Key takeaways:
- January has become a high-impact launch window, with brands using pop-ups, stunts and seasonal hooks to drive attention and trial rather than treating the month as a soft reset.
- Comfort is still the dominant emotional driver, but it’s being delivered through smarter cues like protein boosts, lower sugar, and cleaner labels instead of outright indulgence.
- Big brands are pairing product innovation with cultural relevance – from Burns Night and Lunar New Year to playful nostalgia – to make new launches feel timely rather than transactional.
January used to be a holding pattern – light launches, low expectations, everyone waiting for spring. This year’s crop of new products suggests that thinking is firmly outdated. Instead of dialing things down, brands are leaning into January as a moment: culturally relevant, commercially sharp and emotionally resonant.
The common thread across this month’s launches is smart comfort. Familiar formats like pies, biscuits, cereal and cookies are being refreshed with lighter credentials, protein boosts or zero sugar claims, while still delivering warmth, nostalgia and indulgence. Cinnamon, chocolate and pastry do the heavy lifting, while reformulation and positioning quietly handle the ‘reset’ narrative.
What’s also striking is how intentional the launch strategies have become. January isn’t just about shelf presence – it’s about pop-ups, PR stunts, limited editions and seasonal hooks like Burns Night and Lunar New Year. These products aren’t whispering onto shelves; they’re arriving with something to say.
A one-day London pie shop built for winter morale
To kick off the year, Higgidy is returning with a one-day-only pie pop-up in central London on January 15, following a sell-out debut last year. Located at 14 Percy Street, just off Tottenham Court Road, the shop will open from 10am to 4pm – or until it sells out – with all pies priced at £2.
Five 200g pies are on offer, spanning slow-cooked steak and Guinness, steak, bacon and red wine, creamy chicken and sautéed leek, plus vegetarian options including spinach, Greek feta and pine nut, and three-cheese cauliflower and broccoli. Each is wrapped in buttery shortcrust pastry, finished with either a crumb or seeded topping.
The wider range is available year-round in Sainsbury’s and Tesco.
A $150,000 name hunt
Bronco has paired its national retail debut with a public bounty for anyone legally named Jimmy Dean – offering $150,000 to the first verified individual who qualifies.
The stunt coincides with the rollout of high-protein frozen breakfast bagel sandwiches, launching exclusively in Target stores across the US. The range targets a long-overlooked gap in the frozen breakfast aisle, swapping biscuits for bagels. Two SKUs are available: turkey sausage, egg & cheese with 21g protein; and turkey bacon, egg & cheese with 15g protein.
The sandwiches are made with whole eggs, real cheese and no seed oils, and are designed to work equally well in the microwave or air fryer.
“Finding a real person named Jimmy Dean who loves Bronco Breakfast Bagels would be a surreal full-circle moment,” said founder Connor Blakley. “Will the real Jimmy Dean, please stand up?”
The products are available now at Target nationwide.
Putting Asian flavors front and center
Ahead of Lunar New Year cooking, Sun-Bird is rolling out a bold new look across its seasoning and soup mix portfolio. The refreshed packs feature brighter colors, clearer nutrition panels and a modernized logo aimed at improving shelf navigation and visual impact.
The redesign spans core SKUs like beef and broccoli, fried rice and lo mein, alongside bolder flavors such as Szechuan stir-fry and General Tso’s. Low-sodium options and products with no added MSG are more clearly flagged, tapping into demand for simple, recognizable ingredients without sacrificing flavor.
“Our goal was to ensure the brand visually represents the depth and variety of Asian flavors while inspiring confidence and imagination in every home cook,” said Jeanell Garcia, senior category manager at C.H. Guenther.
The new packaging will be available nationwide in US retail stores as well as online.
Designed for every kind of morning
General Mills is using January to refresh the breakfast aisle with a wide-ranging slate of cereals and granolas that emphasize choice over restriction.
New launches include fruit-forward cereals made with apple purée and no artificial colors; sprinkle-topped vanilla O’s designed to add a sense of celebration; and organic, gluten-free cookie-inspired cereals that lean unapologetically into comfort. Granola also gets a seasonal twist; with cinnamon roll–flavored protein clusters and cookie-themed organic blends delivering whole grains alongside indulgent cues.
The strategy is versatility – products that work in bowls, on yogurt or straight from the bag, depending on how the morning unfolds.
The new cereals and granolas are rolling out now across major US retailers.
A lighter digestive biscuit
Cinnamon’s January momentum continues with a limited-edition golden cinnamon flavor joining the Digestives The Light One range from pladis. The biscuit combines buttery baked notes with gentle spice and natural sweetness, while delivering 30% less sugar than standard Digestives.
“We’re delighted to introduce Golden Cinnamon, that perfectly balances the beloved flavor of our Digestives with gentle, warming spice,” said Bethan Ashman, brand manager for pladis UK&I. She added that cinnamon consumption has increased 17% since 2023 across categories including coffee and porridge.
The biscuits are rolling out now across multiple UK retailers and discounters, priced at £1.69 RRP, with promotional pricing around £1.35.
A zero sugar sandwich cookie
For the first time in the US, Oreo has entered the zero sugar space with original and double-stuf sandwich cookies launching nationwide.
Sweetened with a blend of sugar alternatives, the cookies promise the full Oreo experience without added sugar, addressing a notable gap in the sugar-free segment. A stand-up bag format supports on-the-go snacking and modern usage occasions.
The move taps into growing sugar reduction efforts among US consumers, while reinforcing Oreo’s strategy of expanding indulgence options rather than narrowing them.
Both variants will be available permanently at US retailers.
A cult Burns Night dessert makes a richer return
Back by customer demand, Simon Howie’s chocolate haggis is returning in time for one of Scotland’s biggest celebrations, Burns Night (January 25), with a revamped recipe and new collaborators. The limited-edition pudding is a chocolate brownie dessert shaped like a traditional haggis, now featuring chunks of all-butter shortbread and fudge.
“For our wee limited edition Chocolate Haggis to worry the biggest players in chocolate shows the success of the original launch,” said Simon Howie. “We used the time we needed to change the packaging to also improve the recipe.”
Designed to be microwaved or cooked like a traditional haggis, the product leans heavily into theater, indulgence and seasonal relevance.
Chocolate Haggis is priced at £5.00. It is available in Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Scotmid, but only until January 26.
A whisky-infused cheddar to close out Burns Night
Rounding out January’s seasonal launches, Snowdonia Cheese Co has positioned its Amber Mist cheddar as a Burns Night finale. The 12-month matured cheese is infused with single malt whisky aged in bourbon barrels and finished in Madeira casks, delivering malty notes and a hint of caramel.
Sealed in deep marmalade-colored wax, the cheese is designed for after-dinner boards, paired with crackers, chutney or dried fruit – ideally alongside a dram.
Amber Mist is available from £5.50 for a 200g waxed truckle at UK specialty retailers and selected grocers.
