Africa beckons: 3 key insights for food firms eyeing the next billion
As an emerging market, Africa is often less mentioned than regions like Asia and Latin America — but there is a huge consumer population here for food firms to unlock
Business
Food inflation may look tame, but rising CPG input costs suggest otherwise
August PPI data show relatively little movement in final-demand food prices, but sharp increases in grains, oilseeds, confectionery, diesel and select packaging inputs could put pressure on food and beverage makers in the months ahead
Inside the leadership strategies reshaping British baking
Britain’s first Bakery Leader of the Year finalists reveal what it takes to build stronger teams, resilient businesses and sustainable growth
From breadbasket to growth market: How Grupo Bimbo, Nestlé and General Mills are redrawing LATAM’s food map
Turning LATAM’s abundant resources into growth will demand resilient farms, local production and sharper market choices
Canada’s tariff retaliation puts US food and agriculture industries in a bind
Dairy and steel groups back aggressive US trade action, while broader agriculture groups warn that escalating tariffs and retaliation could threaten critical export markets
Is traditional snack advertising becoming obsolete?
Campbell’s is putting 85% of its working media budget into digital channels, reflecting Big Food’s changing approach to how brands are built and sold
Barilla’s Goodles acquisition reflects growing health food M&A trend
Barilla’s acquisition of Goodles signals the strategic players’ interest in emerging wellness food brands
The top 3 areas winning private label right now
Private label’s glow-up is winning shoppers with clean labels, high-protein products and trend-driven innovation that goes far beyond bargain pricing
Campbell’s Co slashes dividend, cuts jobs and raises prices in $500M savings push
The Campbell’s Company expects another year of declining sales and earnings as it launches a savings program, reshapes its portfolio and steps up investment behind its strongest brands
Big Food’s Big Reset: Why the industry’s changing faster than ever
From C-suite shake-ups to targeted acquisitions, Big Food is rethinking how to win in a rapidly changing market
Big Food’s colour promises are colliding with supply chain reality
The dye deadlines are closing in, but the alternatives aren’t ready
Hormel’s retail segment hit by Q3 commodity turkey and snack nut declines
Mixed fiscal Q3 results show a 2% decline in organic net sales as Hormel Foods navigates planned business exits and price elasticity
Why the former McVitie’s boss is betting on private label
Cem Karakaş once ran one of the world’s biggest branded snack groups; now he’s buying into the manufacturers helping retailers challenge them
Why food products live or die on shelf: A retailer’s perspective
Winning supermarket shelf space is difficult but keeping it can be considerably harder
Rizz, 6-7 and brainrot: Can food and drink speak internet without sounding cringe?
A viral buzzword can capture attention, but research suggests brands risk losing credibility when borrowed slang jars with the personality consumers already know
Target’s tariff refund reaches nearly $1 billion
The retailer’s new food strategy drives second consecutive quarter of growth, after five quarters of sales declines
Griffith Foods expands European presence with factory acquisition
US-based global ingredients specialist Griffith Foods is expanding its European presence with the acquisition of a new factory.
Grupo Bimbo bets on China’s shift to ‘eating right’
As Chinese shoppers trade bulk buying for clean label, better-for-you bakery, the Mexican giant is investing to keep pace with a market forecast to top ¥900bn ($130bn) by 2030
US snack giants find their fastest growth is no longer at home
Tariffs, weight-loss drugs and a more cautious US shopper are pushing the industry’s biggest names to chase growth in India, Latin America and Southeast Asia instead
New Trump tariffs ‘like deja vu’ according to food industry panel
As the administration replaces IEEPA duties with section 301 forced labor tariffs, food and beverage importers face renewed legal battles and supply chain uncertainty
Romesh Ranganathan-backed bakery chain part-saved from liquidation
Some Coughlans Bakery shops are set to reopen under a new name after being acquired by Janes Pantry from the liquidators.
Krispy Kreme cuts losses, but remains in the red
Doughnut giant’s turnaround strategy shows signs of success, but losses persist
From Grupo Bimbo to Warburtons: The billion-dollar battle for the bakery of the future
As conventional bread sales stagnate across mature markets, the world’s biggest bakery groups are committing billions to factories, digital systems and new product formats – a race for flexibility, not volume
Is speculoos the new Dubai chocolate? Inside Biscoff’s €500m boom
Lotus Bakeries is making its biggest-ever investment to turn soaring demand for speculoos into lasting global growth
Mars-Kellanova: What Brussels really decided about brand power
The EU cleared Mars’ $36bn Kellanova deal without conditions and its reasoning reveals how much bargaining power a brand really has left.
