2022 Summer Fancy Food Show, Day 1
The Specialty Food Assoociation’s Summer Fancy Food Show opened on Sunday, June 12, with many expressing how happy they were being back to the show in person. Here are some snippets from today’s floor:
SNAX showed up with its variety of Cookie Pops (I’m munching on the newest flavor, Nutter Butter, as I write this). It all started with a Butterfinger/popcorn combo and grew from there. I’m saving my bag of Butterfinger popcorn for the plane ride home. The packaging includes the logo of the Ryan Seacrest Foundation (soon there’s be a QR code) and there are several flavors especially made for the foundation and SNAX to give to kids who learn about broadcasting and new media in the Seacrest Studios set up in pediatric hospitals. SNAX donates to the foundation and encourages individuals to donate, too.
The snacking company also has gluten-free Penne Straws, made from lentils and white beans, in various flavors such as Marinara, Cinnamon Churro and Mac ‘n Cheese.
I stopped by O’Food‘s booth with its first frozen food offering, Mandu, Korean dumplings, and Jongga products. Jongga makes the most popular packaged kimchi in Korea and is breaking into U.S. distribution. They were serving up Kimchi Grilled Cheese Sandwhich. It was maybe a bit early in the day to be eating kimchi, but it’s delicious.
Keep an eye out for De Nigris‘ newest import, which ironically is its IGP certified Balsalmic Vinegar of Modena, honoring a strict tradition of quality balsamic.
I was honored to meet Julie Smolyansky, CEO of Lifeway Foods, and her daughter (and CEO in training) Misha. Julie has an extraordinary story of fleeing the Soviet Union (in what is now Ukraine) with her parents, going through Rome before landing in Chicago with little money, no home and speaking no English. With the help of refugee settlement groups, the family eventually settled into American life. Her mother began importing Slavic foods (and Nutella!) when she realized there were few homeland foods here. It was her father who realized that American had everything but kefir. He built a plant while Julie’s mom imported the kefir used to create Lifeway. I tasted the strawberry Lifeway Kefir (yum) and the company’s newest oat milk (the Peaches and Cream was delicious).
Julie has launched a special package of Charity Relief Kefir cultured whole milk in blue and gold packaging, to raise funds for Ukraine relief. You’ll be reading more about Julie and her amazing journey in the August issue of Gourmet News.
It was great to see our friend Patrick Ford of Ford’s Foods behind the counter at the Bone Suckin’ Sauce booth, dishing out the company’s newest sauces, Sweet Southern in original and (my favorite) hot. Later, he represented his mother, Sandra Jackson Ford, who was inducted into the SFA Hall of Fame, 2021 class.
Our friends at Stonewall Kitchen had many of its family of brands on display. I tasted ther Bloody Mary Mix — what a great way to fit all your veggies in (it was a “virgin” version).
I was eager to meet the sibling team, Diana Hecht and Tony Rabinovich, whose family has been making perogies for decades in Canada and now is launching Holy Perogy, frozen ready to heat packages of perogies. Diana swears they taste just as good as the family recipe served in restaurants. Unfortunately, due to all the restrictions on serving food at trade shows, they weren’t offering samples. Diana is the extroverted face of the product, too.
Chef Mario Carbone of Carbone Fine Food offered to show folks how he made meatballs and the booth quickly filled with eager students. I couldn’t hear him, but I got to taste the meatballs (melt in your mouth, which makes them a tad dangerous because that only makes me want to eat more) and … I got the recipe and coupon!
Crispy Filled, Inc. launched the rebranding of its Rösti brand of crispy filled potato products, under the new brand name, Rösti Stuft Spuds. The change in brand name, accompanied with a re-design of the carton graphics was made in response to market research data and consumer feedback received during the brand’s first full year in the market. I mean, hey, potatoes and cheese – what’s not to like? I loved them.
