Liz Satter
6 articles on The Pie
Industry InsightsHow Journey Foods Works With Kroger: What a Retail Partnership Means for Ingredient Sourcing and Private-Label Innovation
Kroger is not a small bet. The retailer runs more than 2,700 stores and has built one of the most aggressive private-label programs in U.S. grocery — Simple Truth, Private Selection, and a growing portfolio that generates billions annually. When a retailer at that scale commits to expanding its own-brand lineup, the pressure lands directly on the ingredient sourcing and formulation teams behind those products.
Industry InsightsHow to Track Ingredient Cost Volatility Across a Live Formulation Portfolio
Ingredient costs don't move in straight lines. They spike when a harvest fails, compress when a supplier overshoots capacity, and shift again when tariffs change the landed cost of an import. If you're managing a live portfolio of five, ten, or fifteen active formulations, that volatility doesn't hit you once. It hits you everywhere, simultaneously, and usually at the worst possible moment.
AI & Food TechNeural Network Recipes: How AI Models Are Generating Novel Food Formulations
Food scientists have spent decades refining formulations through iteration: adjust a ratio, run a bench test, evaluate sensory results, repeat. It works, but it's slow. A single reformulation project can consume weeks of research before a prototype even reaches the kitchen.
IngredientsStevia vs Monk Fruit: Which Natural Sweetener Works Best in CPG Formulation?
Both stevia and monk fruit have earned their place on the clean-label sweetener shortlist. Both are zero-calorie, plant-derived, and increasingly demanded by consumers who want sweetness without sugar. But for R&D and procurement teams, the choice between them is rarely simple. Formulation performance, cost structure, regulatory standing, and supply chain exposure all differ in ways that matter at scale.
Formulation & R&DIngredient Management Software: What CPG R&D Teams Actually Need vs. What Vendors Promise
Most ingredient management software demos look impressive. Clean dashboard, searchable ingredient library, nutrition data pulling in automatically. The sales rep walks you through a workflow that feels logical. You leave thinking it could work.
Industry InsightsHarnessing AI to Accelerate Change in Our Daily Systems
Artificial intelligence (AI) has become commonplace both in our personal lives and in the operations of many highly recognized companies - with 29% of companies using some form of