For food developers, the challenge is to meet this demand for foods that look, smell, and taste fresh—that hold onto their perfect texture—yet maintain extended shelf life and meet consumer demand for being “quick and easy.”

A combination of explosive popularity of plant proteins and rapidly growing demand for foods manufactured with a much smaller carbon footprint is giving alternative proteins a big push.

At the birth of every premium or functional beverage is a dreamer—someone who feels the need to fill a gap in the market for a particular concoction that goes beyond basic thirst-quenching.

Prepared Foods talks with Ilana Orlofsky, marketing coordinator for Imbibe, a Niles, Ill., contract new beverage development company.

When it came to planning the 34th annual New Products Conference, Prepared Foods’ editorial and planning teams went back to the drawing board to recast the entire event.