Banner with making fruit perform title, featuring fruit cubes and a glass of fruit juice and a company logo on the left side
scientists working in lab

FaBA MakerSpace: The innovation hub that could power Australia’s food start-up ecosystem

The University of Queensland in Australia has unveiled Food and Beverage Accelerator (FaBA) MakerSpace to speed up product development and boost industry collaboration. For Australian start-ups, FaBA MakerSpace can be a bridge between concept and commercialization, enabling faster formulation iterations, while strengthening the country’s food innovation ecosystem.
pink and red cupcakes and pastries on table
Natural color innovations approach synthetic-level performance as biotech reshapes F&B
Natural colors are no longer aimed at just being a clean label alternative for synthetic hues in F&B applications — they are being engineered to match artificial performance. The future of natural color solutions is not restricted to better plant extracts, but includes a combination of agriculture, biotechnology, and advanced formulation to revamp the F&B ecosystem.
Woman buying fruit and vegetables.
HowGood: Using data to navigate health and sustainability trade-offs in F&B
The US government’s push to remove petroleum-based synthetic dyes from the food supply signals a broader shift in how health is being regulated and communicated to consumers. Under the “Make America Healthy Again” agenda, led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., policymakers are placing renewed scrutiny on ingredients long used across the food and beverage industry.
TechnicalPaperCeamsa
CEAMFIBRE a gut-friendly fibre solution
What's else, besides CEAMFIBRE's mutifunctionality? Could a citrus fibre be gut friendly? CEAMSA investigated whether CEAMFIBRE®—a partially soluble citrus fibre—may exhibit potential prebiotic and satiating properties using in vitro colonic fermentation models and enteroendocrine cell assays. Read the full study to find out.This Technical Paper is brought to you by CEAMSA.
Valio webinar banner for More per Bite: Turn wellness into market success, with register link for 21 April sessions.
More per Bite: Turn wellness into market success
As wellness becomes a lifestyle driver, consumers expect more from every bite. Gut health, high protein and GLPI-1 medications are reshaping food choices – accelerating demand for nutrient-dense, multifunctional products that deliver tangible benefits in compact formats.

In this webinar Valio’s Consumer Insight Manager Sara Helminen explores the forces behind the “More per Bite” phenomenon and what they mean for product development. The presentation dives into why food is increasingly more than just food, how smaller portions must deliver higher value, and why the protein boom is shifting from quantity to quality. She also highlights how gut health is entering the mainstream and the resulting opportunities this creates for FMCG brands.

Win-win video thumbnail: Stack of cookies topped with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce on a plate, with a smiling man’s portrait in a blue circular graphic background
Win-Win: Fermentation unlocks cocoa-free, climate-friendly chocolate NPD
Mark Golder, CEO of Win-Win, explains how his team recreates chocolate’s signature taste, shine, and snap — without cocoa — amid supply pressures driven by climate change. Using patented fermentation and sustainable cereals and legumes, the UK-based firm delivers a convincing chocolate alternative for bakery and confectionery products. Golder also points to rising demand for cocoa-free options and stresses the need to scale production and educate consumers to build a more resilient, sustainable future for chocolate.

Latest headlines

View more
Brazzein goes commercial: Pentasweet’s €65M Lithuanian facility targets sugar...
A mother and daughter eating cookies and smiling at a table in the kitchen.
A sweet protein stated to be 1,500 times more potent than sugar is about to get its first dedicated production facility in Europe. Pentasweet has begun construction on a €65 million (US$76.1 million) brazzein production factory at the Vilnius City Innovation Industrial Park in Lithuania — one of the largest biotechnology investments in the country in recent years.
Plant-adapted microbial strains could unlock next-gen dairy-free yogurt
Young woman reads product label of yogurt in the grocery store.
Plant-based yogurt still struggles to match dairy on taste, texture, and nutrition, but a research project in Denmark has come up with a potential solution to solve these long-standing challenges and boost dairy-free alternatives.
Scientists tackle flaxseed oil bitterness to improve flavor stability and shelf...
man in black shirt in front of computer
Scientists in Germany have developed a method to improve the flavor stability of flaxseed oil — an omega-3-rich oil known for its health benefits, but which poses shelf life challenges to F&B manufacturers. The team used bleaching earth (magnesium-aluminum silicate) to reduce the oil’s bitterness, offering a sustainable way to extend its freshness without chemical additives or complex refining.
Nestlé achieves solid Q1 2026 growth as coffee and snacks drive performance
Philipp Navratil, CEO of Nestle.
Nestlé delivered steady results in the first quarter, with an organic growth of around 3.5%. The FMCG giant’s reported sales were approximately CHF 21.3 billion (US$27.1 billion), a decrease of 5.7% year-on-year. Growth was driven by improving volumes across key categories, with Coffee and Snacks providing the strongest momentum.
Unlocking consumer trust: How FDA-approved “healthy” labels influence snack...
A woman studies the labels on a snack in a grocery store.
New research from Oregon State University and Tufts University in the US finds that consumers are more likely to choose healthier snack options when those products carry a “healthy” label, and that they are willing to pay a premium for them. The effect is strongest when the label carries the endorsement of the US FDA.
Supplement industry demands human trials to prove ageless vitality science
Old lady dancing with other women during group training in studio

