William A. Roberts, Jr.

In a category awash with news both positive and negative, sales of fish and seafood items have managed to grow. Relatively inexpensive, the products further benefit from a more-healthful perception among consumers. However, in the age of mandatory convenience, can seafood products provide a time-saving solution?

The biggest trend of recent years naturally took its toll on the food industry's top 100 manufacturers. While the low-carb trend had a significant impact on companies primarily operating in the U.S., the story has been quite different elsewhere.

In an era of healthfulness and obesity concerns, cookies' appeal has taken serious blows, and the category has suffered declining sales in recent years. Changing demographics, health issues and popular diets are combining to take a lasting toll on the category as a whole.

For three days in October, executives and developers in the food and beverage industry gathered in Scottsdale, Ariz., for a series of presentations addressing the current state of new product introductions and the trends that will drive product development in the future.

The popularity of diet beverages is at an all-time high, augmented by the growing variety of effective sweeteners on the market. Yet, one segment's boon is another's disappointment, as sales of regular versions falter.

Delivering a new foodservice concept has its advantages and risks, yet few companies have taken a prized retail brand into this environment. Fewer still have done so with a line that delivers great-tasting products along with strong nutritional attributes. This year's Spirit of Innovation Award--Foodservice winner, Campbell Soup Company, dared all of the above and then some.

Cross-functionality took on a whole new dimension for Barilla's Restaurant Creations. Company facilities in the U.S. and Italy collaborated to deliver a line of pasta sauces unlike any other on the market.

Despite an impressive 48% growth between 1998 and 2003, sales growth of meal kits slowed dramatically in 2002, stopping entirely in 2003. Innovation propelled the category, but what is next on the horizon for meal kits? How should manufacturers respond?