The latest food and beverage industry news and trend analysis

Ghirardelli is capitalising on the viral Dubai chocolate trend by launching a seasonal Strawberry Bliss dessert, blending premium pistachio and kataifi to drive footfall in its US retail shops.

Cargill and Voyage Foods have launched NextCoa, a cocoa-free confectionery alternative utilising grape seeds to deliver a 67% lower carbon footprint, targeting supply chain resilience and price stability in the North American B2B market.

Swiss technology group Bühler has launched its Edition 26 chocolate mass processing portfolio, introducing automated sensor technology and energy-efficient upgrades to its Finer S refiner and ELK S conche.

This collaboration fuses two brands to capitalise on "multi-sensory" snacking trends, utilising tactile contrasts and "mashup" innovation to capture the 2026 summer trading window.

Mars reveals its 2026 Halloween candy portfolio, focusing on innovative textures like freeze-dried SKITTLES and new seasonal shapes to meet evolving consumer snacking preferences.

HI-CHEW’s Walgreens exclusive 2-in-1 stick utilises dual-layer tech and a portfolio-wide packaging refresh to capture the high-growth adventurous snacking market.

General Mills is leveraging high-velocity social media trends and the "swicy" flavour movement to transition its fruit snack portfolio into the confectionery aisle, utilising high-intensity sensory profiles and clean-label formulations to capture the "kidult" and experimental snacking demographics.

TopGum’s $35M acquisition of PLD’s U.S. operations establishes it as a pharmaceutical gummy pioneer, utilising FDA-standard local manufacturing to scale into the generic drug sector.