Max Goldberg

Just wrapped up the Wakefern Food Corp. Keynote at Founders' Innovation Day in NYC (ECRM), where Pat Mooney, Vice President of HBC & Non-Foods, shared insightful perspectives on their unique retailer owned cooperative model. Wakefern, with ownership groups like Saker ShopRites, Inc., Inserra Supermarkets, Inc., and Greenfield's ShopRite, runs multiple banners including ShopRite and PriceRite, and has expanded into owning Fairway Markets and Fresh Grocers. 🌟 Key Takeaways: - Supporting Small Businesses: Wakefern’s model is tailored to help small businesses excel in a big business world, challenging the status quo of relying solely on heritage brands. - Fostering Emerging Brands: The importance of nurturing new brands is paramount for keeping the retail experience fresh and engaging. - Supplier Engagement: Wakefern looks for brands that can articulate their customer connection, uniqueness, and collaborative potential. - Strategic Planning: Emphasizing the importance of joint business planning, whether quarterly or annually, to ensure alignment on goals. - Valuing Honest Dialogue: Pat promotes healthy conflict for better outcomes, advocating for directness and transparency over polite superficiality. - Pat also shared exciting updates about Wakefern's expansion plans under new leadership, including potential growth into the continental US and abroad, highlighting wholesale as a significant opportunity. This panel was particularly pertinent for us at Wild Bill’s Craft Beverage Co. since we're one of only 10 finalists chosen to pitch at ShopRite's Local Supplier Summit this Friday out of over 300 applicants! We'll be presenting at their HQ in Edison. I had a chance to chat with Pat for some advice on our pitch, and he emphasized the importance of finding the perfect mix between compelling storytelling and solid sales data. As Wakefern gears up for some big moves, it’s an awesome time for suppliers to jump in and ride the wave with this powerhouse retailer. What’s your take on how Wakefern is shaking up retail and teaming up with suppliers? Let’s chat in the comments! #retail #innovation #cpg #beverage #grocery RangeMe Joseph Tarnowski Wayne Bennett Sarah Davidson

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Despite the challenges of the last three years, there are commercial and economic opportunities presented by the plant-based sector as does the environmental, health and societal imperative to diversify our protein supply with more familiar and convenient alternatives. This report provides quite a detailed in-depth explanation of the plant based sector in Australia in both retail and foodservice. The Australian foodservice sector presents the most immediate opportunity for plant-based meat manufacturers to continue to grow in coming years. Wiith relatively small penetration of plant- based meat in just a few segments of the foodservice category, such as in QSRs and fast casual outlets, a large share of the foodservice market remains untapped for the plant-based meat industry with the potential to generate sustained and long-term growth across the next decade. Thanks to the team Food Frontier for this detailed analysis of the Australian market. https://lnkd.in/ggQ9r4Rb FoodFrontier-2023-State-of-the-Industry-report

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Curious how your food bank can benefit from PLANETARIANS? - High prices and inflation  - Limited purchasing power - Cultural and dietary needs How do food bank's procurement teams cope?! Check insights from Chris Costanzo in Food Bank News (TLDR: Planetarians made plant-based proteins more affordable than chicken) And come to our webinar to learn more: - Tue, Oct 15, 2024, 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM PST Webinar Link https://lnkd.in/gJs2Kp9T #affordable #sustainable #protein for #foodsecurity #climatechange

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Statista provides a great "wake up" for foodies in the US, where "local" often appears to be all the rage.....except that it matters more in most other countries! In the U.S. we can get a little myopic about consumer trends and interests, an understandable consequence of living and working in the world's most studied consumer marketplace...which means the most news stories about new studies and findings, and rarely compare the US to other markets https://lnkd.in/gPbf--8Q

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“Growing a CPG company, especially in the food and beverage space, ‘is astronomically harder today,’. ” Paul Voge you said it, man. So many truth bombs dropped in this article about the challenges and difficulties growing and scaling a CPG brand in today’s world. The cruel reality is that it takes a whole lot of money or a whole lot of time (and most times both) along with a fair amount of luck to have a chance at making it. If you dont have a ton of money then you better have a ton of time, some good fortune, and a product that can withstand many changes of the seasons (and "trends"). For most emerging brands today its all about survival and just finding a way.  There are lots of traps out there– lots of shiny objects– lots of vanity metrics hoping to be noticed and cared about–but at the end of the day sometimes its just about living to see another one. Here’s to all you day-to-dayers and week-to-weekers out there that are all just finding a way. Keep finding it.

