In this week's food industry news in 2 minutes, we examine the growing concern surrounding retail shrink in America.

In this week's food industry news in 2 minutes, we examine the government shutdown's impact on the U.S. restaurant industry.

As the leading consumer products accelerator, SKU has helped launch and scale some of the most innovative brands in CPG. At the center of that mission is Michelle Breyer, SKU’s Chief Marketing Officer and a serial entrepreneur who knows what it takes to build lasting consumer brands.

In this episode, Michelle shares how SKU empowers founders to navigate early-stage challenges, the marketing strategies that separate breakout brands from the rest, and why mentorship remains the foundation of SKU’s success. She also offers a look ahead at the trends and categories poised to define the next decade of CPG innovation.

More about Michelle Bryer:

Michelle Breyer is a visionary entrepreneur who took a personal frustration over her curly hair and built it into NaturallyCurly — the largest social-media platform for hair. She was named one of the 50 Most Influential People in the Multicultural Market by Women's Wear Daily.

Since it was founded in 1998, NaturallyCurly company grew to include an ecommerce site, a consumer insights division and an experiential marketing company. The company has worked with numerous companies, including L’Oreal, Unilever, Walmart and Sephora to help them develop, launch, position and merchandise the products to this valuable consumer. The company developed the popular curl type system that now is the standard for the industry. NaturallyCurly was acquired in 2018 by Essence Ventures. Michelle is an advisor and mentor for several haircare brands.

Before launching NaturallyCurly, Michelle was a business reporter with daily newspapers in Texas and California, focusing on retail, real estate and consumer products. A year-long special project on the explosive growth of Whole Foods Markets won several state and national awards.

Michelle currently is the Chief Marketing Officer at SKU, the nation’s first CPG accelerator. She joined SKU as a mentor, working with emerging brands to help them scale.

More about SKU:

We educate and equip market-validated consumer product companies for growth into world class brands. Learn more at: https://sku.is/

In this week's food industry news in 2 minutes, we examine how tariffs are influencing consumer cutbacks in America.

Is the future of flavor increasingly borderless? Valda Coryat, vice president of marketing for condiments and sauces at McCormick, reveals how curiosity powers McCormick’s flavor foresight, why segmentation by “flavor personality” matters, and how flavors are becoming more culturally driven.

More about Valda Coryat:

More about McCormick:

McCormick & Company, Inc. is a global leader in flavor. With our diverse and balanced flavor portfolio, we are ideally positioned to meet the increasing demand for flavor around the world. Learn more at https://www.mccormickcorporation.com/.

What does it take to lead innovation for some of the world’s most beloved snack brands? And how do you balance creativity, technology, and sustainability to shape the future of food?

In this episode of Food for Thought Leadership, The Food Institute’s Rebecca Fryer sits down with Dr. Deepali Palta, vice president of Global R&D, Innovation, and Sustainability at Kellanova, for a deep dive into the science, strategy, and spirit driving the next generation of food innovation.

Dr. Palta shares how her leadership philosophy—rooted in curiosity, courage, and connection—guides her team to reimagine iconic brands like Cheez-It and Pringles for a global audience. She discusses Kellanova’s mission to unite innovation and sustainability, its “CBT” framework (Consumer, Business, and Technology), and how responsible use of digital tools and AI is transforming how food companies innovate. Additionally, the pair explores what it means to lead with purpose in a rapidly changing industry—balancing data with human insight, honoring brand legacies while embracing disruption, and building a more connected, sustainable future for food worldwide.

More about Dr. Deepali Palta:

Dr. Deepali Palta is Vice President of Global R&D Innovation & Sustainability for Kellanova, previously Kellogg Company.  In this role, Dr. Palta drives a science and technology-led agenda with her team to deliver consumer-centric top and bottom-line innovation pipeline while advancing Kellanova’s packaging sustainability agenda forward.

She joined Kellanova/Kellogg in November 2021. Since then, she has led the Wellness agenda and Global Value Transformation agenda delivering both in-year savings and robust pipeline for the future. Prior to joining Kellogg, Dr. Palta worked with PepsiCo for 14 years. During her tenure, she worked across multiple geographies (North America, Europe and Africa) and multiple brands to support and lead R&D strategy, product development, and packaging sustainability. Her last role took her to UK where she led the West Europe Regional Snacks R&D and was accountable to deliver $2.7 Bn Snacks portfolio across 16 countries.

She is an executive advisor for Women of Kellanova business employee resource group committed to co company’s vision of gender parity. She is a STEMinist and serves on the board of Illinois Science and Technology Coalition to cultivate innovation and technology-based economic development in Illinois.

She holds M.S. in Engineering from IIT Delhi and a Ph.D. in Polymer and Material Science from Georgia Tech.

More about Kellanova:

Kellanova is a leading company in global snacking, international cereal and noodles, plant-based foods and North American frozen breakfast, with iconic, world-class brands.

Kellanova's strategy pushes us to pursue differentiation in everything we do. It drives us to continuous improvement and more impactful ways of winning. And it focuses us on delivering our commitments to our investors, our suppliers, our customers, our communities and our employees. Learn more here: https://www.kellanova.com/

What does it take to lead innovation for some of the world’s most beloved snack brands? And how do you balance creativity, technology, and sustainability to shape the future of food?

