National Snack Day: Inside the billion-dollar brands refusing to slow down
From Oreo’s $4bn global machine to Uncrustables’ rapid ascent, the snack aisle’s biggest names are banking billions and still investing like challengers
Start-ups & disruptors
Baking NPD: Protein muffins, pistachio nostalgia and cookie culture
Smaller households, impulse occasions and better-for-you cues are driving a new wave of baking innovation
Flavour first, fibre close behind: Bakery resets for 2026
Bakery’s next growth phase won’t be driven by a single mega-trend, but by flavour authority, fibre credibility and formats that make everyday indulgence feel justified
Archer accelerates meat snack growth with $100M from JPMorgan Chase
Backed by a new manufacturing plant and rapid sales growth, the brand behind the “Stick to Real” campaign positions for $500M in sales as it scales meat stick production
Mars, Mondelēz, Nestlé, Hershey, and Lindt team up to transform future of cocoa
The world’s biggest chocolate makers are working together to futureproof cocoa and support growers
Protein is the price of entry at Expo West 2026
Expo West lands in Anaheim this March, and protein isn’t just a trend – it’s the baseline. The real fight is over taste, texture and who can make functionality feel effortless
Gulfood 2026
Hunter Foods’ spicy chips bring extra heat to Middle East chilli lovers
Snacking giant Hunter Foods has launched a range of new snacks meant for ‘true chilli lovers’ in the Middle East, bringing more bold heat and flavour to the region
Pringles, Nakd and Haldirams make flavour the main event in 2026
From mystery heat and nostalgic fruit to saffron-soaked indulgence, the latest launches show brands using flavour to provoke, reassure and seduce shoppers.
Hain Celestial’s reset starts with snacks sale, but doubts about what is next linger
Q2 sales fell 7% as analysts pressed management on whether baby and kids’ food could face similar scrutiny
Valentine’s Day NPD from Cadbury, Paris Baguette and Wisconsin Cheese
Chocolate still anchors Valentine’s Day, but 2026’s launches show how brands are pushing the holiday further through format, experience and gifts that feel less predictable
Inside Magnum and Ben & Jerry’s legal battle
A long‑running feud between B&J’s and its parent has escalated into a governance battle - here’s the latest
Is the protein snack boom running out of steam?
Flattening consumer interest and growing format fatigue suggest the category may be hitting a ceiling unless brands evolve beyond bars and bold claims
Game on: Flipz, Velveeta and SuperPretzel gear up for the Super Bowl
Super Bowl week snack sales reached $742m last year, and snack makers are leaning into shareable formats, bold flavors and activations again as the Big Game approaches
Why South Africa’s bread giants are going mega
SA bread makers are investing in mega-bakeries to cut costs, boost efficiency and serve rising regional demand while navigating price sensitivity and infrastructure constraints
From Snickers Ice Cream Minis to Oreo’s Marvel: Situational snacking takes shape
Big brands are rethinking formats, flavors and channels as snacks are redesigned for specific moments, tighter rules and more intentional eating
Bread merger puts consumer affordability under global regulatory spotlight
A UK competition probe into a proposed bread merger is expanding beyond market structure, with regulators explicitly weighing consumer affordability and staple food supply
The 3 nutrients quietly shaping mainstream snacks
Fiber, protein and whole grains aren’t new ideas but in 2026 they’re doing more than any superfood to reshape snack portfolios
Freeze-dried candy craze grows – but not everyone’s winning
Mars, Ferrara ride TikTok-fueled demand while Sow Good restructures to survive
Finsbury Food Group launches cake ‘bento boxes’
The baking manufacturer has rolled out a new, limited edition celebration cake offering that taps into the rising trend of bento cakes.
From jerky breakfasts to chocolate superfoods: The smarter snacking NPD
Protein is everywhere, but it’s showing up in warmer flavors, softer formats and more inclusive designs as brands rethink what ‘fuel’ really means
Oreo goes zero sugar, General Mills goes playful and January gets interesting
From Oreo’s first zero sugar sandwich cookie and General Mills’ breakfast reset to £2 pie pop-ups, protein-packed cereals and Burns Night limited editions, January’s launches show how brands are using comfort, culture and clever marketing
Exclusive: Can biotech break monk fruit’s supply constraints? Manus thinks so
As demand for natural sweeteners grows, Manus moves monk fruit production in the US
From kings’ cake to crunchy corn: Comfort snacks get a smarter glow-up for 2026
Indulgent treats aren’t being replaced – they’re being refined. This latest wave of NPD upgrades familiar formats with cleaner labels, global flavor cues and subtle functional gains
Scandals, shockwaves & shakeups: 12 of 2025’s most standout moments
From billion-dollar brinkmanship to red-dye revolts and zero-gravity corn chips, 2025 proved nothing in bakery and snacks is too big, too weird or too controversial to make headlines
Beckham’s snack play: How BEEUP plans to sting the competition
Forget celebrity sidelines, David Beckham’s actually in the test kitchen: CEO Peter Stearns lifts the lid on how that shapes BEEUP’s next phase
Opinion
What’s next for The Magnum Ice Cream Company?