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Not quite West Coast or New England–style, the reemerging label is confusing at best … For a long time, two regionally termed IPA subcategories have dominated U.S. beer cans: “West Coast” signaled clear and bracingly bitter with a piney, citrusy, resinous hop profile, and “New England” meant juicy, hazy and sweeter with tropical hops. Suddenly, however, a label that’s maintained alower profile since craft beer’s early days is showing up on more tap lists … muddying that understanding: “American IPA.” What even is this style? The name suggests some overarching combination of the two coastal substyles, a less-than-helpful and vague umbrella term, or, potentially, its own new thing. The answer, it seems, is all of the above. From the late 1970s into the 1990s, brewers started making IPAs based on their knowledge of English IPAs, but with an American twist. Thus “American IPA” made sense. But two things happened to erode that simple definition. For one, American craft beer took off, and American-brewed IPAs overtook English-style ones. For another, West Coast and New England substyles appeared, further delineating the category. “American IPA” all but disappeared as a label. Now, we’ve started to see the ‘American IPA’ return as a ‘style.” Yet did it ever really leave? While it’s agreed that an American IPA should not be hazy or as sweet as a New England IPA, an American IPA can still capture certain NEIPA notes with tropical fruit characteristics. “It can embody the West Coast’s visual clarity while incorporating the hop profile typical of the East Coast,” says Daniel Sickmen, head brewer at Virginia’s Lost Barrel Brewing, where an American IPA is a menu staple. The “American IPA” label leaves the door open for people to explore some range in terms of bitterness, sweetness, malt character and hop character, and learn what they like. For that reason, American IPA might at this point be more of a vibe than a style. It’s an IPA living in the middle of the tropical-sweet and piney-bitter extremes, open to brewer interpretation as well as to consumer discovery. It’s big, it’s bold, it’s intense. And you know it when you taste it. “The best IPAs are ones we drink with friends.” — Stephen Carter King Read the entire article at: Punch Drink .com Cheers🍻! #ConsumerBehavior #EmergingTrends #BrandAwareness #BusinessIntelligence #Beer #CraftBeer #IPA #AmericanIPA #Microbreweries #Pubs #Taprooms #Brewpubs ✦✦✦ Stephen Carter King Chief of Growth and Marketing and Strategy • Beer Market Analyst • Beerconomy & Co. CEO • Thought Catalyst • Sherpa • Advisor & Speaker sharing beer market trends, insights, forecasts and scoop via The Beerconomist

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Is your business targeting #GenZ coffee consumers? "Recent analyses, including insights from The Economist, have highlighted that Gen Z have a higher income than its predecessors, the #babyboomers and #millennials.  The article reports that a typical 25-year-old Gen Z-er (or Zoomer) has an annual household income of over $40,000, more than 50% above baby-boomers at the same age. While factoring in inflation and current cost of living might make these numbers less sensational, they still demonstrate that Gen Z holds considerable #economicpower." Check out today's article at Coffee Intelligence. Sarah Eleanor Charles spoke with William Dunaway about the preferences of Gen Z and millennial coffee consumers, as well as their priorities such as sustainability, community, brand building, and fun and exciting products. https://lnkd.in/e9NMCTqn

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The danger of generalization and lumping in natural foods with the overall food industry. It's true that UNFI is struggling and as I've said in previous posts I understand they have to grab for margin where they can. But this perspective is uninformed of the true breadth and complexity of chargebacks. I've always believed that execution can overcome competition and opex challenges. But UNFI/Kehe are the PRIMARY distributors for center-store small company natural foods, which encompasses Better-For-You products. Small brands would lose 80% of their distribution if they pulled out of these distributors. I saw someone say 'well would you rather have $1MM of profitable business vs $5MM of unprofitable business?' Seems obvious, but losing 80% of distribution would drive the cost of the other 20% up to unprofitable levels as well. I don't have the answers and will continue to execute and look for the right path, but I do think people should be aware of the situation. The pioneers of improving the food system, I think, no longer have good choices for growth without major equity funding. You have to be wicked-sharp, extremely disciplined, and maybe require great mentors or prior experience. Things will shake out and the system will find a balance. We're just not there yet.

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Kefir-- a fermented dairy beverage-- is rising in popularity. I weigh in on this good-for-you drink in this article via Layla Khoury-Hanold via Food Network where it takes about: --What is kefir? --How is kefir made? --What does kefir taste like? --Health benefits --The difference between kefir and yogurt --And of course, HOW to pronounce it!