In this episode of Food for Thought Leadership, The Food Institute’s Rebecca Fryer sits down with Dr. Deepali Palta, vice president of Global R&D, Innovation, and Sustainability at Kellanova, for a deep dive into the science, strategy, and spirit driving the next generation of food innovation.

Dr. Palta shares how her leadership philosophy—rooted in curiosity, courage, and connection—guides her team to reimagine iconic brands like Cheez-It and Pringles for a global audience. She discusses Kellanova’s mission to unite innovation and sustainability, its “CBT” framework (Consumer, Business, and Technology), and how responsible use of digital tools and AI is transforming how food companies innovate. Additionally, the pair explores what it means to lead with purpose in a rapidly changing industry—balancing data with human insight, honoring brand legacies while embracing disruption, and building a more connected, sustainable future for food worldwide.

More about Dr. Deepali Palta:

Dr. Deepali Palta is Vice President of Global R&D Innovation & Sustainability for Kellanova, previously Kellogg Company.  In this role, Dr. Palta drives a science and technology-led agenda with her team to deliver consumer-centric top and bottom-line innovation pipeline while advancing Kellanova’s packaging sustainability agenda forward.

She joined Kellanova/Kellogg in November 2021. Since then, she has led the Wellness agenda and Global Value Transformation agenda delivering both in-year savings and robust pipeline for the future. Prior to joining Kellogg, Dr. Palta worked with PepsiCo for 14 years. During her tenure, she worked across multiple geographies (North America, Europe and Africa) and multiple brands to support and lead R&D strategy, product development, and packaging sustainability. Her last role took her to UK where she led the West Europe Regional Snacks R&D and was accountable to deliver $2.7 Bn Snacks portfolio across 16 countries.

She is an executive advisor for Women of Kellanova business employee resource group committed to co company’s vision of gender parity. She is a STEMinist and serves on the board of Illinois Science and Technology Coalition to cultivate innovation and technology-based economic development in Illinois.

She holds M.S. in Engineering from IIT Delhi and a Ph.D. in Polymer and Material Science from Georgia Tech.

More about Kellanova:

Kellanova is a leading company in global snacking, international cereal and noodles, plant-based foods and North American frozen breakfast, with iconic, world-class brands.

Kellanova's strategy pushes us to pursue differentiation in everything we do. It drives us to continuous improvement and more impactful ways of winning. And it focuses us on delivering our commitments to our investors, our suppliers, our customers, our communities and our employees. Learn more here: https://www.kellanova.com/

In this week's food industry news in 2 minutes, we examine a new trend that illustrates the financial struggles of many Americans: adults eating kids' meals.

This Episode is Sponsored by: City National Bank

Consumer demand for chicken is rising at home and away from home, but how can a company leverage this demand? City National Bank's Eric Viergutz steps in as guest host and interviews Wayne-Sanderson Farms CFO T.J. Wolfe on how feed prices, pathogenic diseases, and even air fryers are impacting the U.S. poultry industry.

More About T.J. Wolfe:

T.J. Wolfe serves as Wayne-Sanderson Farms’ Chief Financial Officer, overseeing the company’s consolidated financial planning activities and information technology functions. His focus is on the efficient allocation of capital across the production infrastructure, risk mitigation strategies for the company’s commodity portfolio, and the advancement of digital technology platforms and capabilities. T.J. and his team partner with each of the company’s business units to provide financial insights and enhance the value offered to customers.

Joining the company as CFO in 2023, T.J. brings nearly 25 years of strategic, operational, and compliance experience in both the U.S. and Europe, having worked with large companies such as Delta Air Lines and Coca-Cola. Prior to joining Wayne-Sanderson Farms, he served as CFO of Kimball International, Inc.

He received his Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Notre Dame and earned his Master of Business Administration from Emory University. Additionally, T.J. holds several professional accreditations, including Certified Public Accountant and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst.

More About Eric Viergutz:

Eric Viergutz is a managing director with City National Bank’s Food & Beverage Group. Based in Atlanta, GA he supports food and beverage executives with a variety of financing solutions and industry intelligence. Working with City National’s team of experts, he provides the bank’s full range of financial solutions to food and beverage businesses nationwide.

Mr. Viergutz has more than 10 years of financial services and business advisory experience and has also served in various corporate finance and strategy roles over his career. Prior to City National, he served as senior vice president for Truist Securities’ Food and Beverage Investment Banking team.

Mr. Viergutz earned his bachelor’s degree in finance from the University of Florida and his MBA from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. Active in the community, he spends time coaching youth basketball and volunteering with Youth About Business and United Way of Atlanta.

More About City National Bank:

City National Bank is a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada since 2015. RBC’s Market Cap of $181 Billion is one of the Top 15 largest global banks with $1.7 trillion in assets and Moody’s/S&P Ratings of Aa1/AA-. As a subsidiary of one of the largest and strongest financial institutions in the world, City National Bank offers a unique combination of highly personalized services with a full range of tailored financing solutions. CNB’s Food & Beverage Group is a national vertical that supports owners and c-suite executives and is a proud sponsor of the Food Institute. Learn more at http://cnb.com/foodandbeverage.

In this week's food industry news in 2 minutes, we examine the nearly $700 billion global snacks industry, which is leaning heavily into savory flavors in 2025.