Business Bites: A taste of what's going on this week in the industry

The Natural Products Expo East 2022 NEXTY Award winners

Nearly 600 nominated products were narrowed down to 73 finalists to choose the winners of the annual Natural Products Expo East 2022 NEXTY Awards. CPG brands nominated hundreds of products across 19 categories, and each one was sampled and reviewed by the experienced editors from New Hope—FBI’s sister site. New Hope's editors additionally recognized two brands to receive this year's Editors' Choice Awards. In all, winners ranged from “best new condiment, sauce and/or dip” Fila Manila’s Filipino American Kitchen Banana Ketchup to “best new sweet snack” Joolies’ Jooliettes Blood Orange Dark Chocolate Date Nibbles.

Hurricane Ian devastates Southeast’s biggest food commodities & more

Oranges were predicted to be one of the top health fruit trends this year, and all was good until Hurricane Ian hit the Southeast last weekend. Orange trees and livestock were among the casualties of Florida’s deadliest storm since 1935, Reuters reported. In related news, Cargill Inc. temporarily closed its plants, handling grain-processing, salt-packaging, starches, sweeteners, and an animal-nutrition facility in Florida due to the storm.

Kerry introduces revolutionary new tool to reduce global food waste

Dublin, Ireland-based Kerry has created a unique new tool that could change how the world approaches food security. The company’s food waste estimator enables food manufacturers to determine the impact they can have on reducing global waste by using shelf-life extension technology across their portfolios. With a few simple inputs, manufacturers and consumers can learn about the impact that reducing food waste can have on our planet.

“Our new tool provides simple but actionable insights for both consumers and the food industry and shows the real impact that shelf-life extension technology can have on food products,” explained Bert de Veget, global V.P., food protection and preservation, Kerry. 

A new player in Chicago’s plant-based CPG scene

Plant-based food start-up Next Gen Foods chose Chicago as its U.S. headquarters in late September. It also opened its first U.S.-based research and development center at The Hatchery in the East Garland Park neighborhood. The Hatchery will house the company’s new product developments and help scale its U.S. markets. Started in Singapore, the parent company, Tindle, developed a plant-based chicken product sold in more than 1,000 restaurants globally.

New kids’ nutritional shake rolls out at 400 Walmart stores nationwide

KidzProtein, new nutritional shakes containing whey protein and a variety of vitamins and minerals to support children’s optimal growth and development, recently rolled out at an initial 400 select brick-and-mortar Walmart stores across the country. Developed by Nutritional Growth Solutions, Ltd., the shakes contain a blend of fruit and vegetables and omega-3 fatty acids crucial for brain and cognitive functions. The powdered product packs a wealth of nutrition into each 25g-27g serving and can be added into multiple recipes, including for smoothies, muffins and pancakes, for picky eaters struggling with appetite issues. They come in chocolate and vanilla flavors.