Some foods and ingredients that can help improve both sleep and brain function. Think favorites from the simple— tart cherries, seeds (especially pumpkin seeds), nuts (almonds and walnuts), and kiwi fruit—to the more exotic, like schisandra, turmeric, and saffron.

Today, many men find themselves sedentary during the week, then go out on a weekend morning with the best of intentions at making up for lost time. They might opt for running 5 or 10 miles, or biking 30 miles, or they hit the gym–hard–lifting too much weight or overdoing the treadmill to “feel the burn.”

With the recent surge in attention to immunity, American consumers are now thinking of preventive health less in terms of reaching for “immune boosting” supplements and more about “immune resilience.” Incorporating botanicals into food products can aid significantly in maintaining the many and complex facets of immunity.

HighBridge Premium offers a variety of beverage products infused with either cannabis or hemp — including three non-alcoholic, cannabinoid-infused beers — in five states, with plans to expand to more than a dozen markets in the U.S. and abroad.

Botanical ingredients— especially herbs, spices, and rhizomes (ginger, turmeric, galangal) — can help play a big part in helping product developers create new foods and beverages that help the body protect itself against disease and dysfunction.

Healthy aging could be defined as staying active and in good health—both physically and mentally—while getting older. Overall, three-quarters of consumers we survey report that healthy aging is “very” or “extremely important” to them. 

Prepared Foods Editor Bob Garrison talks about upcycled new foods and beverages—and the ingredients behind them—with Angie Crone, UFA’s newly appointed chief executive officer.

For a variety of reasons, consumers have expanded the scope of their demand for products featuring low or no sugar content. In response, food and beverage formulators have invested in research and development to uncover further innovative approaches to ingredient technologies. In tandem with the consumer and industry momentum in the sugar reduction category, additional market forces may contribute to future investment in sugar reduction product development. Prices of raw sugar and cocoa touched 10-year and seven-year highs respectively in April 2023, The Smart Cube reports, due to tight supply and rising demand for both commodities.

The FDA considers the term “natural” to mean that nothing artificial or synthetic (including all color additives regardless of source) has been included in, or has been added to, a food that would not normally be expected to be in that food.

Ready to start making your new product? If you’ve passed your initial formulation hurdles, you’re ready to think about where to sell the item, an initial volume and how the food will be safely processed and packaged. Possibilities include a home kitchen, a commercial kitchen or co-manufacturing plant, just to name a few.