Articles by David Feder , RDN

When mushroom teas, powders, and concentrates did indeed start to take off in the late 2010s, the timing could not have been more efficacious. American consumers had an awareness of medicinal mushrooms that gave food and beverage developers targeting immune health an easier task in marketing such products.

Plant-based has been the big buzz-term in food and beverage for well over a year now. With meat and poultry analogs leading the way, we split the topic into two features.

Modern flavor-building techniques must be low-cost, allergen-free, and naturally derived (clean-label), all while surviving processing.

As consumers continue to search for healthier food options, vegetables as star players in formulations are enjoying a renaissance.

June is Men’s Health Month, and June 10-16 is designated as Men’s Health Week. It’s not quite certain how we guys landed both a week and a month at the same time, but it probably has to do with the need to be told to do something more than once. In this case, it’s needing to be nagged to take care of ourselves.

Happy National Nutrition Month! I use this bully pulpit often to decry the persistent plague of rampant – and often nefarious – nutrition miscommunication.

Any culinarian can tell you, if you want to move an item or entice customers with a new product, bring cheese into the picture and consumer interest immediately shoots up.

It can’t be stated more directly nor with any greater emphasis: The food and beverage makers of the future — already working hard at this, by the way — are going to have to double down on the delivery of responsibly made (and marketed) products for the global consumer, whether planning for the 2020s or all the way to 2100.

Food oils and fats certainly benefit from the ongoing advancements in seed oil breeding, extraction technology, functionality improvement, and competition in the multibillion dollar field. And, as pointed out in these pages, new sources of oil from seeds, grains, and even algae are constantly expanding the options for processors.

With the higher energy expenditure from fall and winter events, more consumers will crave a snack with dense nutrition and high protein. Cheese fits the bill perfectly.