One of my favorite products so far is Jordan’s Skinny Syrups in the Mermaid flavor (it actually is tropical citrus and bright blue, like blue curacao). With no calories or sugar, it makes water taste like a cocktail. They encourage people not to be shy squirting the concoction from the plastic bottle, but not TOO enthusiastic like the poor guy in white pants who walked away from the booth with blue-streaked white pants. The company also makes no calories/no sugar mixes, too. I tasted the Margarita mix, which was lightly sweet and would be perfect with a splash of lime. I love the woman-owned company’s tag line, “Strong Drinks, Strong Women.
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IRI New Product Pacesetters: Innovation Drives CPG Growth Despite the Pandemic
The unpredictability of the pandemic made the work of manufacturers even more difficult than in 2020, as COVID-19 and the resultant behavior of shoppers ebbed and flowed during 2021, according to IRI’s 2021 New Product Pacesetters report.
Despite this and other challenges, this year’s New Product Pacesetters delivered an impressive $6 billion in aggregate Year 1 sales across food and beverage and nonfood products. Six of the top 10 Pacesetters in food and beverage included bubbles, in both alcohol and non-alcohol categories reflecting consumers’ desires to socialize at home. Among nonfoods, top Pacesetters reflect the importance of a clean home and healthy body.
“This year’s New Product Pacesetters successfully ran the gauntlet of powering through a pandemic that first caused people to hunker down at home, and then start socializing in public again, only to hunker down again late in the year,” said Joan Driggs, vice president, Content and Thought Leadership, IRI. “COVID-19 generated trends that both helped and hindered growth trajectories. In-home stockups eased from 2020 levels, while concurrently, interest in new products representing beverages, frozen convenience foods, household goods and self-care resulted in healthy growth.”
The Top 10 Food and Beverage New Product Pacesetters for 2021 are:
Dr Pepper & Cream Soda- AHA Sparkling Water
- Corona Hard Seltzer
- High Noon Sun Sips
- Oatly
- Truly Iced Tea
- Michelob ULTRA Organic Seltzer
- Impossible Burger
- LIFE CUISINE
- Minute Maid Zero Sugar
Seeking Bubbles and Fighting Germs Dominate Consumer Behavior
New alcohol and non-alcohol beverages with a new variety of flavors and combinations encouraged consumers to explore. Variety packs in hard seltzers both made entertaining at home more interesting as well as gave brands an opportunity to test new flavors by promoting trial. Hard seltzers and premixed cocktails represented four of the top 10 Pacesetters. On the non-alcohol side, Dr Pepper & Cream Soda and Coca-Cola’s AHA sparkling water captured the Pacesetters’ No. 1 and No. 2 spots, respectively.
During 2021, our data indicates that consumers juggled at-home and out-of-the-home work and school as the pandemic evolved. Several coffee and tea products performed well to keep people’s energy up, including Starbucks Nitro Cold Brew, which brings coffeehouse quality home, notched at No. 29. Rounding out the top 50 are Kitu Super Coffee at No. 30, Dunkin’ Multi-Serve Iced Coffee at No. 47, and Tazo ready-to-drink iced tea at No. 50.
Innovation Thrives Among Manufacturers Two Years into COVID-19
Analyzing trends among New Product Pacesetter products is especially important since they typically comprise just 1% of total CPG dollar sales but are responsible for a very significant one-third of growth year over year. In 2021, Pacesetters accounted for 44% of total store growth with similar contribution from food and beverage and nonfood innovation, despite challenges ranging from supply chain issues to store space allocation and unpredictable demand.
Pacesetters’ first-year revenues mostly held steady with previous years, despite limited promotional activity. The median dollar sales of food and beverage products in this year’s Pacesetters was $20 million, slightly under 2020 Pacesetters, but equivalent to 2019. Among nonfoods, median dollar sales totaled $17 million, the highest since 2017 New Product Pacesetters.
Large CPG companies, defined as those with over $6 billion in revenues, led in total dollar sales of Pacesetters products with 47%. Medium companies, those with $1 billion to $6 billion in sales, remained solid contributors, accounting for 27% of total dollar sales. Small companies, those with $100 million to $1 billion in sales, gained ground with 15% of total dollar sales, an increase over 2020.
