So, 2025 has gotten off to, um, an interesting start. Happy new year! As I write this column on January 9, the wildfires in California are zero percent under control and much of the rest of the country is suffering from near-arctic temperatures. The wind-chill when I got up this morning was minus 1! And, this week we buried Jimmy Carter, the 39th president of the United States. What will the rest of the year bring?
I got a release from the National Frozen and Refrigerated Association (NFRA) announcing its 2025 Penguin Pitch Emerging Brand contest for 2025. The competition, which launched last year, officially launched on January 1 this year and will evaluate this year’s entrants based on taste, innovation and market strategy.
“This year’s Penguin Pitch celebrates brands that are rethinking and reshaping the future of our categories,” said Tricia Greyshock, the organization’s president and CEO. “We’re looking for something that not only excites retailers and consumers, but addresses and unmet need, in unique, and truly represents the exciting innovation happening in our industry.”
The grand prize winner will receive a complimentary tasting table at the Café NFRA during its 2025 convention, which will be held October 18-21 in Orlando. Valued at $7,000, the café offers emerging brands an opportunity to showcase their products directly to the industry’s decision makers.
This year’s contest will also honor winners in three distinct categories: most creative packaging, most disruptive product and most unique promotional campaign.
To be eligible to enter the contest, a company: must have entered retail within the past 10 years; must have annual retail sales for the product that range from $100,000 to $2 million as of February 1, 2025; and must be NFRA members in good standing, or must join the organization by March 1, 2025. For complete rules and entry forms, go to nfraweb.org. Entry deadline is February 10, so get started!
On a related subject, ConAgra recently its annual report on the frozen food category, highlighting several frozen food trends to watch in 2025. The rise in GLP-1 use, appetites for spice and heat, and indulgent in-home dining experiences, are just some of the trends driving growth identified in Conagra Brands’ second annual Future of Frozen Food 2025 report. The data-driven report reveals how consumer behaviors, generational preferences and innovations are reshaping the $91.3 billion U.S. frozen food market.
The manufacturer’s Demand Science team leveraged insights from Circana, social media trends from Tastewise, and search trends from Similarweb to develop this year’s report.
Health-conscious consumer are seeking frozen products that cater to gut health, portion control and other dietary needs, the study found. Frozen foods with probiotics and nutrient-dense, gut-friendly ingredients have seen 33 percent growth during the past three years. New products geared to the now more than 15 million Americans currently using GLP-1 medication come in convenient options that are also transforming the category. And, for those with a sweet tooth, better-for-you desserts are on the rise as well.
For the consumers who are looking to stretch their budgets by dining at home, they are looking for premium, restaurant quality options. With an additional 25.6 billion in-home eating occasions since pre-pandemic, buyers are recreating restaurant dishes at home. Frozen food is meeting this demand by offering premium, chef-inspired and celebrity-backed products.
Increasingly diverse flavors continue to grow in the frozen aisle, too. Indian-inspired meals such as tikki masala and Japanese flavors like teriyaki are booming, the study shows, while global street food hit more than $543 million in sales. Younger generations are embracing these adventurous tastes and are more than 24 percent more likely to purchase globally inspired products.
Consumers are also looking for more bite-sized and mini offerings, which continue to soar in popularity. Appealing to families and younger consumers, sales of these products have increased to $2.4 billion, and a 31 percent increase in consumption year-over-year. These products are not only convenient, they offer a diverse array of options for any occasion. And, they are no longer thought of as just appetizers, the ConAgra study showed that 84 percent are now being enjoyed as meals.
Spicy frozen foods sales are also heating up with U.S. sales surpassing $2 billion. Younger generations have a strong preference for spicy foods. In fact, Gen Z is 48 percent more likely to buy spicy frozen meals. Popular emerging spice profiles, such as gochujang, also reflect the influence of global cuisines on this trend.
To read the entire report, go to conagrabrands.com.
You may recall that in my November column I wrote about the different varieties of apples that seem to debut every year. Well, interestingly, in December at the New York Produce Show, I stopped by the Hess Brothers Fruit Co. booth and had a chance to sample their newest variety – WildTwist – expected to debut in stores early this year. The new apple is described by as “…the perfect combination of its parent, Honeycrisp and Cripps Pink (aka Pink Lady). The explosively juicy crunch of Honeycrisp partners with the rich flavor of Cripps Pink to create an eating experience you won’t want to miss. Or, as we like to say: ‘Two Favorites. One Great Apple.’”
Well, upon tasting my first WildTwist, I can attest that it lives up to that description. My favorite variety these days is the HoneyCrisp and the WildTwist variety doesn’t fall far from the tree in terms of both taste and crunch. I look forward to being able to buy some at the supermarket, and to experiment with them in different uses. The variety will be available from January and the season will run through June. According to Hess, the apple gets better as the seasons goes along,” so that is something to look forward to! If you want to try them for yourself, go to wildtwistapples.com to see where they are available near you.
I just found out recently that one of our favorite products, Grillo’s Pickles, is owned by King’s Hawaiian. The company’s roots are quite entrepreneurial. Starting in 2008 as a wooden food cart in Boston, the company expanded its reach through social media and the brand soon caught the attention of Whole Foods, which began to see the pickles in its stores in the North Atlantic region by 2010. In 2021, it was purchased by the packaged baked goods maker for an undisclosed amount.
I’m not sure what makes Grillo’s pickles, which are refrigerated, different from most of the other brands out there, but they seem more like true deli pickles than most. They’re very tangy and extremely crunchy.
Now, the company is leveraging unique collaborations and limited time conjunctions with other brands to continue its growth. These products have ranged from pickle-flavored beer to toothpaste. In October, Grillo’s partners with Campbell’s V8 on ready-to-drink nonalcoholic Bloody Mary cocktail mix. It also collaborated on a hard seltzer flavor with Two Robbers in 2023. Their latest venture? Grillo’s Pickle de Gallo Schmear in partnership with New York City’s PopUp Bagels.
The moral of the story – you never know when the next little idea will become a huge hit.