Nutrition Insight

With a growing aging population and consumers seeking nutrition solutions to accompany their healthy aging journey, the question of product validity among longevity supplements is coming into conversation. Nutrition Insight explores the biggest gaps between current ageless vitality claims on the market and the level of clinical or real-world evidence needed to support them with Valio, Akay Bioactives, Sirio Europe, Gnosis by Lesaffre, and Balchem Human Nutrition and Health.
Highlighted features
two young asian girls clicking street food photo on mobile
Food Ingredients News
Asia-Pacific flavor trends: Takasago on “digital natives”...
Asia Pacific (APAC) has emerged as a flavor innovation hub for F&B manufacturers, as they work to navigate consumers’ fast-evolving taste expectations. Social media-driven curiosity for global cuisines is co-existing with local flavor demands, with companies advancing technical innovations around taste modulation, plant-based, and sustainable food systems, particularly to appeal to younger generations.
Food made with traditional South African flavors.
Key interview
African flavors: How ADM localizes R&D to strengthen...
Taste preferences across Africa are highly diverse, but for years, the industry has developed flavors for African F&B markets from a distance, which meant missing the subtleties. ADM’s newest flavor creation facility in Johannesburg, South Africa, looks to overcome that gap by embedding innovation inside the markets it serves.
Strait Of Hormuz.
Regulatory News
“Global agri-food catastrophe”: FAO sounds alarm on Strait...
UN FAO chief economist, Maximo Torero, has warned that a prolonged Strait of Hormuz crisis could result in a “global agri-food catastrophe.” The US-Iran war in the Middle East, which began in late February 2026, remains unresolved, with Torero urging anticipatory policy actions to mitigate a price and supply crunch for key agri-food inputs. Although a delicate ceasefire has been agreed, major elements of the conflict — including naval blockades, sanctions, and military posturing — are still active, so the situation remains volatile rather than fully de-escalated.

Ingredient focus

View more
Image

Natural colors surge in F&B industryApr2026

Innova Market Insights data shows that consumers are actively reducing artificial ingredients in favor of natural alternatives. The use of natural colors in F&B launches is rising, with +9% growth...

Brought to you by:

Exberry

Product innovation

View more
Image

Plant-based F&B launches see steady growth Apr 2026

Innova Market Insights data indicates a 3% CAGR in plant-based F&B launches between 2021 and 2025. Dairy and Meat Substitutes remain the key categories, while Fruit & Vegetables showed the fastest growth (36% CAGR) during the same period. Emerging ingredients in plant-based launches include sucralose, oat flake, and vegetable fats.

Trend analysis

View more
Image

Healthy beverage trends: A growing market for functional drinksApr 2026

Innova Market Insights has identified “Beverages with Purpose” as one of the top F&B trends for 2026. Consumers worldwide are increasingly prioritizing health-conscious beverages, driven by growing industry support and innovation. This shift is accelerating the demand for functional drinks, with protein and biotic benefits leading the charge as key trends in healthy beverage development.

Multimedia

View more
Win-win video thumbnail: Stack of cookies topped with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce on a plate, with a smiling man’s portrait in a blue circular graphic background
Video10:45
Win-Win: Fermentation unlocks cocoa-free, climate-friendly chocolate NPD

Mark Golder, CEO of Win-Win, explains how his team recreates chocolate’s signature taste, shine, and snap — without cocoa — amid supply pressures driven by climate change. Using patented fermentation and sustainable cereals and legumes, the UK-based firm delivers a convincing chocolate...

Valio webinar banner for More per Bite: Turn wellness into market success, with register link for 21 April sessions.
Webinars32:35
More per Bite: Turn wellness into market success
Image
Video11:07
Melt&Marble: Enhancing flavor in alternative meats and dairy with precision-fermented fat
Dr. Puja Kumari, Scottish Association of Marine Science
Video09:21
Scottish Association for Marine Science: Unlocking red seaweed for food flavor, color & hybrid proteins 
Subscribe to our newsletters
PlatformsFood Ingredients FirstNutrition InsightPackaging InsightsPersonal Care InsightsThe World of Food Ingredients
About usContact usAdvertisingPrivacy statementSitemapArchive
Follow us
linkedinrss_headergoogle_news
Image