Identifying and Retaining High-Value Consumers Remains Critical
IRI data indicate that consumers are eager to explore new flavors in food and beverage, in large part to make their at-home cooking experiences easier and more exciting. Despite an easing of the pandemic, approximately 80% of meals are made at home versus 48% pre-pandemic. New food and beverage products with unique flavors help “spice up” the at-home experience.
“Early adopters” are an important group with which manufacturers need to engage. They represent 27% of consumers, and 93% of that group consider themselves “avid early adopters.” These groups actively seek out the latest and greatest new products, according to IRI’s New Products Survey.
“Early adopters drove outsized sales of Pacesetter products, but supply chain problems brought on by the pandemic pushed more shoppers to reach for something new: 22% stated they looked for new products only if their usual product was unavailable, up 3 percentage points from 2021,” said Lisa Maas, principal, Innovation at IRI.
While 39% of surveyed consumers state they rely on recipes, the percentage of promotional activity around new products via recipes is down. Among avid early adopters, 55% report suggested recipes are an avenue to new products. Sixty-eight percent of these consumers consider shopper loyalty programs when making purchase decisions, compared with 54% of the total population.
Avid early adopters of new CPG products are also often avid early adopters of technology. Among this group, 26% look at pop-up ads and half report using smartphone apps. Engagement is significantly higher than with the general population and has been consistently strong in recent years.
Sustainability Remains a Key Success Ingredient
Sustainability is an attribute that impacts both food and beverage and nonfood categories. Oatly and Impossible Burger earned the No. 5 and No. 8 spots, respectively, in food and beverage, while Hello Bello baby products earned the No. 4 nonfood spot, followed by The Honey Pot Company feminine products notched at No. 17 and Huggies Pull-Ups New Leaf at No. 22.
Sustainability has grown to include a wider range of attributes, such as carbon footprint and water conservation. It has also grown as an increasingly important decision factor among consumers. Innovators should recognize the value of sustainability and how it contributes to a consumer’s overall impression of a product, brand and manufacturer.
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Lightlife Foods Promotes New ‘Lightyear’ Film
Greenleaf Foods, SPC, owner of plant-based food company Lightlife, announced today a blockbuster collaboration with Disney and Pixar. As part of the promotion of the upcoming film, “Lightyear,” Lightlife, Disney and Pixar are teaming up to celebrate the magic of legendary character Buzz Lightyear off the screen and in the kitchen.
Nostalgic fans of Disney and Pixar’s “Toy Story” will soon spot its beloved Space Ranger on retail shelves at Walmart, Kroger, Whole Foods Market, Target, Albertsons and others across the nation. As part of its sponsorship of “Lightyear,” several Lightlife items will feature new “Lightyear”-inspired packaging, including Lightlife Smart Dogs – the number-one selling plant-based hot dog in America. Lightlife Smart Bacon, Lightlife Original Tempeh, Lightlife Plant-Based Burger, and Lightlife Breakfast Patties and Links also received a packaging refresh in alliance with the new film.
“Our collaboration with Disney and Pixar marks the largest brand collaboration in Lightlife history and we are extremely proud to be the exclusive plant-based sponsor of a film whose fan base spans generations,” said Adam Grogan, President of Greenleaf Foods, SPC. “We are excited for Lightlife’s family-friendly plant-based products to join forces with Disney and Pixar’s film release this summer.”
In honor of the “Lightyear” debut, Lightlife is inviting fans to blast off into the kitchen to enjoy delicious plant-based recipes like Cosmic Chili Dogs, Buzz Breakfast Burrito and savory Morning Moonrock Muffins. The brand will also host a sweepstakes promotion with a chance to win dozens of prize packages, including a private film screening and Disney merchandise.
A sci-fi action adventure and origin story of Buzz Lightyear, “Lightyear” opens in theaters on June 17 and follows the heroic Space Ranger on an intergalactic adventure alongside a group of ambitious recruits and his robot companion Sox.
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