Banner with colorful drinks with straws and company logo in the right corner with call to action icon
Various packaging and recycling symbol.

EU PPWR: What F&B companies need to know about the new packaging rules

The EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) marks the biggest change to packaging legislation in decades. While often described as a recyclability regulation, its impact reaches far beyond whether a package can be recycled. For food and beverage companies, PPWR could reshape how packaging is designed, documented, sourced, and managed across the entire value chain.
Shaved ice dessert with mango slices.
Desserts and ice cream reimagined: Balancing indulgence, nutrition and new sensory experiences
Ice cream and desserts have always been products of pleasure. They are associated with moments of comfort, celebration, and indulgence. However, the category is entering a new phase, as consumers increasingly expect more from their favorite treats. Today’s dessert and ice cream consumers are looking for products that deliver enjoyment and align with broader health and lifestyle priorities. Higher protein, reduced sugar, lactose-free options, cleaner labels, premium ingredients, and exciting sensory experiences are all influencing innovation across the category.
2nd Nature uses AI to identify new sweetening compounds.
2nd Nature CEO: How AI is transforming sweetener innovation and discovery
Artificial intelligence is reshaping how the food and beverage industry approaches sweetener innovation, moving discovery away from years of trial-and-error screening and toward targeted identification of new functional compounds. For decades, sweetener development relied heavily on a limited number of platforms, including sugar, synthetic sweeteners, stevia, and monk fruit. According to Effendi Leonard, CEO of AI-powered ingredient company 2nd Nature, AI is changing that landscape by allowing scientists to uncover molecules that conventional approaches overlooked.
Image with pictures of sushi and chef with technical paper title and company logo
Freshness that goes further
Any quality issues? This paper examines how carbohydrate science and the functional properties of TREHA® can help manufacturers protect the quality of chilled and frozen foods. Through improved moisture retention, freeze-thaw stability and low sweetness, TREHA® offers a practical formulation tool for maintaining product quality across the supply chain.This Technical Paper is brought to you by Nagase Food Ingredients.
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.
Raisio video thumbnail: Smiling woman in front of wooden shelves displaying Elovena oatmeal, snack biscuits, and other packaged food products
Raisio Food Solutions: How oats can elevate gluten-free product development

At Raisio Food Solutions’ offices in Helsinki, Finland, Heidi Romu from international business development explores how oats can elevate gluten-free product innovation. From boosting fiber and nutritional diversity to improving texture, creaminess, and water binding, Romu discusses the versatility of oats, the requirements of gluten-free production, emerging global demand, and the next opportunities for better-for-you gluten-free foods and beverages.

Latest headlines

View more
Food industry’s next challenge: Building a future-ready science workforce
Food scientist working on laptop.
The future of the food system may depend on more than scientific breakthroughs and technological innovation. According to a new white paper from the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), the industry must also address a growing workforce challenge: ensuring food professionals have the skills needed to apply those innovations effectively.
From novelty to NPD: How boba, mochi and cold foam are elevating F&B texture
Woman drinks boba bubble tea while looking at her phone.
From chewy tapioca boba and fruit-filled popping pearls to soft mochi and airy cold foam, texture is becoming an increasingly important ingredient in food and beverage innovation. Once closely associated with specialist bubble tea shops, Japanese confectionery, and coffeehouse culture, these textural formats are now appearing across mainstream beverages, desserts, dairy, confectionery, and packaged foods.
Ingredion wins EU Novel Food approval for upcycled carrot fiber ingredient
Man with healthy gut holding stomach.
The European Commission has authorized Ingredion’s Benicaros SF Pure P, an upcycled, rhamnogalacturonan-I (RG-I)-enriched soluble carrot fiber, for use in foods, beverages, and dietary supplements. The authorization, which enables commercialization throughout the EU beginning July 2, 2026, follows a positive scientific safety assessment by the European Food Safety Authority and extends Ingredion’s functional fiber portfolio into a new category of upcycled, plant-based ingredients.
Engineered yeasts turn PET bottles and crop waste into 3D-printed protein...
A stack of water bottles in a landfill.
Researchers reveal that programming yeasts can make them convert PET, a type of plastic that is often used to make soda and water bottles, and crop residue into edible protein, vitamins, and flavor compounds. The team of scientists has created a concept in the form of a 3D-printed cookie dubbed µBites, pronounced “microbites.”
Jungbunzlauer webinar preview: What does the GLP-1 era mean for food...
Man and woman drinking after working out.
As GLP-1 drugs reshape eating habits, food manufacturers are facing new formulation challenges, from reducing sugar and calories to maintaining texture and flavor while boosting nutrient density. This is the central theme of Jungbunzlauer’s upcoming webinar titled “The new math of functional eating in the GLP-1 era: addressing texture, nutrients, and health.” Thomas Bernsmeier, market development manager for Europe & APAC at Jungbunzlauer, will explore reformulation requirements for healthy foods and drinks resulting from GLP-1-driven consumer shifts, and how the company’s ingredients can help manufacturers keep pace with emerging trends. 
Women In Nutraceuticals: Trust and traceability key to stronger India–US...
man in suit shakes hands with women, business deal

