The great CPG shakeup is here.

CPG and Retail news from the week of 7/7/25

Hello hello!

While we typically reserve our Monday sends for the previous week’s news, today we’re briefly breaking our own rule to quickly touch on the news that came across our desks this morning:

David (yes, that David) announced it is now selling (wait for it…) frozen cod! Like, the fish. The literal fish. In a box. Raw. Unadulterated.

and $55 for 4 pieces of cod

• We cannot tell if this is real or a joke, because, while our prank-o-meters are blaring, you can actually place an order for cod on David’s site.

• And the company clearly spent some cash on this launch—from the landing page itself (sleek, featuring an FAQ, etc etc) to this bizarre and seemingly highly-produced ad.

While we won’t get into it in this edition, expect an update next Monday on this whole fishy situation. In the meantime, please consider paying a visit to your local fishmonger to DIY your own yassified cod at home. 😇

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Annnnd some housekeeping: If you’re in NYC over the next few weeks, we’d love to see you at the following events:

"Bring Your Brand" | NYC CPG Hangout - 📅 July 16th ⌚ 8-10am 📍Flatiron 🔗 RSVP

Coffee and Consumer - 📅 July 23rd ⌚ 8:30-10am 📍Flatiron 🔗 RSVP

Let’s get into it →

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News From the Week

This week brought two MASSIVE pieces of news that signal a seismic shift in the packaged goods world:

• Ferrero is dropping a meek $3.1 billion to purchase WK Kellogg (Froot Loops, Frosted Flakes, Special K). WK Kellogg was struggling (sales down 2%) but Ferrero has a track record of reviving tired brands—they've done it with Nestlé's candy business, Keebler, and even Blue Bunny ice cream.

  

• Meanwhile, Kraft Heinz is reportedly exploring a potential $20 billion separation 💔. The 2015 merger of Kraft and Heinz was supposed to create “synergies”…instead the stock's down 60%+ and they're bleeding market share.

And in all honesty? Neither is all that surprising.

We've seen countless CPG giants restructuring their portfolios over the past few years. Remember when Kellogg's split into Kellanova and WK Kellogg in 2023? Or when General Mills offloaded its yogurt business? This is just the latest chapter in a story that's been writing itself for years.

So why now? The brutal truth is that legacy CPG companies are getting absolutely crushed from all sides:

• Private label is eating their lunch - 80% of consumers now think store brands are as good as or better than national brands (and they're often made in the same factories!). The growth here has been spectacular. Since 2021, store brand unit sales have risen by more than 2%, while national brands have fallen by around 7%.

• The middle is getting squeezed - You either need to be the cheapest option (private label), or offer something truly differentiated (craft brands). Being "pretty good" at a medium price point? That's a tough sell.

• Consumer loyalty is fading fast - Gen Z and Millennials are more likely than previous generations to switch brands. Throw in a discount or a mention from their favorite TikToker, and these consumers are likely to swap.

• Innovation crisis - Only 35% of global food/drink launches in 2024 were genuinely new products—the lowest since 1996. Meanwhile, 59% of successful new launches came from small businesses, up from 35% in 2021.

• Startups are winning - While accounting for less than 2% of market share, insurgent brands captured nearly 39% of incremental category growth in 2024, up from just 17% in 2023.

…and it’s all resulting in this: The top 50 global CPG companies achieved only 1.2% revenue growth in H1 2024. That's not a typo.

Now, before we write obituaries for Jell-O and Special K, let's get real for a second:

• These brands have survived a lot. We’re talking two world wars, countless recessions, and every diet trend—from low-fat to Keto and everything in between.

• Even when brand loyalty fails, brand recognition remains. When people think ketchup, they think Heinz. When they think cream cheese, they think Philadelphia. Heck, when people think Jell-O, that's all they think—they don't even realize it's a brand name!

The problem isn't (necessarily) the brands. It's that they're buried in these massive conglomerates:

• Incredibly slow processes/approvals

• Focusing more on quarterly earnings than true innovation

• Relying too heavily on traditional retail to boost their brands.

The playbook that built these companies isn’t working like it once was. And now, cash and consumer nostalgia isn’t enough to save them.

So what will save them? Spinoffs and new ownership could be exactly what these brands need. Look at Old Spice—it went from grandpa's aftershave to the #1 men's body wash. No reason Kraft Mac & Cheese can't pull off something similar.

But it's going to take real innovation, startup-level agility, and picking a lane—premium or value, not the mushy middle.

Bottom line: We're witnessing the largest restructuring of the CPG industry in decades. Some legacy brands will emerge stronger. Others will become case studies about the dangers of complacency.

Place your bets accordingly. 🫡

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CPG & Consumer Goods

• The Gruns killer? Maybe. Lemme, Kourtney Kardashian Barker's vitamin and supplement brand, is adding a Daily Greens gummy to its massive lineup.