Now that the Magnum Company has officially spun out from Unilever, what’s its direction of travel?
Why AI might fix the slowest part of R&D
Cocoa volatility and fast-changing label demands are squeezing R&D timelines. Barry Callebaut’s partnership with NotCo points to a new, AI-assisted path forward
San Francisco sues Kellogg, General Mills, PepsiCo, Mondelez and more over ‘engineered’ foods
City officials say some of America’s biggest brands helped shape eating habits that are now coming back to haunt public health budgets
The big December drop: Snack season starts now
From gingerbread nostalgia to chocolate trolleys and limited edition winter snacks, here’s what’s new this festive season
The ‘radically simple’ sweet snack revolution that’s getting juicy
Sweet snack trends are tilting toward simpler, fruit-forward formulations – and Solely’s approach is drawing fresh attention from retailers
Christmas crisps at risk after second KP strike vote this year
A fresh strike vote at KP’s Billingham plant has raised concerns over whether popular chip brands will be fully stocked in the run-up to Christmas
Candy Kittens owner in talks to buy Unilever snack brand Graze
Unilever is set to offload Graze for a fraction of its 2019 purchase price. Can Katjes revive the struggling snack brand?
Hershey’s salty strategy
The confectionery giant’s latest move – snapping up LesserEvil – pulls it deeper into the everyday snacking landscape it’s been circling for years
Biscuits, cookies & crackers: What’s trending now and into 2026
Premium treats, grab-and-go minis and a burst of festive innovation are giving the aisle more energy than it’s had in years
Cocoa’s gone wild: Could malted barley flour be the calm in the chaos?
With cocoa costs spiraling, Briess is pitching malted barley flour as a reliable, clean label lifeline for bakers and snack makers
Big results for small budgets: How Crave Ventures helps emerging CPG brands scale
Service-for-equity model gives founders access to marketing, branding, PR and retail expertise without upfront capital
Why brands are dropping synthetic dyes ahead of regulation
Synthetic dyes may still be legal but shifting consumer trends and rising US state-level pressures mean bakery and snack brands aren’t waiting for mandates to start cleaning up their color palettes
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
NPD: Feel-good snacking gets serious as brands go big on nostalgia, kindness & chaos
From colorless chips to collectible crisps and gooey skillet cookies, this season’s launches show how playful storytelling is reshaping what shoppers expect from a simple snack
Christmas 2025: Sugar, spice & all things iced
From boozy puddings to glitter-dusted brownies, bakers are dialing up nostalgia, sparkle and flavor innovation to make this festive season the sweetest yet
Fruitist continues expanding packaged fresh fruit business with $150 million capital raise
The fresh fruit producer plans to invest in fruit genetics and AI to boost its positioning in the healthy snacking segment
Hain Celestial shows signs of stabilization amid brand shake-up
The maker of Celestial Seasonings and Garden Veggie Snacks narrowed losses as restructuring gains traction
Brewing loyalty: How coffee is powering bakery footfall
Coffee’s not just a pick-me-up anymore. It’s helping bakeries pull ahead in a slowing market
Snack to the future: How startups go from local crave to global shelf
Building a snack brand people love is one thing. Scaling it globally without losing your grip – or your supply chain – is another
World’s biggest chocolate supplier makes move away from cocoa
Barry Callebaut explores cocoa alternatives amid rising costs and climate pressure
Sustainability gets real: It’s crunch time for Europe’s snack makers
New ESA president Christopher Gosau says the region’s snack makers must turn bold sustainability promises into measurable progress or risk losing credibility
5 meat snack innovations at NACS 2025
The tradeshow featured hundreds of innovative new products at the Cool New Snacks preview room
Protein, please: NPD with real muscle
Protein’s still flexing hard, but it’s left the gym and hit the grocery aisle
A splinter too far: Tyson’s corn dog recall bites back
A splinter in a corn dog might sound trivial – until it lands in court, potentially costing millions and shaking consumer trust in food safety
AI helps Hovis, Mars and PepsiCo cut factory downtime
From bread lines to snack plants, manufacturers are turning to artificial intelligence to predict breakdowns and keep production running at full speed