McDonald's food and drinks consumption inside restaurant.

What do McDonald’s Q2 results mean for the F&B ingredients industry?

McDonald’s second-quarter results suggest growing opportunities in beverages and chicken. However, suppliers are also likely to face more pressure to control costs, deliver consistent quality, and make products easy for restaurants to prepare. Global comparable sales rose 1.3% in the quarter, including gains of 0.8% in the US, 1.5% in international operated markets, and 1.9% in international developmental licensed markets. Revenue increased 4% to US$7.1 billion, while systemwide sales climbed 5% to US$37 billion. Diluted earnings per share rose 6% to US$3.32. 
California Natural Color colors on cupcakes.
Color innovation breakthroughs push natural shades beyond the performance gap
Natural food colors are evolving from imperfect substitutes for synthetic dyes into high-performing tools that can help food and beverage products stand out. As regulators intensify scrutiny of synthetic dyes and consumers seek cleaner, more recognizable ingredient lists, suppliers are applying fermentation, encapsulation, plant breeding, advanced extraction, and application-specific formulation to solve the industry’s toughest performance problems.
Adams Berzins, Ingredion’s senior manager for sugar reduction.
Ingredion sugar reduction expert: How stevia and sweet proteins close savory formulation gaps
Sugar appears in products consumers rarely associate with sweetness, including ready meals, sauces, and marinades. Modern shoppers recognize this and increasingly want the ingredient reduced. They also expect no loss of taste in return. Ingredion’s research finds that the majority of consumers in the US and Canada consider reduced-sugar claims important when selecting ready meals. 
Image with colorful graphics representing AI driven innovation and colors in food industry
How AI Can Accelerate Reformulation with Natural Colours
Replacing synthetic dyes with natural colours is rarely a simple one-to-one switch. Discover how Döhler’s AI-supported colour-matching tool predicts achievable shades, identifies suitable blends and recommends precise dosages within minutes. The paper shows how digital colour modelling can reduce laboratory iterations, accelerate reformulation and support more confident and faster product-development decisions.This Technical Paper is brought to you by Döhler.
AGRANA Fruit webinar promotional graphic showing a shopper reading a label beside text about gaps in functional F&B
When Healthy Isn't Enough: What's Missing in Today's Functional F&B?
As consumer demand for functional food and beverage products continues to rise, delivering health benefits is no longer a differentiator, it’s an expectation. But while brands compete on claims, many overlook a critical driver of repeat purchase: enjoyment.Taste, texture and sensory excitement often fall short, leaving consumers with products that are good for them, but not compelling enough to come back to. In this webinar, we explore the missing link in today’s functional F&B landscape: “fun.” Why is indulgence still important alongside functionality in many categories and how can brands bridge the gap between nutrition and pleasure without compromising on either.Join us as we unpack emerging consumer expectations, highlight key trends, and demonstrate how a holistic approach to product development can unlock both health and indulgence. Discover why the future of functional F&B lies in both what products do and how they make people feel.
Erika Milczek, Curie Co.
IFT FIRST 2026: Curie Co boosts dairy yields with protein-stabilizing enzyme

Erika Milczek, founder and CEO of Curie Co, presents Curabind, a clean label enzyme designed to stabilize proteins by increasing the number of bonds. Milczek says the enzyme can improve cheese curd yields by up to 11% and strained yogurt mass by 25%, while supporting longer shelf life. She also highlights its potential to replace gums, hydrocolloids, and modified starches.

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Ingredion Q2 results show texture and health solutions outpacing core...
Ingredion booth at trade show.
Ingredion’s Texture & Healthful Solutions business recorded its ninth consecutive quarter of sales volume growth, even as softer food and beverage demand and operational disruption weighed on its traditional North American ingredients portfolio. The company’s Q2 2026 results, released today, suggest that manufacturers are still investing in clean label, texture, and health-oriented formulation, while demand for more traditional, high-volume ingredients remains subdued.
ADM’s Flavors lifts Nutrition segment as crushing and ethanol drive Q2 growth
ADM signpost on building.
ADM reports continued momentum across its ingredients businesses, with its second-quarter 2026 results showing stronger performance in areas including human nutrition, flavors, and value-added ingredient solutions.
Ahold Delhaize Q2 results highlight ingredient opportunities in private-label...
Albert Heijn shelves.
Ahold Delhaize’s second-quarter 2026 results suggest the biggest takeaway for ingredient suppliers lies beyond the retailer’s modest sales growth. While net sales rose 1.9% at constant exchange rates during Q2, the more significant development is the continued expansion of private label, with own-brand food penetration increasing by 0.7 percentage points to exceed 40% across the group.
AI enters the food lab: The rise of predictive ingredient development
AI-enhanced food ingredient innovation lab.
Artificial intelligence has moved beyond brainstorming and into the working infrastructure of F&B innovation. Ingredient suppliers, product developers, and major brands are using specialized systems to organize research, model formulations, predict ingredient behavior, interpret consumer signals, and reduce physical trials before commercialization. Before reaching the bench, developers can use AI to eliminate obvious dead ends, compare competing constraints, and decide which formulations are worth testing.
Aleph Farms clears Singapore regulatory hurdle as cultivated beef nears...
Aleph Cuts from Israeli start-up Aleph Farms.
Israeli cultivated meat company Aleph Farms has secured regulatory approval from the Singapore Food Agency (SFA). The approval marks another milestone in the commercialization of cultivated beef and reinforces Singapore’s position as a global leader in alternative protein regulation.
Synergy Flavors taps taste modulation for high-protein and low-sugar drinks
Sugar cubes in a glass

