Watson Blogs

Food traceability in the event of a recall is notoriously slow. The “one step forward, one step back” approach relies on a mix of paper records and various computer systems that can’t communicate with one another. By using the blockchain to integrate this data, Walmart demonstrated it could reduce the time to trace the source of a food from nearly seven days to 2.2 seconds.¹

Any way you slice it, 2018 is shaping up to be a strong year for frozen pizza. Growth was reported for all top ten companies, as well as for newcomers like CAULIPOWER. Key trends grabbing consumers’ attention include better-for-you pizzas, crust and topping innovations, an expansion of clean label, and more.

The snackification of meals is fundamentally changing the snack foods industry. With multiple snacking occasions per day and the rise in snacks replacing meals, consumers’ expectations in snacks have expanded beyond indulgence and satiety. This year’s snack trends include a new health focus, new ingredients, and some serious flavor exploration. 

The average sodium intake is 3,440 mg each day. This is well over the recommended amount of 2300 mg per day. The recommended amount of 2300 mg converts to 1 teaspoon of sodium or 6 grams of salt each day.By contrast, 3,440 mg of sodium per day converts to 1.5 teaspoons of sodium, or 8.35 grams of salt. Needless to say, sodium is considered an overconsumed nutrient of concern for Americans. The Dietary Guidelines recommend Americans to decrease sodium intake in their diet. With the rise in obesity and sodium intake, researchers found a direct association between caloric intake and sodium consumption. The higher the food intake, the higher the sodium content of the diet (1).

The Dietary Guidelines of Advisory Committee (DGAC) identified added sugars as a “cross-cutting topic” of public health importance. In the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), the recommendation was to solely to limit the intake of added sugars. For the first time, the Dietary Guidelines are putting a number on the amount of added sugars recommended for consumption. In the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines, the recommendation is to consume a maximum of 10% of daily calories as added sugars. Americans ideally should be limiting this to 4-6% of calorie intake for optimal health.

Fatty acids are divided into 3 different types: saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acids. Saturated fatty acids have no double bonds, monounsaturated fatty acids have one double bonds, and polyunsaturated fatty acids have two or more double bonds. Saturated fats are solid and unsaturated fatty acids are liquid at room temperature. Foods are comprised of a combination of these fatty acids in varying amounts.

Coffee pods continue to be the fastest growing category in coffee, with instant coffee mixes close behind.¹ Consumers are loving today’s options for making their own single-serve beverages—including pods, stick packs, flavored water drops, and even dry beverage pouches that dissolve in water.

Investors may be jittery, but not over ready-to-drink (RTD) coffee and tea! Learn why Inc. is calling RTD coffee and tea “one of the best industries for starting a business,” and how RTD beverages are evolving to meet the demands of today’s health-conscious consumers through natural energy, reduced calories, and more.¹

You may have heard that plastic microbeads in personal care products and cosmetics have been banned in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in an effort to curb ocean pollution. But did you know that some scientists are now calling for a global ban on glitter? These festive, sparkly bits of fun become particularly problematic when washed down the drain—the ultimate fate of products like face and body glitter. (Learn about environmentally-safe glitter here). 

School is just around the corner! The beginning of the school year is often the busiest time of the year for families, who are rushing to get school supplies, new clothes, and coordinate new extracurricular activities. What many parents don’t think about is what to prepare for their child’s lunch that year. A healthy lunch helps the kids concentrate and stay awake for the rest of their school day. First, the facts. Preparing a lunch is healthier and oftentimes cheaper than buying a lunch at school. Also, homemade lunches allow the parent to have control over what and how much their child is eating.

According to health professionals, getting enough potassium can reduce your risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke.¹ Yet most American adults are falling short of the recommended daily intake. Research suggests that consuming an optimal amount of this crucial mineral may protect against a host of ailments including cardiovascular disease, muscle wasting, osteoporosis, and kidney stones. It can help to maintain healthy blood pressure and ensure proper nerve, kidney, and heart functions. In 2016, the FDA added potassium to the list of nutrients required to be listed on a food’s nutrition panel.

Choline Nutrient Content Claims Now Allowed

“B4” you reformulate, consider adding choline (also known as vitamin B4) to your nutrient mix. As one of the many recent changes to U.S. food labeling regulations, a Daily Value has finally been set for choline. This creates the opportunity to fortify products with choline and pursue 'good source' and 'high' nutrient content claims for choline.

Functional foods and beverages—those that provide benefits beyond basic nutrition—are big business these days as consumers increasingly expect their food to “do more” for them. According to the International Food Information Council (IFIC)¹, the category includes dietary supplements and vitamins, energy and sports drinks, and foods fortified with nutrients and probiotics—and it is growing rapidly. In fact, the category generated worldwide sales of $258.8 billion in 2014 and is expected to top $377 billion by 2020.² 

Pet home meal delivery providers, like Ollie, NomNomNow, and The Farmer’s Dog, are offering a compelling value proposition—pet food that is fresher, customized, tastes better, and is delivered straight to your door. 

Here's a look at everything you need to know about what’s happening right now in baking—from spinach bread to charcoal croissants to crackers that resemble Swiss cheese. 

The first time I came across someone with Celiac disease was in college on a night out to a restaurant. I never heard of the disease and I rarely ever heard about gluten-free food. So as we were ordering food, hearing someone say they couldn’t eat most things on the menu was surprising to me, even a little annoying, because I couldn’t understand why it was such a big deal. However, when I learned how painful and demoralizing it can be to have Celiac disease, it really made me rethink how important it is to for the victims to have food that is good for them to eat.

In Asian countries, the soybean is a traditional protein staple. Soybeans contain high amounts of isoflavones, which are beneficial to health. Isoflavones are compounds derived from plants that give estrogenic activity. 

Did you know that in the past four years, the grocery store perimeter has experienced a growth rate of more than double that of the center of the store, with a CAGR of 3.8% for the perimeter, compared to 1.8% for the rest of the store?¹ Amazon’s purchase of Whole Foods and subsequent price cutting initiative in fresh foods indicates strong awareness of this trend.

What’s in a loaf? A basic loaf of bread contains four ingredients: flour, water, yeast, and salt.¹ But if we stop there, we’ll have a European-style bread that goes stale in a day.² Bread that is mass produced and distributed needs a little help from food science to achieve machining tolerance, volume and texture consistency, and delayed staling.

Emojis are a great start if you are looking for something new to revamp your products.

Ascorbic Acid, or more commonly known as Vitamin C, is naturally found in citrus fruits and many vegetables. It is considered an antioxidant.

The baking industry has made huge leaps in the gluten-free trend. As people become more aware of their food habits, their demand for food they can safely eat has increased. Here at Watson, we have come up with a line of gluten-free mixes that can be used in restaurants and food service institutions.

July 26th is National Bagelfest day! Bagels are unique in the bread world for their hard chewy outsides and their soft, warm insides. There are so many varieties of bagels like the everything bagel, sesame seed bagel, blueberry bagel, etc. There are even rainbow bagels to keep up with food trends.