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Krispy Kreme Teams Up with Hershey’s for Chocolate Doughnuts
Leftovers is our look at a few of the product ideas popping up everywhere. Some are intriguing, some sound amazing and some are the kinds of ideas we would never dream of. We can’t write about everything that we get pitched, so here are some leftovers pulled from our inboxes.
Hershey is teaming up with Krispy Kreme for a limited-time collection of chocolate doughnuts. Krispy Kreme is launching a new edition of its annual Chocomania Collection, which features three doughnuts with Hershey milk chocolate icing. Flavors include chocolate salted caramel cheesecake, chocolate buttercreme, and chocolate chip cookie. The collection, launched March 19, is available in Krispy Kreme shops and select retailers.
Hershey is leveraging its brand name to make inroads in new spaces such as foodservice and beverages. The sweets company is partnering with Nutrabolt’s C4 to allow the beverage company to use Reese’s and other brand names on protein powders and energy drinks.
CEO Michele Buck said in February that Hershey is looking to meet the demand for indulgence through new product launches, saying that as sweets consumption among adults rises, consumers demand more complex taste profiles. “We continue to see that whenever we put out new flavors, new products, new taste experiences, consumers’ palates have become more sophisticated and they are looking for more different things to delight and we’re able to deliver that,” she told analysts.
—Sarah Zimmerman
Siggi’s Launches Yogurt Pouches for Adults
Babies and toddlers aren’t the only ones that can enjoy a food pouch. Yogurt brand Siggi’s is releasing a line of yogurt pouches in response to consumer demand for convenience and protein, even if it admits the portable format itself isn’t widely used by American shoppers. The products, available in blueberry pomegranate and strawberry acai, have 11 grams of protein. They’re also crafted with real fruit and contain no artificial flavors or sweeteners.
“While adults may not be used to consuming pouches in the US quite yet, they are a popular snack for the full family in many other countries like Australia; and we think the time is right to introduce them to the U.S. market,” David Greci, Siggi’s brand Director, said in an email to Food Dive. Beyond portability, the pouch helps yogurt maintain its thick and creamy texture, which is hard to do in a bottled drink. The Protein Packs are sold at Whole Foods nationwide for $1.99 per pouch. As more consumers abandon the traditional three meals a day in favor of more frequent snacking, brands like Siggi’s are launching products that address this shift.
The new Siggi’s products come five years after it rolled out its first-ever kids yogurt pouches at grocery and retail stores. The adult pouches differ in size, 4.5 ounces vs 3.5 ounces for kids, and have more sophisticated fruit flavors and combinations. Yogurt sales have steadily grown since 2017, according to the latest data from Statista, with more than $8 billion of the dairy offering purchased in 2023. U.S. consumers ate 4.6 billion pounds of yogurt two years ago, compared to 1.8 billion pounds in 2020.
—Christopher Doering
Percy Pig Gummies Make Their Debut in the U.S.
Percy Pig, a popular candy brand hailing from the United Kingdom, is launching in the U.S. through a partnership with Target. For 30 years, the pig-shaped gummies have been sold at Marks & Spencer in England, a major retail chain. More than 20 million 6-ounce bags of Percy Pig candy were sold in the U.K. last year, according to the press release.
The gummies, which contain a grape and berry flavor with foamy and jelly textures, have become an iconic symbol in the U.K. The brand sells merchandise and has gone beyond candy with ice cream, dessert sauces, and even beauty partnerships. Gummies continue to grow in popularity and have advantages over chocolate because they don’t melt as easily and are shareable. Confectionery giants in the U.S., such as Hershey and Mars Wrigley, have debuted new products in recent years, including Shaq-A-Licious XL Gummies and Skittles Gummies.
The gummy candy market is projected to increase at a compound annual growth rate of 11.6% through 2030, topping $6 billion, according to Grand View Research.
—Chris Casey