Nonfoods

At a time when the food industry is awash in programs aimed at helping shoppers make healthier choices at the shelf, including such well-publicized initiatives as Hannaford’s Guiding Stars, Supervalu’s NutritionIQ, Topco’s NuVal and the just launched – and already controversial – Smart Choices, developed with the input of a coalition of consumer packaged goods companies including Kraft and Kellogg, it would seem that there wouldn’t be room for yet another system.

As a way to increase awareness that healthier food and lifestyle choices can reduce the rise of chronic health conditions such as obesity and diabetes among Hispanics, Boston-based Oldways nonprofit food issues think tank and the Latino Nutrition Coalition (LNC) will roll out Latino Nutrition Month from Sept. 15 through Oct. 15, to coincide with National Hispanic Heritage Month.

With fall comes football, and more center store categories than ever -- even some of Procter & Gamble’s nonfood divisions -- are cashing in on the excitement generated by the upcoming Super Bowl with high-powered promotions offering money-saving coupons, recipes, health tips, trips to see the Big Game and even, in the case of Frito-Lay brand Doritos’ consumer-created ad contest, which gives winning entries exposure during the telecast of the event, fame and fortune. Meanwhile, retailers like Roundy’s are coming up with such innovative football-themed initiatives as a cereal to mark the Green Bay Packers’ 90th anniversary.

Football season is off and running, and in the countdown to its culminating event, the Super Bowl -- scheduled to take place Feb. 7, 2010, in Miami’s Land Shark Stadium -- a spate of football-related promotions has charged into the grocery aisle.

Aimed at toddlers and their food-conscious moms, Little Blends™ from Broomfield, Colo.-based Horizon Dairy offer a unique combination of organic whole milk yogurt and natural fruit and vegetable purees, thereby incorporating greater variety and nutrition into young ones’ diets.

Lowell Multi Grain Yogurts blend hormone-free Wisconsin milk, flavorful fruit pieces sourced in Europe, chewy whole grains and healthful probiotics in one deliciously creamy product.

I won’t vouch for my German grammar in the title above, but if you “speak food,” then you'll find a great deal to talk about this October at Anuga 2009, the global food and beverage fair, which will take place in Cologne (Köln), Germany, from Oct. 10 to Oct. 14.

Beauty is in the eye of the food shopper, according to data released by Mintel. The Chicago-based research company’s Beauty Innovation division found that food and drink launches with a “beauty-enhancing” claim increased 306 percent worldwide between 2005 and 2008.