Gourmet News

Olipop Names Camila Cabello as Brand Ambassador

Published September 13, 2022

Functional soda brand Olipop has signed multi-Grammy nominated Cuban born singer/songwriter Camila Cabello as its first major brand partner. While known primarily as a singer, songwriter and actor, Cabello is also a passionate businesswoman working to support brands with impactful missions. The partnership will center around deep creative collaboration on upcoming marketing initiatives, as well as ongoing involvement and advocacy of their shared mission in the health and wellness space.

This partnership is a testament to the better-for-you beverage’s current exponential growth and long-term ambition to transform the traditional soda industry, as Cabello is going against the grain by choosing to partner with an up-and-coming brand like Olipop.

“What we put into our bodies can lead to so many different health issues, including negative effects on your mental health,” said Cabello. “I’m proud to partner with a brand that is working to provide healthier drink options that align with how I strive to live.”

“Authentic alignment with our talent partners is critical to us, and our partnership with Camila sprung out of her organic love for the product and our love for her amazing values and creativity,” said Ben Goodwin, Olipop’s founder, formulator and CEO. “We are thrilled to partner with Camila to amplify Olipop ’s involvement in meaningful cultural moments born out of making a positive change in society and spreading true enjoyment in the process.”

Cabello was previously announced as an Olipop investor in February 2022, but is deepening her relationship with the brCaand with this new deal. OLIPOP’s delicious product offerings, health benefits, and transparency to customers have attracted additional strategic celebrity and business investors including Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Nick Jonas, Joe Jonas, Kevin Jonas, Mindy Kaling, Logic, Gwyneth Paltrow, top execs from ClassPass, TikTok, Shake Shack, Equinox, and many more.

Since launching in 2018, Olipop has already achieved a striking valuation of $200 million, disrupting the traditional soda industry and amassing widespread appeal for its tasty, nostalgia-infused flavors, and proprietary gut-friendly formulation. The brand was started by beverage entrepreneurs Goodwin and David Lester who set out to create a functional soda—one with a familiar and delicious taste but with the added benefits of microbiome and digestive health support.

While traditional soda is loaded with sugar and additives, each can of OLIPOP has only 35-45 calories, contains two to five grams of natural sugars, and provides nine grams of prebiotic plant fiber, which is one-third of the daily recommended amount. The product is eliminating the consequences of the traditional soda category, and making way for a new functional soda with benefits, changing the trajectory of health outcomes for many consumers.

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Kroger Debuts Thrifty Smart Way Product Line

Published September 12, 2022

The Kroger Co. has launched Smart Way, a new opening price point Our Brands product line. This line brings together 16 legacy brands into a single, easy-to-find identity.

“As our customers face an ongoing inflationary environment, we know they are looking to stretch their dollars further than ever before,” said Stuart Aitken, senior vice president and chief merchant and marketing officer. “Smart Way is an exciting, eye-pleasing product line that will be easy for customers to find. By adding a simplified opening price point brand strategy to Our Brands portfolio, we will further cater to every customer, every time.”

Smart Way joins Kroger’s extensive Our Brands portfolio, which also includes the namesake Kroger brand, Simple Truth, Private Selection, Home Chef and Heritage Farm among others. Consolidating a number of legacy brands will ensure customers searching for opening price point items will be able to easily find what they are looking for on the shelves.

“We are confident Smart Way will have something for everyone,” said Juan De Paoli, vice president, Our Brands. “From canned vegetables and bread to juices and staples, this new product line features the products families need to put an even more affordable meal on their table.”

Customers can shop approximately 150 Smart Way products on shelves nationwide, with additional items available in Fall 2022.

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Chef Unveils Colicchio Collection Premium Sauces

Published September 12, 2022

The Colicchio Collection, featuring a line of ultra-premium cooking and pairing sauces crafted by chef and restaurateur Tom Colicchio in partnership with The Jersey Tomato Co. and KEEN Growth Capital, has debuted for purchase online.

Colicchio looked to Italy’s most beloved culinary regions for inspiration in crafting the six sauces, all made with 100 percent vine-ripened New Jersey tomatoes, which are prized for their sumptuous flavor and delicate balance of sweetness and acidity. Each sauce in the Colicchio Collection is made with ingredients unique to its region of Italy and is intended to complement a range of dishes, including six recipes developed by Colicchio to highlight the sauces’ distinct flavor profiles, from clams with pancetta and mustard greens to eggplant shakshuka.

“I wanted to capture the exciting variety of cuisines throughout Italy in a collection that home cooks could use to elevate and enhance their everyday cooking,” Colicchio said. “The inherent brightness and balance of these sauces allows the regional ingredients to shine through, taking stews, braised and grilled meats, seafood, even pizza to another level of flavor and vibrancy.”

Colicchio first joined The Jersey Tomato Co. in 2020 as an equity partner, brand ambassador and culinary consultant driving innovation. The Colicchio Collection marks the New Jersey native’s first original offering in partnership with the brand.

“It’s been a joy to collaborate with chef Colicchio on The Jersey Tomato Co., and we’re thrilled to introduce consumers to his first original, ultrai-premium line,” says Mike Hagan, CEO of KEEN Growth Capital’s Emerging Brands Portfolio. “It’s an exciting chapter of what we hope becomes a cornerstone of the home kitchen.”

As with all The Jersey Tomato Co. sauces, the Colicchio Collection is lower in sodium, gluten-free, non-GMO and Kosher, and has no added sugars or artificial preservatives. The six sauce flavors include:

Liguria: lemon, white wine, provençal herbs
Trentino: wild mushroom, parmesan, rosemary
Sicilia: orange, black olive, white wine
Piemonte: barolo wine, sage
Abruzzo: saffron, fennel pollen
Calabria: eggplant, zucchini, and chilis

The Colicchio Collection is available as a Club Colicchio subscription with exclusive member benefits and as a one-time purchase of $45 for a set of three 16-ounce jars.

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