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We are alternative under the adult beverage umbrella. At SōRSE Technology, we've always considered ourselves as a food and beverage ingredient technology company versus a "cannabis company". Many of our clients identify more with the general beverage industry than the cannabis industry - And many of our target customers (when it comes to low dose beverages) don't identify as a cannabis consumer yet either! The positioning of the Adult Beverage Alliance is spot on and helping us align more with alcohol and other adult beverage alternatives. If you're in Massachusetts, check out this association and how you can get involved. https://lnkd.in/euuiBaAJ #drinkcannabis Craft Collective, Inc. Atlantic Beverage Distributors Cannabis Beverage Association Hemp Beverage Alliance

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New survey data out from International Food Information Council about Americans and snacking. Main findings: - Almost 9 out of 10 Americans call what they eat or drink between meals a “snack.” - More than 4 in 10 Americans say they feel content and/or happy when snacking. - Americans typically snack on sweet, salty, and crunchy foods, and nearly half include a beverage. - Half of Americans do not set calorie goals when snacking. - 2 in 3 Americans say their snacks are more likely to be spontaneous than planned. - Among the five good groups, most American snackers seek fruit in their snacks followed equally by protein and/or grains. - More than 4 in 10 Americans say their typical snack satisfies their hunger between meals and is an extra treat. - Americans choose their typical snack to satisfy hunger, a specific taste, and/or desire for convenience. The stat that stands out to me most is that 2 in 3 Americans say their snacks are spontaneous. What I wonder is if the "trigger" to snack is physical hunger? Being in an environment of plentiful food? Stress? Fatigue? Boredom? Etc. What do you think about the spontaneous nature of snacking? #food #diet #health #nutrition #foodscapefinds https://lnkd.in/gUujmNFS

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We’re onto something BIG at Step Change Innovations... Navigating the functional food and supplement space is overwhelming. It’s fragmented and frustrating for science-backed ingredient companies and independent retailers alike. Here’s what we’ve noticed: ⛔ Independent retailers are stuck with outdated, cookie-cutter private-label programs that fail to connect with wellness-focused consumers ⛔ Science-backed ingredient companies struggle to secure early wins, often stuck in lengthy enterprise CPG launches that slow momentum What if we could fix this together? These challenges are two sides of the same coin, creating an opportunity for something bold: ✨ Exclusive black label innovation ✨ This isn’t about the tired, "me-too" private-label programs of the past. It’s a new solution, focused on wellness powered by science backed ingredients and structured with purpose: ✅ For Retailers: On-trend, value-driven products to meet growing wellness demand, faster and with less complexity ✅ For Ingredient Companies: A platform to showcase your technology and connect with consumers and retailers who care Introducing our WellWerks / NuWerks line and program launching nationwide in January 2025. This isn’t just about selling products. It's about creating real connections and driving meaningful differentiation. More announcements around this launch are coming. Trust me, if you are an ingredient company or independent grocer this is a movement you’ll want to be part of. #Innovation #ControlLabel #RetailTrends #Wellwerks #StepChangeInnovations #PLMA #privatelabel #ingredients #sciencebackedingredients #storebrands #independentgrocery #progressivegrocer #naturalproducts

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The #coffee prosumer market is evolving. "#Coffee is one of the most consumed beverages in the world. In fact, in the National Coffee Association USA’s most recent 2024 National Coffee Data Trends report, 67% of US adults said they drank coffee the previous day – marking a 20-year high for #coffeeconsumption in the country. The report also found that US specialty coffee consumption was up by 7.5% on the previous year, with #espresso-based drinks leading the trend. So as the global specialty coffee market grows, so too does consumer knowledge and interest – especially alongside a huge focus on #consumereducation following the pandemic." This article has great insights and data you can't miss. Matthew Hill spoke with Josh Hockin, Head of Coffee at Eight Ounce Coffee Co to learn more about how the coffee prosumer market has changed and how it could evolve further. https://lnkd.in/e3gi-_J6

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In light of the recent Poppi lawsuit, this article in FoodNavigator is a great read for brands looking to enter the functional food space. "27% of consumers actively distrust food manufacturers." As a brand, its crucial to ensure the claims you make align with the functional ingredients' effective dosages to ensure product claims are genuine and trustworthy. read more about functional foods here:https://bit.ly/3XkMATx Donna Eastlake #functionalfoods #functionalingredients #healthclaims #brandvalues

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https://lnkd.in/guWHQbA6 - Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna (FL-13) has introduced what would be a paradigm-shifting legislative package intended to improve the dietary health of Americans by banning high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and certain color additives in foods produced in the U.S. The legislative package includes two distinct acts: the Stop Spoonfuls of Fake Sugar Act and the Do or Dye Act. The Do or Dye Act targets toxic food dyes like Red No. 40 and Yellow Nos. 5 and 6. There is already mounting pressure to place further scrutiny on these chemicals, some of which have been restricted in the EU and elsewhere. The primary focus of the Stop Spoonfuls of Fake Sugar Act is to restrict the use of HFCS, which is often alleged to promote obesity and other chronic health issues. Does this go to far in the fight against #addedsugar - or not far enough?

