Kellogg’s is crossing two bridges at once, bringing its successful Special K Cracker Chips across the pond to the UK, where they're called (in local parlance) Special K Cracker Crisps, and using social currency in the form of tweets to pay for the savory treats.

Special K’s London pop-up, The Tweet Shop (a play on the classic British "sweet shop") is seeking tweets with the Twitter hashtag #tweetshop in return for a box of its new Cracker Crisps. That's what Kellogg's UK is billing as its ‘healthy brand of crisps (potato chips) that don't use potatoes’ and come in three flavors: sea salt and balsamic vinegar, sweet chilli and sour cream and onion and usually sell for $1 a pack.Continue reading...

Not many other restaurant startups have benefited from the kind of advance hype that is attending the launch of LYFE, a healthier-eating quick-serve restaurant that is slated to open soon in Palo Alto, Calif.

But then, not every fast-food startup promises to eschew fryers and white flour completely ... is led by former McDonald's executives ... and boasts a tie to the Midas touch of Oprah Winfrey.Continue reading...

The skies in Asia may become a lot more crowded in the second half of 2011. That's when All Nippon Airways (ANA) plans to launch a new low-cost airline to compete with the likes of rapidly growing AirAsia and Qantas-owned Jetstar. In addition, another low-cost airline is in the process of being formed by Thai Airways and Tiger Airways, which is partially owned by Singapore Airlines.

While the new carrier will be a separate operation, ANA will own 39%, Chinese investment firm First Eastern will own 33%, and Japanese investors will own the balance.

ANA hopes the low-cost carrier "will stimulate demand for air services, with domestic fares that can compete with long-distance buses and trains, without cannibalizing its own business," reports the New York Times. The yet-to-be-named airline is expected to fly domestic short-haul routes and international flights out of Osaka's Kansai International Airport.Continue reading...

With school back in session across most of America this week, food service brands are under more pressure than ever to make a difference in how U.S. schoolchildren eat, and they’re breaking out new menus and positioning in the effort.

The Big Three of educational foodservice – Aramark, Compass Group’s Chartwells division, and Sodexo – are patently aware of how Michelle Obama has fingered childhood obesity as Public Enemy No. 1. And while the chains have dedicated a lot of resources over the last several years to formulating, distributing and marketing more healthful fare to their school clients, there’s nothing like attention by the First Lady to get them to apply even more.

So Rye, N.Y.-based Chartwells, for instance, has launched a program called, “Be a Flexitarian.” Originally rolled out last spring in celebration of Earth Day, the program is being intensified this fall, offering kids more chances for meatless meals that feature ingredients like black beans and brown rice.Continue reading...