I think every month should be National Nutrition Month. But to promote better eating habits that incorporate “better” foods and beverages, it is critical to have any publicly promoted nutrition message be based solidly on science.

As part of its Walmart Reimagined campaign, the retailer is aiming to boost store traffic by converting excess parking space to experimental communities comprised of food halls, recreation areas and even mobile healthcare units.

I realize you already may be in the middle of fiscal 2019, yet I believe there’s something noteworthy in turning the page on a calendar year. Perhaps it’s simply that holidays and vacations (hopefully) offer respite, a moment to downshift, an opportunity to pause and hit “refresh.”

A big part of this best-use-of-resources movement is prominently expressed in the plant-based revolution. Plant-based meat and dairy analogs have been hitting shelves as fast as ingredient technology can make them happen, with expert mimicry of their animal-derived counterparts the “brass ring.”

I recently spent three days looking over the horizon with 21 leading food manufacturers and retailers.

Our Prepared Foods team recently shared the same experience when we deconstructed and recast our annual New Products Conference (now in its 36th year). We hired an outside meetings and marketing specialist who challenged us to re-examine every aspect of our conference goals, planning and decision making.

The mountain of money spent to market products and influence consumer behavior may only be 5% effective, according to Dr. A.K. Pradeep, CEO, MachineVantage.

Speaking at the IFT Legalized Cannabis & Hemp Edibles session, Linda Gilbert, managing director of consumer insights for BDS Analytics, branded legalized cannabis a “game changer for the food and beverage industry,” noting that legalized cannabis is one of the fastest growing industries.

I cannot account for the broad belief that the United States imports rice from Asia. It just kind of generally seems to be the case. But it is not.

Our past industry overviews featured menu and operator segment trend reviews to give you more customer insights. This year, we’re actually covering more of your new product activities as highlighted at the annual National Restaurant Association (NRA) Show and the annual International Dairy-Deli-Bakery Association show.