NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg and reporters Lukas Southard and Adrianne DeLuca discussed what they saw, heard and tasted at Expo West 2023. The team talks about how the news of Silicon Valley Bank’s meltdown was received on the convention floor Friday and Saturday, how acquisitions announced during the event reflected broader trends in food and beverage manufacturing and the increasing desire by some brands to vertically integrate their supply chains. 

In this episode:

1:05 - Adrianne tells Carol and Lukas about all the kelp and millet brands she talked to Expo.

2:50 - The team discusses how SVB’s sudden dissolution impacts the CPG food space and insights on how this may impact the industry longer term. 

6:20 - Carol, Adrianne and Lukas talk about how the various acquisitions and strategic shifts announced at Expo West speak to broader trends in the industry.

11:15 - The team discusses how supply chains continue to be a topic of conversation among food producers. They then explore how nut suppliers are using their strengths in vertical integration to launch new, branded, packaged food products.

About the NOSH Podcast

The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food.

New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected].

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

On this week’s show, NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg, editor-in-chief Jeff Klineman and reporter Adrianne DeLuca talk about some notable, viral marketing campaigns as well as some tips, tricks and potential trends for Expo West. Later, Carol chats with Bobo’s CEO TJ McIntyre about the common missteps he believes brands make when they approach innovation and growth in tandem. 

Show Highlights:

02:22: The NOSH team talks through how Three Wishes used a TikTok trend to promote their own rebrand as well as the ‘nepo babies’ that appeared in Silk’s plant-based iteration of the iconic Got Milk campaign.

06:34: The discussion then shifts toward Expo West and the team shares some handy supplier sorting strategies, how they intend to tackle the troves of booths and what they are looking out for on the floor this year (Hint: Adrianne wants to meet all the millet makers)

21:10: TJ reigns in brand expectations about launching new innovations. He also explains why he believes introducing a new product to work your way out of business and financial troubles is a big mistake.

36:19: What happens to your margins when rapid innovation is the near-term goal? TJ said in his experience, the business quickly ends up building off pennies instead of cash and long term, can lead itself right to extinction.

“If you're going to come out with new innovation and put it into another category, don't believe in your own hype that people are going to follow you there.”

-TJ McIntyre, CEO at Bobo’s

About the NOSH Podcast

The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food.

New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected].

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

On this week’s show, NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg and reporter Adrianne DeLuca are joined by two CPG executives and mission-driven brand leaders – Seth Goldman, CEO of Eat the Change and Jane Miller, CEO of Rudi’s Bakery – to discuss the departure of Miyoko Schinner from her namesake alt-dairy brand, Miyoko’s Creamery. The group discusses the macro challenges of being an outspoken founder figure, personal beliefs on the function and value of a mission-aligned board of directors and shares advice on approaching venture capital investment.

Show Highlights:

03:45: The discussion kicks off with a look into Seth's own professional experiences taking venture capital, how these two CEOs have navigated complex working relationships within executive teams and why holding regular, open and honest conversations with those at the top becomes especially important as the brand grows into its own. 

08:05: Seth and Jane share their advice for fellow brand leaders on navigating the power dynamics that emerge when investment comes into play and how to ensure your stakeholders hold your company’s mission at heart.

15:19: The duo gets honest about the challenges entrepreneurs may face when scaling brands with a strong mission, complexities female founders face in this industry and explained why they believe a company’s founder should always be active in core decisions, serving as the guiding force and the brand’s champion throughout its lifecycle

25:50 Jane and Seth share their philosophy toward the function of a board and why this group of individuals should act as a support system and sounding board for a company’s leadership team. 

“Everybody should be on the same side, which is assuming the best [and] trying to get the company to the same place. When you start to create that environment of ‘my board members’ versus ‘your board members,’ you're not going to get anywhere good.” 

- Jane Miller, CEO of Rudi’s Bakehouse

"It's really valuable for [Miyoko's] vision to come to its fruition, for [her] to still be part of this…this is the visionary who created this brand and there's no more effective advocate [the board will] ever find...you've got to find a way to make her feel like she's part of this business… you want her to still be your advocate and champion."

 - Seth Goldman, CEO of Eat The Change

About the NOSH Podcast

The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food.

New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected].

