Ford tops Experian loyalty ranking as automaker earmarks "billions" for relaunching Lincoln — and may alter marque to please Chinese car buyers.

Apple stock slides on disappointing iPhone 5 sales.

Lance Armstrong creates buzz in advance of "emotional" TV confession with Oprah Winfrey.

Alibaba says founder is to leave CEO post.

BMW and Mercedes-Benz are chasing younger buyers.

Brandweek is being revived, at least in name.

Burberry says own-store sales rise but wholesale suffers.Continue reading...

Kellogg's Kashi brand has just introduced two new USDA Certified organic cereals, touting that it's using real organic fruit and whole grains in the wake of its Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) flap earlier this year. "We've always believed that nature makes the best-tasting ingredients, like the hearty whole grains and luscious organic fruit you can see and taste in our Berry Fruitful and Blackberry Hills cereals," states Keegan Sheridan, natural food and lifestyle expert at Kashi, in a press release.

Each serving of Berry Fruitful provides 6g of fiber and 46g of whole grains, nearly 100% of the recommended daily value, while Blackberry Hills offers 3g of fiber and 16g of whole grains per serving – and like all Kashi foods, both are free of preservatives, artificial flavors, colors and high fructose corn syrup. Equally important, both cereals carry the official Non-GMO Project Verified seal. But that still won't convince its GMO foes to re-embrace the brand.

Kashi doesn't broadcast the fact that it's owned by Kellogg, nor that it has used GMOs, because it's trying to be perceived as an independent brand to win a bigger share of the natural and organic food category, which grew 9.5% in 2011 to $31.5 billion in US sales. The brand's still recovering from being engulfed in a social media firestorm back in April, when a New England store boycotted it after discovering "that 100% of the soy used in Kashi products is genetically modified, and that when the USDA tested the grains used there were found to be pesticides that are known carcinogens and hormone disruptors."

Kashi's Keegan Sheridan defended the company's GMO usage with a YouTube video, but it's still getting flack from consumers opposed to GMOs on its Facebook page, as you can see at top.Continue reading...

For a while, the notion of regulating genetically modified organisms (better known as GMOs) included in food seemed like a good idea, and anti-Big Food advocates in California attracted a lot of support in a state where residents like to be on the cutting edge of just about everything. Calfornians have never minded serving as a bellwether on new regulatory initiatives that end up sweeping the rest of the country, such as automotive emissions.

But the closer today's vote on Proposition 37 loomed, the more that initial support of the idea waned. And this U.S. Election Day, even backers of the anti-GMO initiative seemed resigned to its defeat, although it's still being closely watched. (Update: Prop 37 was indeed defeated at the polling booth.)

What happened? Well, a combination of huge contributions by moneyed CPG brands battered Prop 37's drive to label GMOs in a massive advertising and PR blitz with a "No on 37" drive. And backers of the added regulation alleged dirty tricks by the competition as they sought to sway voters (despite scientific evidence to the contrary) that GMO-containing products are hardly the stuff of "Frankenfood" that really harms consumers.Continue reading...

The vast majority of American consumers don't care whether their foods contain genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Food executives and think tanks will tell you that and cite, for example, how Indiana local bakery Aunt Nellie's bombed when it introduced a specifically labeled "non-GMO" bread a couple of years ago.

But California isn't most of America, with a more health-conscious outlook than most states. That's why mainstream food companies are in a hot and heavy contest against GMO opponents over Proposition 37, The Right to Know Genetically Modified Food Act, a piece of state legislation that, if passed in November, would require GMO-containing products to disclose that on labels, and make California the first state to mandate genetically modified food.

Similar to what happened to automakers after California took an extreme position on cutting emissions, essentially imposing that higher standard on cars sold all over the country, food and beverage companies are concerned that California will serve as a bellwether in GMO labeling regulation as well.

In a particular bind in this fight are the many mainstream food conglomerates that now own organic brands, which by definition don't include GMOs: Kellogg, owner of GMO poster brand Kashi; General Mills, owner of the Cascadian Farm, Muir Glen, Larabar and Food Should Taste Good brands; Coca-Cola, owner of Odwalla and Honest Tea; PepsiCo; and Dean Foods, owner of Horizon Organics.Continue reading...

Kellogg has been working on a comprehensive brand overhaul during the last several months, and now one of the first significant fruits of its efforts is coming out: A new campaign promoting some of its classic cereals, focused on their simplicity and goodness.

Running under the tagline "Goodness of a Simple Grain," the new campaign extols Corn Flakes, Rice Krispies and Raisin Bran in a farm-to-table positioning that is so popular these days (see: McDonald's farmer spots and Chipotle's Willie Nelson video) and combines it with simplicity messaging, emphasizing that there are only four ingredients, for instance, in Corn Flakes. One spot says Kellogg takes these products "from the seed to the spoon."

"We have a number of brands like this that we've been making for a hundred years," Doug VanDeVelde, Kellogg's SVP of morning foods, marketing and innovation, told Adweek. "But consumers weren't really aware of that, and we need to, in a very simple way, remind them."Continue reading...

When we profiled the Kashi brand in 2010, it was a company emerging as a leader in the natural and organic food category. While it started out making cereals, after being acquired in 2000 by the cereal giant Kellogg, Kashi embarked on an aggressive expansion plan to expand its brand to snack bars, crackers, cookies, waffles, pizza, and frozen entrees.

Kashi has continued to bask in the positive light of natural and organic goodness, fueled by the 9.5 percent growth of the U.S. organic industry in 2011 to a cool $31.5 billion in sales, according to the Organic Trade Association. Arguably, Kashi has been a natural and organic foods darling — an example of a brand that stayed true to its core — and certainly not one expected to be connected with controversy. Until recently.Continue reading...

It used to be easy to succumb to guilty pleasures when traveling. After all, the hotel minibars were stocked with cookies, chips, and sodas, among other things. Not anymore. The healthy-food marketplace has entered this previously untouched zone: organic has come to the hotel minibar.

Marketwatch reports that “hotels and resorts are increasingly stocking minibars with healthier alternatives to traditional high-fat, high-sugar snacks,” which is helpful to the waistlines of travelers as well as the bank accounts of hotel owners and healthy-food providers.

The report notes that Hyatt's Andaz Wall Street in New York stocks organic Clif Bars and Terra plain and vegetable natural chips in its minibars, while the Four Seasons Austin in Texas is testing sales of six “organic, healthy and/or locally-produced products, including peeled mango, ginger tea and nut-and-fruit gluten-free energy bars” this summer. And those two luxury hotel locations aren’t alone.Continue reading...

Nature Made, Kashi, LeapFrog and Nestle Purina have just joined green rewards organization RecycleBank in preparation for America Recycles Day, this November 15. Together, these brands represent four major areas of recyclable materials: plastic, paper, electronics and metal. The companies, in collaboration with RecycleBank, are planning to educate and incentivize consumers to recycle, through digital and social media campaigns.
 
“There is no doubt that sustainability is a top priority for brands today, and we are thrilled to have Nature Made, Kashi, LeapFrog and Nestle Purina join our movement,” said Ian Yolles, CMO of RecycleBank. “Consumers realize that one of the easiest ways they can positively impact the environment is through their purchasing decisions and are increasingly looking to corporations to be the ones driving environmental change.”Continue reading...