Plant-based meat alternatives that serve as substitutes for hamburgers or chicken have hit the mainstream in a big way in the last month or two, with the Impossible and Beyond brands being at the forefront. These are plant-based alternatives to meat, which emulate the taste and feel of the real thing, as opposed to the […]
Archive | Food/Beverage
Sugar Rush
About a year ago, we wrote about sweet snacks making their way into the cereal category. That trend has intensified since then, with a long list of candy, ice cream, and cookie brands being licensed for breakfast cereals: General Mills debuted Nestlé Drumstick and Honey Maid S’More cereals, as well as Hershey’s Cookies ‘n’ Crème […]
Are Beignets The New Donut?
Donuts have had a strong presence in licensing and pop culture over the past few years. Owners of licensed properties have partnered for limited-edition flavors at donut chains, donut shops have extended their brands into other products, and donuts have been prominent design elements in fashion, stationery, and the like. Lately, however, it has begun […]
Latin Flavor
Last week MegaMex Foods, a joint venture between Herdez del Fuerte of Mexico and Hormel of the U.S., licensed its Herdez brand to Utz Quality Foods. Utz—which has distributed MegaMex Foods including Chi-Chi’s tortilla chips and Chi-Chi’s and Herdez salsas and dips since 2018—will now produce and market Herdez-branded white, yellow, and blue tortilla chips […]
Full of Beans
Three deals announced in the space of one week last month provide a handy illustration of the ways coffee-related brands have become active players in all types of licensing and collaboration: Brand extension. Costa Coffee, the U.K.-headquartered chain, became the latest example of coffee and coffee shop brands entering adjacent categories, especially ready-to-drink coffees. In […]
A Tumultuous Month for Meal Kits
A lot has happened in the constantly changing meal kit space in the last month or so, with some developments positive and some challenging. Taken together, these recent news items provide a snapshot of the current status of the meal kit business. This remains a category of interest to many licensors, especially in the celebrity, […]
Snap, Crackle, and Pop! (Vinyl)
Over the past year and a half, collectibles brands have been entering the breakfast cereal market. The products are intended to taste good, but also to serve as a collectible in their own right. They are often sold through retail outlets that focus on collectibles and other non-food products, rather than in supermarkets. Three notable […]
Tempted by Tasty Alternatives
Burger King revealed last week that it is testing the Impossible Burger, a plant-based meat substitute, as a potential addition to its menu. This is the latest example—and one of the most high-profile—of food and beverage marketers embracing products that can serve as replacements for meat and other staples. These items are meant to appeal […]
The ABCs of CBD
The licensing community’s interest in cannabis remains strong, but the emphasis of late has moved from products containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) to items containing cannabidiol (CBD). Both offer many of the same benefits, according to proponents, such as their ability to alleviate anxiety, ease pain, and reduce seizures. The primary difference is that THC, the main […]
Fresh Foods
Licensors are always looking to innovate by capitalizing on opportunities to pair a property with a rising consumer trend. That process can be more involved in the food industry than in other categories. But a handful of current food and beverage trends—some of which have been around for a while—are starting to spur the development […]