Honorable mention also went to an Almond-Granola Butter Spread and Almond Protein Smoothie in Creamsicle, Chai and Coffee flavors. Student competition participants assessed the current market for opportunities, conducted consumer research, surveyed their target audience and sampled prototypes to strengthen their concepts and refine product pitches

Sleep and relaxation are fast-growing functional food and beverage categories, several of which include tart cherries.

KIND Snacks launched a three-year pilot project in regenerative agriculture, the KIND Almond Acres Initiative. This initiative builds off KIND's announcement last year of progress made to its prior commitment to source 100% of its almonds from bee-friendly farms by 2025.

Brothers International Food Holdings, LLC, Rochester, N.Y., has acquired Hosh International LLC, a Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based supplier of value-added fruit and vegetable juice concentrates and purees to global CPG companies. 

Dole Packaged Foods, LLC unveiled a better-for-you snack: Good Crunch™, a nutritious, sustainably-made dried fruit snack with a crunch. The innovative product uses a gentle dehydration process that locks in fresh fruit flavor and preserves nutrients for a light, airy and healthy snack.  

Each Dole® Wiggles™ cup delivers an excellent source of Vitamin C with no added sugar^ and no artificial flavors, while containing no high fructose corn syrup, no artificial preservatives, and are non-GMO and gluten-free.

Van Drunen Farms welcomes NatExpo West attendees to Booth 4082 to discover its latest on-trend fruit, vegetable, and grain ingredients. The company also will exhibit at Booth F79 in the Fresh Ideas Organic Marketplace.

With their distinctive sweet-tart flavor profile, science-supported benefits, premium appeal and U.S. grown status, Montmorency tart cherries can help you hit the innovation sweet spot.

Using the top 2023 trends as your innovation guide is a way to overcome the overwhelm. Plus, keeping current trends in the food and beverage industry top of mind can help you create products that satisfy shifting consumer wants and needs.

FruitSmart has identified rising demand for fruit juice and botanical combinations as a major new trend in the healthy beverage space, and will highlight its capability to blend them at Natural Products Expo West, March 8-10, 2023.