Nutrition Insight

Amid a consumer demand for healthier, reduced-sugar drinks and high-protein options, Synergy Flavors highlights the importance of taste modulation. The company says its Smart Sugar Control technologies can improve sweetness perception in beverages with limited or zero sugar. Solutions within this proprietary platform are designed to influence how consumers perceive a product’s sensory attributes, such as sweetness, mouthfeel, texture, and aftertaste. The company explains that taste modulation can reduce the presence of off-notes and undesirable textures, such as the astringency or “chalkiness” common to high-protein beverages or the unpleasant taste left by some synthetic sweeteners, to offer a “cleaner” taste.
Highlighted features
Chia seed pudding with mango in glass jars.
New Product Development
Mango innovation accelerates as ingredient variability...
Mango is moving beyond its traditional role as a familiar tropical flavor. Manufacturers are repositioning it across functional beverages, frozen desserts, pastries, and globally inspired flavor combinations. However, as demand expands into more technical applications, suppliers are challenged with delivering authentic mango character with the consistency industrial production requires. Innova Market Insights data suggests that global F&B launches featuring mango flavor recorded a 10% CAGR from July 2021 to June 2026. Juices and Nectars remain mango’s largest launch subcategory. However, some of the fastest growth is occurring elsewhere, including Frozen Desserts, Cakes and Pastries, Water-based Ice Lollies, Pops & Sorbets, and Iced Tea.
Rousselot booth at IFT FIRST 2026
Food Ingredients News
Protein under pressure: Solutions for rising whey costs
Whey demand is outpacing supply, pushing prices upward as consumer interest in protein continues to boom. As many as 80% of consumers said they “pay attention to protein” in their diet, according to a 2026 Innova Market Insights survey. Just over half said a “high in protein” claim was their most important consideration when choosing food and drinks as protein sources.
California Natural Color colors on cupcakes.
Special report
Color innovation breakthroughs push natural shades beyond...
Natural food colors are evolving from imperfect substitutes for synthetic dyes into high-performing tools that can help food and beverage products stand out. As regulators intensify scrutiny of synthetic dyes and consumers seek cleaner, more recognizable ingredient lists, suppliers are applying fermentation, encapsulation, plant breeding, advanced extraction, and application-specific formulation to solve the industry’s toughest performance problems.

Ingredient focus

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Effective sweetener solutionsAug2026

Innova Market Insights data indicates that consumers are actively reducing sugar to eat healthier. As demand for healthier F&B options grows, brands are reformulating products and exploring new sw...

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New frontiers in protein Aug 2026

Innova Market Insights data indicates a 6% average annual growth in F&B launches with protein ingredients and high/source of protein claims between April 2021 and March 2026. The top subcategories were Cereal, Dairy, and Meat Substitutes. Soup and hot drinks with protein ingredients were emerging. The top protein ingredients were milk protein, pea protein, and soy protein isolate.

Trend analysis

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What’s next in Desserts and Ice Cream?Aug 2026

Innova Market Insights data shows that flavor still plays a vital role in ice cream and dessert choices, with the category growing at a 4% CAGR from July 2021 to June 2026. While ice cream accounts for the largest share of these launches, toppings and flavor combinations are becoming more creative areas for NPD. Sour flavors are also gaining attention in desserts, growing by 132% over the past five years globally.

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Erika Milczek, Curie Co.
Video06:06
IFT FIRST 2026: Curie Co boosts dairy yields with protein-stabilizing enzyme

Erika Milczek, founder and CEO of Curie Co, presents Curabind, a clean label enzyme designed to stabilize proteins by increasing the number of bonds. Milczek says the enzyme can improve cheese curd yields by up to 11% and strained yogurt mass by 25%, while supporting longer shelf life. She also...

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IFT FIRST 2026: Nexira launches Eficacia Advanced to cut costs with lower dosage
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IFT FIRST 2026: AAK spotlights specialty fats in deconstructed Dubai-style chocolate
Hans Brand, Revyve
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IFT FIRST 2026: Revyve cuts sauce formulation costs with yeast protein
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