All Food & Beverage

Article Inside Look: Chobani Relaunches a Protein-Packed Yogurt Drink
June 5, 2025 | By Dawn Kawamoto, Contributing Writer
Over the past year, Thierry Saint Denis, Senior Vice President of Research and Development for Chobani, led a yogurt relaunch proving less is more in innovation. Saint Denis recently spoke to InnoLead about the product relaunch and its impact on the company.
Article Throw Out the Innovation Funnel, and Replace It With a Calendar
May 22, 2025 | By Tina Lambert
In this excerpt, marketing and innovation executive Tina Lambert calls the idea of an innovation funnel "very unrealistic," and proposes an alternative — the three-year calendar.
Article How Nestlé Thinks About New Ventures, from Pizza Vending Machines to Probiotic Bars
April 1, 2024 | By Hadley Thompson, Meghan Hall
We talked with Doug Munk, the Senior Director of New Business Ventures for Nestlé USA, about his insights about his time navigating the complexities of building and sustaining new ventures within large organizations.
Article Panera Brands Chairman: Innovation Needs to Improve the Business Model
December 6, 2023
"I'll give you an important definition of innovation: I think innovation is meaningful only if it improves and strengthens the business model," says Panera chairman Niren Chaudhary. More insights from a recent talk inside...along with video.
Article Chew Innovation CEO on the Future of Food
August 9, 2023 | By Hadley Thompson
Adam Melonas, CEO and Founder of Chew Innovation in Boston, shares his insights on communication around innovation; working with large CPG companies; scalability of products for the largest total addressable market; and more.
Article Pernod Ricard Innovation Exec on Moving Fast in New Product Development
June 9, 2023 | By Meghan Hall
Kate Pomeroy, Head of Innovation North America for Paris-based alcohol giant Pernod Ricard, shares how her innovation team goes about creating new products for consumers quickly, while also including key stakeholders in decision-making processes.
Article Singin’ in the Rain: Brands Must Work Harder to Spread Joy
May 10, 2023 | By Paul Earle, Contributing Columnist and Principal of A Day in the Sun
Paul Earle, co-founder of GOODLES, Big Nose Kate Whiskey, and Small Wonder, gives insights about the importance of novelty, shock, and keeping up with consumers in an ever-changing environment.
Article Concrete Advice on Improving Alignment with Your C-suite
February 15, 2023 | By Scott Kirsner
Audio and transcript from a recent conversation about aligning innovation activity with the C-suite of a company, with participants from tech, food and beverage, manufacturing, and financial services.
Article Coca-Cola Reveals its Startup Strategy — And How it Tracks Opportunities for Collaboration
December 8, 2022 | By Meghan Hall
As part of our recent research, Successful Startup Engagement and Corporate Venture Capital, we spoke with Molun Zhang, Coca-Cola's R&D Senior Manager for Experimentation & External Technology. She gave insights on how to begin collaborating with startups; share Coca-Cola's strategy for tracking collaborations; and explained the power behind Coca-Cola's participation...
Article ‘That First Sip of Fall’: Lessons from the Creation of Starbucks’ Pumpkin Spice Latte
September 19, 2022 | By Meghan Hall
Angie McKenzie was part of the team that created Starbucks’ iconic Pumpkin Spice Latte, which launched in 2003. She spoke with us to share a few key lessons she learned from the project, and discussed challenges innovators in the food and beverage industries face today.
Article Kellogg’s R&D Chief on Plant-Based Proteins and New Ways of Testing Products
February 22, 2022 | By Scott Kirsner
The company’s SVP of Global R&D talks about getting plant-based protein to an affordable price point; how the company is moving from focus groups to in-market testing; and why the $13 billion company hires “food designers” rather than food scientists.
Article Hain Celestial SVP on Creating a Unified R&D Team at ‘Hain 3.0’
February 19, 2022
The VP of Corporate Research talks about building innovation while simultaneously reinventing business models.
Article Inside Inspire Brands’ Ghost Kitchen and Innovation Center
February 3, 2022 | By Kate Katz
Just a year after opening its innovation center, Inspire Brands — owner of Arby’s, Sonic, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and Buffalo Wild Wings — launched the first multibrand “ghost kitchen” in Atlanta. InnoLead spoke with Vans Nelson, VP of Restaurant Operations, Innovation, and Profitability, about staying ahead of tech trends in...
Article Campbell’s Soup VP on What’s Changing in Research and Development
January 24, 2022 | By Alexander MacDougall, Scott Kirsner
R&D Vice President Judi Mondelllo talks about tasting new products in a hybrid world, the company’s academic relationships, and tuning in to what Milennials and Gen Z consumers want.
Article Dole’s Sustainability Promises Depend on Fresh Innovation
September 30, 2021
Dole, one of world’s largest fresh fruit and vegetable producers, is taking action to combat food inequality, climate change, and human rights issues. Dr. Lara Ramdin, Chief Innovation Officer, and Barbara Guerpillon, Global Head of Ventures, share how they are driving the company’s sustainability initiatives through open innovation.
Article What’s Changing in the Wine Business? Gallo’s Innovation Director Explains
September 13, 2021 | By Scott Kirsner
Michele Sandoval, Director of Innovation at the winemaker E. & J. Gallo, says the past 18 months have been an interesting time for the wine and spirits industry, with consumers spending less time at social gatherings and in restaurants, more time at home, and unable to visit some of Gallo’s...
Article PepsiCo’s Demand Accelerator Takes Consumer Insights to Next Level
August 20, 2021 | By Collin Robisheaux
The Global SVP and Head of PepsioCo’s Demand Accelerator program discussed the efficacy of the Demand Accelerator, the specific data PepsiCo uses, consumer trends in the food and beverage industry, and more.
Article What Matters in Innovation — June 25, 2021
June 25, 2021 | By Collin Robisheaux, Kaitlin Milliken
What mattered in innovation this week? InnoLead’s Scott Kirsner and Kaitlin Milliken join Derisk CEO Alex Slawsby to discuss. That includes some of the innovation news that you may have missed this week, and why it matters for innovators working in big organizations. In this installment: smart tires finally...
Article PepsiCo’s Chief Design Officer on Embracing Failure
March 4, 2021
Mauro Porcini, PepsiCo’s first-ever Chief Design Officer, offers insight on the intersections of innovation and design, methods for getting to the root of customer needs.
Article How Tyson’s CTO Is Using Big Data to Forecast COVID Spread
February 25, 2021 | By Lilly Milman
Because food distribution was labeled an essential business, Tyson Foods never shut down any of its plants. Right at the start of the pandemic — as early as January — Scott Spradley and his team began analyzing data to predict how infection might spread within them.