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🚨NOSH INSIDER WEEKLY: Kraft Heinz Does the Splits, Bachan's Rebrands, Snickers Dipping Sauces & More |
This week, we're wondering if a PepsiCo investor can convince the board to change its ways, looking at how foodservice can drive your retail sales, and getting saucy with some finest imported soybeans. But, more on all that below.
And, as conglomerates continue to trim the excess and focus on their codes, what does it mean for the various VC and accelerator arms that sprung up in recent years? The real MVPs Adrianne and Monica get philosophical here.
Alright! On with the Sunday newsletter.
FIRST UP! It's not you it's... actually yes it's definitely you: Krafting a new era as, in Heinzsight, maybe it was never meant to be? |
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🫨 Kraft Heinz Calls it Quits |
The $45BN megamerger that created one of the largest F&B companies in the world has come to an expected end with the news that Kraft is separating from Heinz writes Legals Editor Adrianne DeLuca live from the divorce court. | |
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The business with be split vertically, King Solomon style, into two new entities: - Global Taste Elevation Co, which generated some $15.4BN in net sales last year, will take the sauces and spreads (and for some reason Kraft Mac & Cheese)
- North American Grocery Co, which generated some $10.4BN during the same period, is dragging off back to its lair brands including Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables
Both new businesses will be formally named at a later date. While a search is on for a sauce boss, North American Grocery Co will continue to be led by current Kraft Heinz CEO Carlos Abrams Rivera. It's a complex topic so be sure to check out the deep dive on Nosh.com. 🥡 Key Takeaway: The board believes that efficencies and growth can be had by separating out the two companies. Like many conglomerates it's having a tough time: it's been reporting sales declines for more than a year and Lunchables has been through the wringer. Of course, it's not the only conglomerate to go splitsies (hi, Kellanova!) - but does the move make both companies open to takeovers? | |
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🦾 $4BN PepsiCo Investor Pushes for Change |
| Speaking of conglomerates sweating bricks a significant PepsiCo investor is pushing for strategic change in its beverage division writes Marriage Counselor Martín Caballero.
$4BN stakeholder Elliott Investment Management presented a five-point plan to the board on Tuesday outlining how the company can restructure itself to increase share values and and restore organic growth revenue.
Alongside requests for free bottled water and trail mix snack packs at shareholder meetings, the plan calls for a shift back to franchise bottling and to cut underperforming, non-core brands. | |
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👍 Meeting the Buyers & Leaders at Nosh Live |
| Some of the buyers and market leaders attending this year's Nosh Live as meeting hosts are starting to pour through and are now taking bookings for meetings with brand owners and founders.
Nosh Live attendees have the opportunity to privately meet one-to-one with experts including King Soopers/City Market Natural Foods/Multi-Cultural Category Manager Todd Davis and Carbone Fine Food CEO Eric Skae.
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🗣 Nombase: How Foodservice can Drive Retail Velocity |
Foodservice can be a tremendous opportunity for brands looking to drive velocity in retail and D2C, but where to start?
This week's Nombase Podcast sees Aaji's co-founders Poorva and Rajus Korde join Sol-ti VP of Business Development Clay Lichterman to explore opportunities and pitfalls in foodservice, how to target the right segments and how it can feed into greater retail sales.
Hosted by BevNET & Nosh Director of Community Melissa Traverse, the Nombase Podcast is like a warm CPG hug direct to your brain.
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🔊 CPG Week Podcast: The Kraft Heinz Breakup, Pepsi's Energy Drink Plans |
On this week's CPG Week podcast Nosh managing editor Monica Watrous and senior reporter Brad Avery take sides in the Kraft x Heinz divorce, before getting jittery about PepsiCo's increased ownership stake in Celsius (and the subsequent alignment of Rockstar to that biz). Later, the duo keep it on brand for PepsiCo as an investor pushes for change and round things off with King of the Hill inspired BBQ rubs, I tell you hwat.
Spin this week's podcast here. | |
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🍓 Juicy Quote |
| "We’re selling a Taiwanese expression, but artisanal, high-quality soy sauces have always existed on the market"
This week's umami flavor bomb comes courtesy of fermented soybeans expert Adrianne DeLuca who sat down with Heydoh co-founder Clarissa Wei to discuss artisanal soy sauce - and why that cheap stuff is engine oil to olive oil. | |
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While soy sauce is a carefully considered ingredient in many Asian countries, with different brands offering different profiles, US consumers haven't historically been overly picky (no hate to the 20 mini packets of Kikkoman in my fridge door). Heydoh is looking to change that with its first two SKU releases - Classic Soy Sauce 'for everything & anything' and Silky Soy Sauce 'for drizzling, dipping & finishing.'
Taking notes from the clean label movement, Heydoh's branding is clear and concise and even calls out the use of single-origin black soybeans and a lower sodium content. Cool!
This might seem familiar to Graza and certainly there's smiliarities in approaches. Heydoh is also unique for its category packaging - rectangular, long neck glass bottles with pop caps, decisions that Wei had to wrangle with manufacturers for.
Though only at a soft launch stage (the first shipment is expected in the coming weeks) the company has already sold over 1,000 bottles and is considering a targeted retail debut as it builds a D2C fanbase.
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🥑 Quick Bites |
The company is hoping to cut off headwinds by increasing cost saving targets and tackling steel tariffs before they hit writes Steel Baron Adrianne DeLuca. |
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📰 Jobs Market |
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🥔 Low and Slow Smokes it up at 7-Eleven |
Smoked snack stacker Low and Slow is making its c-store debut in 7-Eleven across Texas with Jalapeño and BBQ hickory-smoked cheese puffs writes Pitmaster Shauna Golden.
Where other brands capture the flavor of BBQ, Low and Slow actually smokes its chips (yes, really), a unique proposition if ever where was one. Its recently launched cheese puffs SKUs have quickly become top performers.
Aside from great branding the company has been clever in its retail rollout: its first national account was Home Depot and it has since expanded to ACE Hardware. While the brand is expanding in ecommerce co-founder/CEO Jared 'Frito-Lay' Drinkwater sees it as a necessary marketing stepping stone rather than a strategic revenue channel.
🥡 Key Takeaway: The potato chip market might be dominated by a handful of legacy brands (which in themselves have largely stalled in terms of sales) but it's the underside that's proving exciting. Growth is coming from the likes of Jackson's (+72.3% according to Circana) and Siete, whose alternative offerings are proving a draw. Low and Slow looks to be capturing that sentiment - expect further retail and a club rollout over the coming growth period. | |
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👀 ICYMI 👀 |
| A little more sweet & yucky than sweet & salty: Mars has teamed up with MVP star quarterback Josh Allen to launch a range of Snickers-based dipping sauces.
Available in Caramel Buffalo, Peanut Teriyaki and Cheddar Chocolate Barbecue flavors, each one is pretty much guaranteed to ruin a bucket of chicken wings. Hey: if I want a melted Snickers bar I'll leave it in my glove box, hmmkay? | |
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| AND FINALLY: Keeping it on the football field King's Hawaiian has teamed up with noted gourmand and pro chef Eli Manning to launch the pun of the season: this limited edition Football Season-ing (yeah!).
The perfectly innoffensive blend includes two types of salt, chili, garlic, onion and probably some other stuff. Ideal for fiber-filled delights like sliders and cheese dips - truly, fuel for the fans. | |
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