Miso is no longer just soup stock, it’s become the poster child for the global umami wave. From UK supermarkets to Michelin kitchens, miso is crossing categories and palates. The Bonnie Chung Miso Tasty x Jamie Oliver story illustrates how mainstream adoption can be driven by product excellence and simple, relatable applications.

Lidl UK and its near-700% (694%) increase in plant-based sales marks a consumer reset from niche veganism to mainstream pantry choice. The trend is shifting from meat analogue hype to everyday affordability, powered by tofu, pulses, and low-priced branded staples. Lidl’s playbook, price accessibility plus nutritional credibility, creates a blueprint for other UK retailers facing scrutiny over health and sustainability targets.

Redefine Meat experienced a sharp rise on UK's Ocado, August food searches, reflecting the fusion of seasonal BBQ culture with next-gen plant-based parity. Consumer curiosity plus rising cost-of-living pressures are pushing alt-meat into prime summer behaviour patterns.

South Australia has become the first jurisdiction globally to outlaw the iconic plastic soy sauce fish, citing their recycling impossibility and outsized environmental impact. The ban fits within a broader push to eliminate single-use plastics and signals a new front in food packaging reform. Industry must change rapidly toward refill stations, compostable seaweed-based solutions, or redesigned sachets.

Consumers are being whiplashed between TikTok wellness influencers warning against “toxic seed oils” and the long arc of evidence-based nutrition. This study gives households clear, practical swaps - a drizzle of plant-oil like olive, sunflower or soy oil, instead of a pat of butter. Accessible, affordable, and life-saving, but thats if messaging cuts through the noise.

Little Lato, the Auckland, NZ -based boutique gelato maker, has claimed the Tetra Pak Dairy-Free Champion for the second consecutive year of the NZ Icecream Awards, with its Mango Lassi Dairy-Free Gelato. As well it picked up the New Zealand Ice Cream Association Sorbet Champion with its Little 'Lato, Chocolate Orange Sorbet.

The Marks and Sparks Pantheon isn’t just a store refresh, it’s a blueprint for where others can go. Retailers worldwide are re-engineering their delivery of food into curated, quick, high-quality experiences. The new standard combines indulgence with speed, healthfulness with shareability.

Scotland’s agritech exports are now shaping food futures in the desert. The Dubai “GigaFarm” is a 200-tower vertical farm set to produce 3,000+ tonnes annually. It showcases the UAE’s appetite for sovereign food systems, while testing whether vertical farming can meaningfully offset import reliance. Globally, vertical farms are still a micro-fraction of agricultural output, but governments from Singapore to Saudi Arabia are betting on scale as climate and geopolitics squeeze

A Nature study highlights the hierarchy of protein acceptance in Singapore - conventional chicken > plant-based > cultivated chicken. Despite Singapore’s pioneering regulatory stance, cultivated meat remains an “option of interest” rather than a preferred choice.

Fable Food Co.’s pulled shiitake is no longer a niche flexitarian choice, it’s rapidly becoming a category staple in Australia’s biggest Mexican food chains. With Guzman y Gomez and now Zambrero on board, Fable is redefining what “protein” means in the nation’s burritos and tacos. The rollout across nearly 500 restaurants signals both consumer acceptance and a brand-building masterstroke for Fable, which continues to resist the “mock meat” label by leaning on flavour, texture

Billie Eilish has amplified the Dubai Chocolate trend to a new cultural altitude. What began as a local innovation by Fix Dessert Chocolatier in 2021, then exploded via TikTok influencers in 2023–24, is now stamped with mainstream celebrity approval. With her 73.5M TikTok audience, Eilish ensures the “make-at-home” phase of this dessert will go global faster than any FMCG rollout could manage.

The Shandi Global trajectory signals a powerful trend - Indian-rooted innovation, incubated in Singapore, is now shaping the global plant-protein market. What began as parental frustration with one underwhelming burger is morphing into a scaled, science-driven enterprise tackling affordability, nutrition, and protein access at mass-market levels.

The Grill’d collaboration gives Beyond access to mainstream Australian diners through a premium 173 outlet, fast-casual channel. Positioned as a “clean” alternative with high protein and lower saturated fat, Beyond Burger IV aligns with consumer shifts towards health and sustainability.

Pistachio Papi, barely two months on Woolworths shelves, has delivered a record 20,000 jars sold in one week, surpassing legendary spread brands. Supply limits kept shelves bare at times, yet the brand still posted the strongest weekly result ever. At Coles, the companion Quattro Gelato blew through a 12-week plan in just four, proving the pistachio craze is a livewire retail event with cross-category pull.

Zespri’s SunGold kiwifruit secures Good Housekeeping’s Best Snack Award for the fifth consecutive year, cementing its status as the growth driver of the kiwi category and a rising star in global fruit consumption. This follows the recent recognition by the EU of the Green Kiwifruit of its 'health giving' qualities.

US based, The Mushroom Meat Co.’s expansion into four new pre-seasoned SKUs taps directly into the global mushroom market boom. Convenience, clean label, and cultural flavour profiles (Mexican, Korean, Southern) position them for chef adoption and viral consumer pull.

The 2025 NZ Seaweed Summit represents a convergence of political will, industry innovation, and Māori leadership. A government minister’s attendance elevates the agenda, positioning seaweed not as an experiment but as a candidate for real policy backing and investment. Zespri’s involvement underscores the strategic opportunity to integrate marine bio-resources with established export powerhouses. AgriSea’s presence keeps the narrative grounded in local entrepreneurship and in

Oscar Mayer’s 'EveryBun Pack' signals a major packaging pichange - appeasing flexitarian households without forcing blended compromises. By sealing meat and vegan dogs together in one tray, Kraft Heinz is acknowledging dual appetites in the same kitchen, betting on convenience as the mediator.

Lidl GB is weaponising its private-label clout with the Live Well  logo, effectively embedding the Planetary Health Diet into the UK’s retail mainstream. With 100 products carrying the logo in the next six months and a 10% private-label compliance pledge, Lidl is building a new baseline for health-and-planet aligned shopping. This move could force other retailers into similar schemes or risk being seen as laggards on food system responsibility.

New Zealand's, Fix & Fogg has secured one of the most coveted positions in American retail: eight nut butter SKUs ranged nationally across all Whole Foods Market stores. From a farmers’ market side-hustle in Wellington to 3,500+ U.S. stockists, their rise underscores how small, values-driven Kiwi brands can scale into global grocery giants. The U.S. nut butter aisle is brutal, yet Fix & Fogg has carved out premium territory, powered by sustainability credentials, B Corp statu