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

On this week’s show, NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg, editor-in-chief Jeff Klineman and reporters Adrianne DeLuca and Lukas Southard chat about the rise of cauliflower, its place on Chick-fil-a's menu and the veggie’s larger role in branded and private label CPG. Later, we hear from Ted Wright, CEO of word of mouth marketing agency Fizz to hear how the business of face-to-face conversation, and the practice of friendly recommendations, has fared for brand builders throughout the pandemic

Show Highlights:

01:58: This week the NOSH team takes on cauliflower. While in the land of social media it's sometimes negatively referred to as ghost broccoli, the once-despised dinner table veggie has taken the vegan, vegetarian and keto sets by storm and the team sets out to determine the root cause of Cauliflower's lasting popularity.

23:22: Ted talks through brand building activities at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and how as consumer shopping habits shifted, certain products were able to shine and drive trial by properly executing word of mouth marketing tactics.

29:05: The age of influencers has not changed the playbook for Ted’s tried-and-true tactics either, he claims. Ted runs listeners through the proper use of influencers, how influencer impressions vary from true word of mouth tactics and why both methods are necessary for successful brand building.

“Conversation is the goal of all marketing in North America today. It is not broadcast. Nobody gives a bleeped out word about your ad… What they care about are stories that are authentic, interesting and relevant, that they can then share with their friends.”

-Ted Wright 

About The NOSH Podcast

The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food.

New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected].

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

This week, NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg, editor-in-chief Jeff Klineman and reporters Brad Avery and Lukas Southard discuss the team’s thoughts on eating breakfast cereal as adults. The group goes on to discuss the success of Asian-American, Pacific Islander CPG food brands. In the featured interview, Lukas gathered Wildtype CEO and co-founder Justin Kolbeck, journalist Michael Grunwald and Steve Molino of Clear Current Capital to discuss what's happening in cell-cultivated proteins.

Show Highlights:

00:45 – Carol asks Lukas about his cereal-eating habits leading to the team’s discussion about eating the breakfast staple as an adult, what constitutes “sugar” cereal and is there really a market for functional products in the category.

10:45 – Brad talks about his recent story highlighting some of the recent successes experienced by AAPI food brands and why Americans are craving more authentic, regional varieties of Asian foods.

16:15 – In the wake of the FDA granting Upside Foods regulatory approval of its cultivated meat product, Lukas talked to Justin Kolbeck, Michael Grunwald and Steve Molino about where the cell-cultivated meat industry is going in 2023. The panel discusses the role of intellectual property in the industry, the pace of regulatory approval and what the future might hold for the nascent food tech category.

“We all need to think very creatively about how we move faster, because the competition isn't (conventional) meat and seafood companies. It's not other cultivated companies. It's not plant based. It's climate change.”

-Justin Kolbeck, CEO and co-founder of Wildtype

About the NOSH Podcast

The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food.

New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected].

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

On this week’s show, NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg, editor-in-chief Jeff Klineman and reporters Adrianne DeLuca and Lukas Southard dish out some hot takes on the condiment set and give an update on some recent divestments and sales resulting from supply chain struggles. Later, we hear from Adam Spriggs, founder of The Angel Group, to gain insight from the investor and brand expert on how companies should approach positioning and branding in order to grow and flex throughout their lifecycle.  

Show Highlights:

02:10: This week’s topics get a bit saucy as the NOSH team shells out some controversial commentary and criticisms as they make their way down the condiment aisle including some lofty accusations against ketchup – is it a universal solvent or one-dimensional sauce?

10:32: The team then discusses the motives behind some recent divestments from big CPG players and how those actions compare to the supply network challenges facing Northeast organic dairy farmers.

19:45: Adam explains the oversight he sees many CPG entrepreneurs fall victim to and why he believes founders need to approach brand positioning with the mainstream consumers always in the back of their mind.

26:51: Later, Adam delves into how he analyzes a brand’s positioning and messaging strategies when assessing potential new investments, explaining that while a brand’s approach may always be rooted where it began, a founder has to be flexible to let that messaging evolve as the brand grows.

"Most CPG founders are innovating within echo chambers that are detached from the interests and comfort zones of the majority of shoppers...What we need more CPG entrepreneurs focusing on is just innovating within a sweet spot."

-Adam Spriggs, Founding Partner of The Angel Group

About the NOSH Podcast

The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food.

New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected].

