LEGAL/REGULATORY Justin Prochnow
Shareholder Greenberg Traurig, an international, multi-practice law firm This year I think there will be increased focus and attention on calories and serving sizes. Several revisions to the regulations are coming together to emphasize the amount calories in products to consumers. The federal menu labeling regulations become effective in May, requiring restaurant chains with more than 20 locations to disclose the calories on all menu items, including beverages. Additionally, revisions to the federal labeling regulations
governing the display of nutrition information on the packaging of beverages and food must be implemented within the next two years. Those changes include the highlighting of calorie declarations on labels by putting them in bold type and in type size 2-3 times the size of other nutrition information. In addition, the standard serving size of non-juice and non-milk based beverages has been increased from 8 oz. to 12 oz. With single serving containers now including anything under 200 percent of a serving size, this means anything under 24 oz. will be a single serving container. With the increase in the
number of calories to be declared if a single serving is 16 oz. or even 20 oz., as opposed to 8 oz., and the increased prominence with which those calories will be displayed, companies will likely be looking at decreasing the size of containers or reformulating products to reduce calories, even more than they have already been doing.
Michele Simon
JD, MPH Executive Director Plant Based Foods Association Last May, the FDA released its final updates to the Nutrition Facts
panel, which includes requirements for listing “added sugars”. Companies have until mid-2018 to comply, and while it’s possible that the new administration will delay these changes, I wouldn’t count on it since the largest companies are likely already implementing the updates. Meanwhile, three cities in California (San Francisco, Oakland and Albany), Boulder, Colorado, and Cook County (includes Chicago, topping 5 million residents) passed soda tax measures in 2016, joining Philadelphia and Berkeley. While the laws are usually assessed at the distribution level, it’s likely that for beverages with added
sugar, pricing will be impacted if the distributor passes the added cost on to retailers. We can certainly expect these dramatic victories against “Big Soda” to inspire other cities (and maybe even states) to pass similar measures. The impact on sales remains to be seen. The dairy industry has recently lobbied Congress to ask FDA to not allow companies making dairy alternatives to use words like “milk”, despite how long soymilk has been on the market without much fuss. Given the growing consumer interest in plant-based alternatives to meat and dairy, this issue is not going away anytime soon.
INGREDIENTS/EMERGING CATEGORIES Hope Lee
Senior Beverages Analyst Euromonitor International, a global market research firm Organic as a sustainable agriculture model will attract further interest in 2017, as the demand for organic produce is outgripping supply in many markets, showing both a challenge and opportunity for certifiers and players on the value chain. Danone’s pending acquisition of WhiteWave means the French dairy giant will become the largest company in the global organic packaged foods and beverages market.
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Mark Rampolla
Co-Founder Powerplant Ventures, a private equity firm focused on investment in plant-based nutrition While all things plant-based have been hot for a while, watch the segment further blossom and leverage the rich diverse of the green kingdom. Adaptogens are the bridge to personalized health beverages; turmeric, kava, mushrooms, vinegar and ancient ingredients work differently for each of us but will all have mainstream appeal. Move over soy, almond and pea; while these core sources will remain relevant and grow, watch for a new wave of ingredients, from pumpkin, sunflower, hemp and coconut to chickpea begin to flex their muscle as great and tasty sources for protein, fat and micronutrients.
Kara Rubin
Co-Founder Beyond Brands, a brand incubation and consulting firm Ingredient focused trends will include: continuing to refine what “clean label” means (moving away from extracts, “natural flavors,” etc. in favor of focus on food-forward ingredients and emphasis on the flavors of those ingredients); of course, low- and no-sugar, or at least no added sugar; taking functionality to another level (examples: Ayurvedic-, adaptogen- or cannabis-driven formulas); continuing to see brands tying their products to the food waste challenge, using produce that might otherwise have been wasted (ugly fruit, pulps, peels and rinds); defining a brand story around innovative sourcing (biodynamic and regenerative farming practices); and continuing to see more innovation around plant-based and other alternatives to animal proteins.