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Going Seed Oil Free will be a significant movement in the health-conscious food space over the next decade. Julia Mills, Mintel's analyst for U.S. Food and Drink Reports, notes a 150% increase in "made with olive oil" claims and an 825% surge in "made with avocado oil" claims from 2019 to 2023. However, studies from the FDA and UC Davis reveal that over 25% of extra virgin olive oil and nearly 70% of avocado oil in the US supply chain are adulterated with cheaper seed oils (https://lnkd.in/ev57JBuy) like soybean, corn, or canola, underscoring widespread cooking oil fraud. As the food industry evolves and more brands and consumers are choosing premium oils, The Seed Oil Free Alliance will ensure this shift is transparent and verified through rigorous independent lab testing, auditing, and more. #seedoilfreecertified #cookingoils #ingredient #integrity

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The #CocoaShortage and associated price hikes are a significant challenge for #foodbrands and #beverage #CPGs that rely on the popular ingredient. Last week, Ryan Daily shared how one #startup -- Love + Chew Brands -- is rethinking its sourcing strategy to strategically grow in #WholeFoods stores in the coming months. Check out Founder Lauren C.'s approach to sourcing #cocoa reliably and innovating despite supply challenges: https://lnkd.in/emXjPu6y

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Millennials make purchasing decisions that reflect their ethical beliefs and budget constraints. Brands can cater to Millennials' ethical and budget preferences by offering functional foods and multi-benefit products. These products not only resonate with the health and wellness values of Millennials but also provide significant additional value, making them highly appealing to this cost-conscious demographic. As Millennials seek products that align with their values without breaking the bank, there’s a unique opportunity for innovation in the functional food sector. Understanding this shift is key to meeting their expectations. Read more about this consumer group here: https://bit.ly/3VCHrDQ FoodNavigator USA Ryan Daily #valueshoppers #consciousconsumers #functionalfoods

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Big Heart Tea Co. Minty Blue was just featured on Whole Foods Market 2025 Trend Report! And I can’t even begin to tell you what this means to me, but I’ll try. In 2016, I was at a real crossroads with my tea business. Back then, it was still called Retrailer Tea (horrible name in hindsight, but hey, we sold tea out of a trailer, so it made sense to nobody but me). The world felt so divided, my social feeds were filled with negativity, and on top of that, I had a 2-year-old at home. Farmers markets weren’t cutting it anymore as a revenue stream, and I saw two options—close the business or go big. That’s when I saw Whole Foods’ 2017 Market Trend Report featuring tulsi and turmeric—two key ingredients in our Cup of Sunshine blend. I thought, “We’re on trend. Maybe I know what I’m doing.” So, I began crafting a plan to take my small, local tea company national. I renamed the company Big Heart because of tea’s natural power to bring people together and started doing some very DIY market research—literally hanging out in the tea aisle at Whole Foods. I spent hours observing the brands on the shelves and quickly realized that while all the teas were high-quality and value-based, none of the packaging spoke to me as a millennial who loves beautiful branding. So, I decided to create a tea company that spoke directly to its customers through both the quality of its ingredients and the design of its packaging. Here’s where the doubts came in. I told all my friends and family that our value prop was brand, and while they supported me, nobody fully understood what I meant. They couldn’t quite see the vision, but that was okay, because I did. I went all in, and in March 2017, we launched Big Heart Tea Co. Almost immediately, we started filling orders from early market adopters, specialty retailers, and small businesses. In a crowded tea market, our brand set us apart. Buyers constantly complimented our packaging, which got their attention first, but once they tasted the tea—simple blends made with whole, natural ingredients—they’d say, “And it tastes good, too!” Dare I say, we became the total package. As the company grew, we onboarded national accounts that further validated our position in the market. Every year, I reviewed Whole Foods’ market trend reports for continued validation and inspiration. For us, that report became a North Star, since the Whole Foods customer was always our target. Many of the herbs, flowers, and spices we use have been featured over the years. Now, to be featured in the 2025 report with our Minty Blue tea feels like a full-circle moment. I’m so honored and proud of what we’ve built—a company that has so much of my heart and soul wrapped up in it. Thank you for seeing us, the little Big Heart that could.

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