Chex cereal. The mixes will retail for $4.49, about $2 more than traditional Betty Crocker mixes. Up to 12% of the U.S. population is looking to eliminate or reduce their gluten intake.
• As McDonald’s goes, so goes America? The U.S. dairy industry will be looking to The Golden Arches’ espresso coffee drinks (which can contain up to 80% milk) for its next boost in sales. Per capita milk consumption rose three years ago for the first time in 20 years due to McDonald’s introducing milk in re-sealable plastic bottles in 2004.
• Researchers at California State Polytechnic University-Pomona found that young children were unable to tell the difference between regular burritos and chocolate-chip cookies and those formulated with a whole grain and soluble fiber boost. This may lead to reformulating foods to include more healthy ingredients as a way of short-circuiting diseases in school kids from disadvantaged backgrounds.
• The website Serious Eats claims at least 10 gourmet street vendors in New York City are using Twitter to alert patrons of their arrival at a specific location or their routes for the day. The owner of Rickshaw Dumpling Bar, for example, begins sending out tweets to nearly 2,000 followers mornings alerting them where the truck will be parked that day.
• The “Yuck” Factor— you know you’ve lived too long or the emperor really DOES have some cool new clothes when trendy restaurants start incorporating mass market cereals and breakfast foods in dinner offerings: NYC’s The Oak Bar has Rice Krispies in foie gras to temp jaded palates, and Eleven Madison Park has oatmeal in a lobster casserole.
• Jamba Juice is selling off up to 150 of its company stores outside California to franchisees. The new owners are pledging to expand the number of outlets.
• Beekeepers are reporting up to 90% losses of their colonies from Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), a mystery condition that threatens to harm the food chain due to the importance of bees in pollinating crops. No cause has been discovered as yet, though starvation, viruses, mites, pesticide exposure and climate change have all been advanced. Now the food industry is making plans to implement honey substitutes. Bell Flavors & Fragrances is looking at both natural and artificial honey flavors that would reduce the amount of honey in recipes. In addition, Häagen-Dazs Ice Cream has launched the “Häagen-Dazs loves Honey Bees” campaign to raise money for research. While the company does not use honey extensively as an ingredient, it claims more than 40% of its flavors are dependent on honey bee pollination. Finally, the USDA (US Department of Agriculture) is providing $4MM to the University of Georgia to study the causes of CCD.
This blog includes excerpts from a weekly round-up of food industry & food licensing news provided free to Broad Street Licensing Group's clients, and as a paid subscription service (6 months $695; 1 year $1,125).
Too busy to keep up with the news wires & publications about the food business? If you or your company would like to subscribe to our news service, call Danielle Foley at Broad Street Licensing Group (tel. 973-655-0598) and ask for your free sample or click on our website.
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