The sofi Gold Award-winning products represent the best of the best in each of 48 specialty food and beverage categories, from Appetizers & Snacks to Meat & Poultry to Water & Functional Beverages. 

Sweets & Snacks Expo announced the winners of the 2024 Most Innovative New Product Awards, recognizing excellence in 13 categories, showcasing the most innovative ideas, concepts, and products across the candy and snack industries.

Together the companies will offer industry-leading holistic innovation services to help clients create the future of food, from front-end insights, strategy and creative development, through full-service R&D, scale-up and commercialization. 

Amid signs of progress after a few challenging years for the food and beverage supply chain, brands are planning to dial up product innovation efforts to meet consumer demand (42%), combat rising costs (46%), and stay competitive (51%).

The founder of Justin's and the former CEO of Rudi's and Lily's joined forces last year to reinvent Rudi's Organic Bakery—and give this nearly 50-year-old company the mentality of a start-up! Jane Miller was CEO at Rudi’s from 2008 to 2014. 

“Cultivating the next generation of culinary innovators is both a privilege and a passion. Working on the competition with the students at IIT, sponsored by the Washington Red Raspberry Commission, has been a rewarding journey,” said Zal Taleyarkhan, Corporate Research Chef, Charlie Baggs Culinary Innovations.

The event, scheduled for May 23, 2024, will be held at 167 Green Street, bringing together visionary entrepreneurs, savvy investors, and industry leaders at the forefront of technology-driven transformations shaping the food industry's future.

With a sustained growth of over 70% (3-Yr CAGR), adding 18,000 new points of sale, and sustainability investments to its integrated structure, Solely has broken barriers in the healthy snacking landscape in 2023 and proved its journey is just getting started.

Following an open call for applicants and a rigorous evaluation process, Keto Kind and Superfrau emerged as the winners of the start-up challenge. These exceptional startups have demonstrated outstanding potential in advancing science and driving new solutions in the food and nutrition space.

The Almond Board of California (ABC) announced the kickoff of its national Tastemaker Trials student competition, which invites U.S. college and university students to create delicious almond-based snack products that excite the tastebuds of younger generations and set a new standard for "intentional indulgence" in snacks.