Nutrition Insight

The upcoming Bharat Nutraverse Expo 2026 (Sept 7–9) in India is calling for great East-West collaboration in nutraceuticals. Present at the event, the US-based Women In Nutraceuticals (WIN) discusses the India–US economic potential and what is needed to strengthen it, alongside women’s essential role in the industry and the influence of AI on the sector. 
Highlighted features
F&B ingredient innovation leaders in Helsinki, Finland.
Tech & Innovation
Valio, Raisio and Solar Foods: Inside Finland’s ingredient...
Milk, northern oats, and a microorganism fed with carbon dioxide and hydrogen may appear to have little in common. In Finland, however, they illustrate how the country is drawing on established agriculture, advanced processing, and emerging biotechnology to develop higher-value food ingredients. During a recent reporting trip to Helsinki, Finland, Food Ingredients First spoke with experts from Valio, Raisio Food Solutions, and Solar Foods to explore the science, commercial thinking, and the collaborative culture driving the country’s ingredient innovation.
Pistachio-based desserts.
New Product Development
Pistachio evolves from flavor trend into cross-category...
Pistachio is widening its reach across the food and beverage industry as brands take the nut beyond its established role in confectionery and desserts. Innova Market Insights data indicates that F&B launches featuring pistachio ingredients showed a 26% CAGR between July 2021 and June 2026. Between July 2025 and June 2026, Confectionery accounted for the largest share of new launches featuring pistachio ingredients at 35%, followed by Snacks (17%) and Bakery (15%) between July 2025 and June 2026. Chocolate remains a prominent partner for pistachio. Innova’s Flavor Survey 2026 shows that 38% of consumers globally prefer pistachio flavor for chocolate. 
Person using a GLP-1 medication by injecting into their stomach area.
Food Ingredients News
Nestlé’s GLP-1 strategy reframes food formulation around...
When GLP-1 weight loss medications first began gaining mainstream attention, the food and beverage industry was largely asking a defensive question: what happens if consumers simply eat less? Although that concern has not disappeared entirely, two years into the GLP-1 conversation, the industry response increasingly looks less like a retreat and more like a reformulation exercise. The latest signal comes from Nestlé, which is developing products specifically for people taking weight-loss drugs, such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Zepbound. The company is looking at high-protein and collagen-containing products, among other nutritional solutions, leveraging AI and nutritional science to inform development. 

Ingredient focus

View more
Image

Clean label evolutionAug2026

Innova Market Insights data indicates that consumers globally are reducing artificial ingredients in their diets to eat healthier. Global data also shows that clean label claims are gaining ground in ...

Brought to you by:

Ingredion

Product innovation

View more
Image

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

View more
Image

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.

Multimedia

View more
Raisio video thumbnail: Smiling woman in front of wooden shelves displaying Elovena oatmeal, snack biscuits, and other packaged food products
Video05:24
Raisio Food Solutions: How oats can elevate gluten-free product development

At Raisio Food Solutions’ offices in Helsinki, Finland, Heidi Romu from international business development explores how oats can elevate gluten-free product innovation. From boosting fiber and nutritional diversity to improving texture, creaminess, and water binding, Romu discusses the...

Erika Milczek, Curie Co.
Video06:06
IFT FIRST 2026: Curie Co boosts dairy yields with protein-stabilizing enzyme
Image
Video03:45
IFT FIRST 2026: Nexira launches Eficacia Advanced to cut costs with lower dosage
Image
Video04:08
IFT FIRST 2026: AAK spotlights specialty fats in deconstructed Dubai-style chocolate
Subscribe to our newsletters
PlatformsFood Ingredients FirstNutrition InsightPackaging InsightsPersonal Care InsightsThe World of Food Ingredients
About usContact usAdvertisingPrivacy statementSitemapArchiveEditorial Team
Follow us
Image