Snack trends: Nutrient-dense grazing hitting its stride
Snack brands are targeting fluid eating occasions with products that deliver nutrition in smaller portable formats, aligning with healthier snacking trends to suit busier lifestyles
Consumers are increasingly replacing fixed meals with smaller eating occasions, pushing snack brands to develop products that deliver satiety, nutrition, and convenience in portable formats.
Not Just a Flavour Strategy: How KitKat Embedded Itself in Japanese Culture
From ‘Japanisation’ to deep cultural alignment, Nestlé KitKat is one of the few foreign brands to have thoroughly cracked Japan’s competitive chocolate market
According to Nestlé Japan Business Executive Officer (BEO) for Confectionery Olivier Jakubowicz, much of this success has revolved around a deep level of localisation.
“Any global brand that wants to truly become integrated in Japan has to Japanise itself, there is no way around it,” Jakubowicz told the floor at the recent Food and Beverage Innovation Forum (FBIF) in Hangzhou, China.
Chewable beauty: Convenience meets functionality in amazake jelly sticks
Snack brand Hananomi transforms the traditional amazake drink into convenient jelly strips to boost gut and skin health for busy consumers
Hananomi LLC taps the functional benefits of amazake – a traditional drink made from fermented rice or sake lees – to create a convenient jelly format for on-the-go consumption.
South Korea on ‘unfair’ online ads: Helping food firms avoid snags
The South Korean government has published an in-depth handbook on Unfair Online Advertising in a bid to further manage how food products are sold online
South Korea has been facing increasing controversy in the areas of contactless or online food sales, ranging from food safety concerns to what has been deemed as ‘unfair online advertising’ locally.
Young and sweet: Apple cider vinegar reinvented as RTD drinks
Shandong-based Lv Jie launches RTD apple cider vinegar with apple juice and prebiotics – a younger, tastier makeover to attract younger consumers
The company markets one of its products under the “Vinegar Fairy” or “Xiao Xian” concept, positioning it primarily at female consumers and those interested in wellness and beauty-from-within trends.
Lv Jie’s newer products include portable 15ml sachets and 200ml canned beverages targeted particularly at younger consumers seeking convenient functional wellness beverages.