  • They’ve likely been formulating these for a while—but Gruns has proven that consumers want their greens powder in gummy form. The company just closed a $35M Series B at a $500M valuation in May 2025, ships 4 million gummies daily, and landed major retail partnerships with Target (1,600+ stores), Walmart (1,900+ stores), and Sprouts after just 2 years in market.

  • And Lemme isn’t far behind: The brand has been building since 2022 with 25% month-over-month growth, landed Target and Ulta Beauty nationwide, and offers gummies for everything from sleep gummies to hair gummies to gummies for a more…intimate setting. Plus Kourtney has a cool 220MM Instagram followers to leverage.

• S’more Than Just Cookies! Tony’s Chocolonely and Hot Take Dough team up to launch a limited-edition S’more Cookie Pack.

  • I love seeing larger brands partner up with smaller and more emerging brands like Hot Take. Partnering with a social media first brand like Hot Take introduces Tony’s to a new audience who might not be as familiar with the brand. - N

• GLP-1-friendly everything. Just a few months after being acquired by Danone, Kate Farms—a shake and formula company made without any common allergens—is introducing a high protein nutrition shake with 25g of plant-based protein and 27 essential vitamins designed for consumers on GLP-1 medications.

  • There are a lot of high-protein shakes these days—including Danone’s own new Oikos Protein Shakes which boast 30g of protein and 5g of prebiotic fiber. Brands like Koia, Slate, Quest, and OWYN all have 30g+ beverages now.

• Pizza Hut as a health food. Caulipower, the massive cauliflower pizza brand, is testing its gluten-free pizza crusts in 250 Pizza Hut locations across the Midwest, marking a significant expansion in foodservice.

  • Caulipower reached its prime ~5+ years ago as the cauliflower craze was peaking—hitting its $500MM valuation in 2021. We all seem to have forgotten about this brand since then, but it has seen steady expansion in the freezer aisle and continues to capture gluten-free and health-minded folks looking for a quick frozen meal.

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eCommerce

• A four-day frenzy. Amazon's summer Prime Day event shattered expectations, raking in $24.1 billion—30.3% more than last year.

  • The first Prime Day in 2015 was just that—one day. A single, 24-hour event. Over time, it gradually expanded—36 hours in 2018, two full days by 2019, and for the first time, this sale day has grown into a sales season, with four full days of sales.

  • The sales themselves were steeper, with discounts averaging about 4% greater than the previous year. Looks like ecomm companies are taking advantage of the looming tariff scarcity mindset…and it’s working.

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Retail

• Always bet on emerging. This week, Raley’s launched its first-ever Innovation Set, “Get Curious,” featuring 52 emerging brands in Northern California and Nevada. This initiative highlights the growing trend of large retailers investing in early-stage brands, similar to what Sprouts has done with its innovation set.

  • The set is focusing on the themes we’re hearing about everywhere—globally inspired flavors, better-for-you beverages, and indulgent self-care—and runs for two months.

  • Featured brands include Gorgie, El Nacho, S’Noods, Bawi, and not one, not two, but three beef tallow-based personal care brands. 🐮

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Funding news

• Bad time to be lactose intolerant. Lactalis USA (great name) is pouring $75 million into its New York dairy plants to boost production and meet the soaring demand for high-protein foods. Lactalis USA, a division of the French dairy giant Groupe Lactalis, is known for its iconic brands like Président cheese, Parmalat milk, and more recently brands like Stonyfield yogurt and Siggi's which it acquired from General Mills.

  • Given the protein craze, raw milk + carnivore diet trends, and aforementioned tallow obsessions of today’s consumers, this isn’t wholly (milk joke) surprising. But when you zoom out a little and think about the industry’s last near-decade of pouring resources into dairy alternatives, this news feels like total whiplash. I’m curious to watch the tug-of-war justifications of spend as major corporations battle conflicting consumer preferences of sustainability and animal-based products. - J

• Texting your way to checkout. OneText just snagged $4.5 million from Y Combinator, Citi Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Coatue, and Good Friends to improve online shopping by enabling purchases via text.

• Mars goes green. Mars, the multinational company behind brands like Snickers, Twix, and Altoids, launched a $250M investment fund aiming to tackle sustainability challenges, enhancing agricultural practices and packaging solutions.

• Monster execs scoop up Thrifty Ice Cream. A holding company linked to Monster Beverage executives paid $19.2 million to revive the iconic Thrifty Ice Cream brand—purchasing it from Rite Aid after the retailer filed for bankruptcy.

• Bold mixer move. Mizkan America just acquired Zing Zang, the leading Bloody Mary mix brand, expanding its cocktail mixer portfolio.

  • If you want the best bloody mary mix I’ve ever tried, check out Natural Blonde mix. i tried it at Fancy Food show and it is so so good. - N

Weekly Pickups

Last week we chatted with marketing genius, CPG fiend, and friend of the newsletter Shelby Jacobs. Check it out here! 👇

Weekly Pickups: Better hydration, summer coffee, and more...

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