2016 has been a year of uncertainty and instability. We’ve witnessed the rise of Trump, the UK’s decision to leave the European Union, and the loss of the world’s longest reigning monarch in the King of Thailand, Bhumibol Adulyadej. Many people will be glad it’s over.
But what those on the outside will fail to see is how strong a year it’s been for innovation in the food and drink sector – the groundbreaking innovations celebrated by our awards schemes and comprehensive media coverage, and the seismic acquisitions that will leave the industry in a different – and hopefully stronger – place.
Here are five of the stories covered by FoodBev in the last 12 months that we think are among the most important.
Mars protein
The trend towards high protein has shrugged off any notion of it being a temporary fad that might have persisted at the start of the year. Much like clean-label and free-from products, manufacturers were bringing out high-protein versions of their existing products to capitalise in demand for super-charged food. That’s what Mars did in May when it launched two new protein bars under its Mars and Snickers brands. The Snickers protein bar contained 18g of protein, while the Mars protein bar had 19g – and both were just 200kcal.
We also had more high-protein spreads from Dr. Zak’s, premium protein coffee, and even protein-infused water.
Hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of deals
The glamour of Anheuser Busch-SABMiller and Ball-Rexam may be behind us, but the fact that the two largest deals in the food and drink industry this year – Germany’s Bayer to buy US-based Monsanto, and ChemChina’s acquisition of Syngenta – combined to make the same value as Morocco’s GDP shows just how consequential this year’s business news has been.
Some of the more headline-grabbing deals included the €2.55 billion that Japan’s Asahi paid for the Grolsch, Meantime and Peroni brands of beer, as well as JAB Holdings’ $1.35 billion acquisition of Krispy Kreme. And, despite only being announced two weeks before New Year, Coca-Cola’s agreement to buy out Anheuser-Busch’s majority stake in Coca-Cola Beverages Africa – as well as seven other countries in Africa and Central America – was the sixth biggest deal of 2016.
For country-by-country and category-by-category breakdowns, and to see how the number of acquisitions has fallen and risen since 2011, make sure you check out our article on the biggest buyers and sellers from earlier this week.
READ MORE Biggest buyers and sellers in food and drink in 2016
Who are the year’s biggest movers and shakers – and which industry will win the annual M&A war between alcohol and soft drinks?
Tea in a can
Tea has been a relatively dependable bet in an unpredictable market. Teabags offer convenience, loose-leaf is about as popular as it’s been in a hundred years, and you can even get concentrated iced tea that mixes with water for a refreshing cold version of the classic drink.
So when, in July, we reported on a liquid tea in an aerosol-style can being targeted mainly at the impulse channel, we knew it was a clever new way to enjoy tea – but we never expected it to get the sort of attention that it did. Such is the curious workings of the tabloid media, the story went viral in September and outlets like the Mirror and Metro in the UK, The Globe and Mail in Canada, and the Irish Independent all picked up on the story – albeit two months after FoodBev! We’re a little bit proud of that.
Sugar tax
Short of the decision to leave the European Union, the sugar tax announced by then-chancellor George Osborne in March was the single most impactful thing to happen to the UK’s food and drinks industry. The levy is expected to raise around £520m in tax, which will be re-invested in funding for sports in British schools. There will be two bands – one for sugar content above 5g/100ml and a second higher band for sugar content above 8g/100ml – amounting to a levy of £0.18 and £0.24 per litre unit charge respectively.
The subsequent debate around sugar, though, has been shrouded in controversy and misreporting. In November, FoodBev reported that the number of soft drinks with more than the daily limit for sugar was much lower than a widely published study was claiming. The researchers had decided to omit low-sugar and no-sugar products from the tally, and there were questions about the authors’ links to advocacy group Action on Sugar. Then, this month, we brought you the outcomes of the UK government’s first consultation into the proposed levy, including the decision to no longer charge manufacturers for the quantity of goods produced. In effect, this will mean that bottlers and importers are not required to pay for damaged, unsatisfactory or wasted product that doesn’t even leave the factory gate. It was a rare concession by the government in an otherwise steadfast rebuttal of the industry’s concerns.
The government’s decision not to charge manufacturers for unsold products was a rare concession in an otherwise steadfast rebuttal of industry concerns.
Despite being the most publicised, Britain’s sugar tax was by no means the only one in the news. South Africa is awaiting legislation next year that will tax sugary drinks, and Spain and Estonia are also considering introducing similar measures.
Chobani founder’s $300m gift
As far as social responsibility goes, gifting 2,000 of your employees a stake in the business worth at least $300 million is pretty good going. That’s what Hamdi Ulukaya, the philanthropic founder of dairy company Chobani, did in April.
The initiative, which will take effect when the company is publicly listed or sold, will take into account each individual employee’s length of service. For some, it could mean a windfall running into the millions of dollars – and, even according to conservative estimates of the company’s value, could result in an average payout of $150,000 each. Chobani already donates 10% of its annual profits to charity and Ulukaya, who was born in Turkey and moved to the US in 1994 to study, previously donated $700 million of his personal fortune to Syrian refugees.
If you want to know even more about how companies are doing business differently, and driving change for the better in the process, then take a look at FoodBev’s feature on four environmentally and socially conscious initiatives doing just that!
That’s all, thanks to every single one of the 700,000 unique visitors we welcomed to FoodBev.com alone in 2016! From everybody here, we hope you have a good festive break and New Year – however you’re celebrating – and look forward to reporting on more trends in the food and beverage industry in 2017.
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