From Mars to Intersnack: Are family dynasties becoming food’s new dealmakers?
As public markets keep discounting listed food companies, family-controlled giants are stepping in with the patience – and the premiums – to buy them
Can Uber Eats help regional grocers compete online?
Uber Eats expands regional grocery network to challenge retail giants
How Mondelēz achieved its mid-year wins
The snacking multinational has seen a strong second quarter, returning to volume growth and succeeding in emerging markets
5 hard truths every functional food startup needs to learn
The functional food market is booming, but turning a promising concept into a commercially successful product is rarely straightforward
How heritage brands can break free from category stereotypes
Pulling from real-life cases studies, Ed Hayes, chief strategy officer at branding agency Bloom, sets out key tactics to successfully broadening a brand’s audience without jeopardising its original market appeal.
News Bites
Legacy brands are evolving from products into platforms
For the majors like The Hershey Co., General Mills and Kellanova, growth comes from strategically stretching trusted brands across occasions, benefits and formats – broadening the snacking landscape itself
5 actions food industry wants from Burnham
Leading industry bodies tell Food Manufacture what they most want to see from Andy Burnham as he moves into No. 10 Downing Street.
Can premium breakfast cereals take the leap in Asia? Blue Frog thinks so
New Zealand breakfast cereal brand Blue Frog sees opportunities to premiumise Asia’s breakfast market as consumers
The climate effect: How extreme heat is rewriting the retail playbook
Extreme heat is forcing bakery chains from Newcastle to New Jersey to swap hot pastries for cold drinks and salads, turning the weather forecast into a key commercial indicator
Hovis Bakeries: Can Britain’s biggest bread shake-up revive its struggling loaf market?
Hovis Bakeries is the latest sign that Britain’s industrial bread sector is being forced to reinvent itself as changing consumer habits, supermarket pressure and rising costs reshape one of the UK’s biggest food categories
Tate & Lyle shareholders vote in favour of £2.7bn Ingredion acquisition
Another stage of the acquisition is now complete, with more to come
McVitie’s owner aims to double healthy snack sales by 2030
The company behind McVitie’s, GODIVA and Ülker promises to double its sales of products with higher levels of protein and fibre in four years.
Grupo Bimbo: The bread giant that isn’t afraid of the store brand
Grupo Bimbo says it’s thriving alongside private label’s rise across the US grocery aisle, even as store brands outsell it in parts of its own core bread category
Higgidy CEO exits
Rachel Kelley is leaving the bakery business for a new MD opportunity elsewhere.
Lindt accused of misleading consumers on child labour
Lindt facing US lawsuit alleging misleading claims over human rights commitments in its cocoa supply chain
McCormick reveals big plans and exec team for Unilever Foods merger
McCormick has announced a trio of major updates for the combined business, following the proposed merger with Unilever’s Foods business announced earlier this year.
Unilever-McCormick merger: Anti-trust consultation begins
The deal will be scrutinised for its impact on competition
CEO shuffle at Syngenta nets ADM a new executive
Agriculture company Syngenta names a new leader in anticipation of its Hong Kong Stock Exchange listing, with its former chief executive leaving to ADM
Utz to go private in $2.9 billion Intersnack deal as shares surge
Stock nearly doubled after Intersnack agreed to pay $14.24 per share in cash, a 91% premium over its prior close
The climate shock that could reshape food costs until 2027
A strengthening El Niño is expected to drive the next wave of food inflation, leaving manufacturers with a narrowing window to protect margins before higher costs work their way through global supply chains
First-ever global standard promises more consistent yeast for bakers worldwide
A first-of-its-kind Codex Alimentarius standard, adopted in Geneva this month, gives baker’s yeast a single global definition for the first time in its long history
Critics slam DOJ’s $3.3 million egg price-fixing settlement
Legal experts and antitrust watchdogs argue the penalty is negligible compared to billions allegedly earned through manipulated egg prices
The next grocery battle isn’t price – it’s relevance
A new phase of grocery shopping is emerging, one that will push brands to compete on relevance rather than rely on inflation-driven dollar growth, private-label gains or consumers trading down
Three years on: Why Smucker’s $5.6bn Hostess bet still hasn’t paid off
“Tastes like growth” has become a punchline the jam giant would rather forget
Where does the food industry see the strongest growth?
As traditional categories struggle, F&B is turning towards areas of higher value