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg, BevNET Editor-in-Chief Jeff Klineman and reporters Adrianne Delucca and Lukas Southard took some time to discuss the uproar in the plant-based meat industry over the last week. In the wake of Bloomberg’s in-depth story “Fake Meat Was Supposed to Save the World. It Became Just Another Fad,” the NOSH team discusses why it has put big name brands like Impossible Foods on the defensive and has caused the industry to take a hard look at the successes, failures and what the future holds for the plant-based meat industry.

About the NOSH Podcast

The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food.

New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected].

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

On this week’s show, NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg, editor-in-chief Jeff Klineman and reporter Adrianne DeLuca discuss the ‘Pie-pline’ of Hubigs from New Orleans, elsewhere, and the changing climate around keto-branded foods. Later, we hear from John Johnson, senior counsel at law firm Shook, Hardy and Bacon, to delve into a recent report from the Reagan Udall Foundation, its implications on the U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and potential solutions to systemic issues within the federal agency's human food program. 

Show Highlights:

01:15: The NOSH team discusses Jeff’s favorite New Orleans delicacy, complete with a history lesson. Then the team gets into the recent sale of baking mix brand Birch Benders and what the move may mean for keto-claiming companies. 

14:20: John explains that while the report highlighted many systemic issues the FDA has been grappling with for nearly a century, it failed to delineate between the two modes the agency operates within: day-to-day operations and crisis management. He suggests that if the agency wants to increase consumer confidence, it might be best to review its external communication plans. 

19:44: Later, John aims to correct the narrative around the 2011 Food Safety Modernization Act, which many claim was supposed to lead the agency toward preventative operations rather than reactionary when it came to food safety actions like recalls. 

“The deeper question [from the report] is how does the FDA effectively do its job, which gets to this metaphysical question of how does FDA know it's doing a good job in the food space? And the answer is an elusive concept of consumer confidence.”

• John Johnson, Shook, Hardy and Bacon

NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg, BevNET Editor-in-Chief Jeff Klineman and reporter Lukas Southard debate what is considered what food products should truly be called food technology, while others are perhaps just innovation. Jeff explains why the recent news of Oatly’s decision to move into a hybrid manufacturing structure with co-packer Ya YA foods is driving a discussion on social media over the merits of vertically- integrated production models. Later, Lukas interviewed Elohi Strategic Advisors founder Stephanie Lind to discuss the successes and failures of plant-based brands in foodservice.

In this episode:

1:00 - The NOSH team talks about their weekends and then unpacks what the term “food tech” actually means these days. They debate if the food tech industry is over-promising and under-delivering on innovation or if there is a need to set realistic expectations for its role in the greater CPG food space.

14:20 - Jeff discusses how Oatly’s move into a hybrid production model is creating a stir among industry leaders over vertically integrated versus horizontally integrated manufacturing.

17:35 - In this week’s interview, Lukas talks to Stephanie Lind about how foodservice could be a big winner (or pitfall) for emerging plant-based brands.

About the NOSH Podcast

The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food.

New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected].

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

NOSH editor Carol Ortenberg and reporter Lukas Southard discuss spending time and eating with family over the holidays. They then look back on the big stories of 2022 and how macro trends over the past year may provide insight as to what to expect in 2023. In this week’s interview, Carol talked to Coefficient Capital investor Natalie Borowski and Editor-in-Chief of The New Consumer Dan Frommer to discuss the most recent release of their ongoing Consumer Trends report. 

In this episode:

0:50 - Carol and Lukas talk about celebrating with family and their respective holiday eating traditions.

5:45 - Lukas makes some predictions about the future of plant-based meats in the year to come.

9:00 - Carol discusses how the investment landscape is expected to tighten this year but the opportunity it could provide for innovative brands.

14:40 - Carol talks with Coefficient Capital investor Natalie Borowski and Editor-in-Chief of The New Consumer Dan Frommer about their fourth quarter Consumer Trends report, which examined  consumer spending, perspectives and media habits in 2022 and how brands can use this data to plan for 2023. 

About the NOSH Podcast

The staff of NOSH.com takes listeners inside the business of natural, organic, sustainable and healthy food during the NOSH Podcast. Using interviews and discussion, the team illuminates the news, brands, people, trends, and money affecting the world of packaged food.

New episodes are released every week. Send us comments and suggestions anytime to [email protected].

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts