Pruning Process: 7 consumer goods producers buy and sell to grow

Procter & Gamble sold Duracell and is divesting 40-plus beauty brands; Clorox sold car cleaners and bought Renew Life probiotics; General Mills sold Green Giant and bought Epic Provisions…READ MORE

Faith Accompli: Are marketeers keeping pace with ‘faith’ consumers?

During the month of fasting leading to Ramzan Id, the usually busy Mumbai streets such as Mohammed Ali Road get even busier. A host of food stalls selling everything from mouth-watering biryani to delicious malpuas serve hordes of customers. The rush of customers includes not only the Muslim devout breaking their fast but also food lovers from outside the faith…READ MORE

Showrooming as a grocery solution

Nadia Shouraboura, founder and CEO of Hointer Inc., a retail technology consultancy, shared her experience in adapting her own – now successful – retail business, with proprietary technology and a warehouse mentality, with attendees at PULSE, an event that took place within FMI Connect in Chicago…READ MORE

The $3.5 bn food business everyone is drooling over

For generations, beleaguered parents have implored their children to eat more vegetables. The message finally took hold with millennials, who are, in turn, driving a broader consumer shift towards cleaner, plant-based food. And according to findings in one Wall Street analysis, this drift away from red meat and towards healthier alternatives could benefit more than American waistlines. It could spur growth at traditional food giants — like WhiteWave Foods, Hormel and General Mills — that are acquiring and investing in plant-powered products…READ MORE

The fast food fixation

Fast food is certainly convenient. Large chains have perfected the art of taking an order, serving you and finishing the billing in an amazingly short period of time. When in a hurry, one can eat a meal in a few minutes and get right back to work. Alternatively, those with time can linger over a coffee or a cold beverage for extended lengths of time. No wonder that fast food establishments mushroom all over the world. Because they’re standardised, they usually provide a reasonably sanitary atmosphere with hygienic food and often good toilet facilities. And if not in India, they are relatively cheap abroad…READ MORE

How food and beverage industry can help global water conservation efforts

By a rough estimate we use around 70 per cent of all freshwater available for agriculture and allied activities while industrial sector absorbs another 20 per cent, leaving just about 10 per cent for domestic use. But this supply dynamics cannot remain static with the ever growing population. From where are we going to get this additional supply?…READ MORE

Pizza Hut just signaled a terrifying reality for fast-food workers

A former McDonald’s CEO warned this week that companies will replace human workers with robots if the minimum wage is raised above $15.But that possibility has already become a reality for Pizza Hut waiters…READ MORE

Food safety labs in poor health

The recent scare about the presence of possible cancer-causing ingredients in bread refocusses attention on the state of food safety laboratories across India. A round-up from the States presents a rather disquieting picture…READ MORE

Putting millets on the menu

For decades, the International Crops Research Institute for Semi Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) has been working with farmers in Africa and India to develop crops that can stand drought and, climate-change to improve incomes. Now the Institute is all set to launch a campaign to connect with consumers and find a market for these produce…READ MORE

A reality check on Patanjali

The media and analysts will agree that the top bosses of multinationals in India tend to be boring, strait-laced and politically correct. This is probably why Baba Ramdev, yoga guru, brand ambassador and maverick founder of Patanjali Ayurved, has been getting such rave reviews. He cheerfully does headstands while posing for press shoots, rants against MNCs for conspiring against him and ‘looting’ India, and puts forth revenue targets that are four times his last reported sales…READ MORE