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Label Insight, the market leader for product transparency, was named as one of Chicago's Best Places to Work. Issued and managed by Crain's Business Chicago and Best Companies Group, this survey and awards program identifies and honors the 100 best companies to work for in Chicago.

What is Quark?

In March I was honored to speak at the Clean Label Conference in Itasca, Illinois on clean label ingredient trends. There I met Craig Sherwin who is the Technical Service Manager for Novozymes North America, a Dutch ingredient company. Craig was promoting an alternative to the conventional yeast-based lactase used in lactose-free dairy. He mentioned this being applied to a variety of dairy products, including a traditional Germanic product called “Quark”.

Somewhere between the texture of a thick yogurt and ricotta cheese, quark is a creamy, cultured milk product that can be used in sweet and savory dishes, or eaten plain.

Consumer demand for transparency is reshaping the CPG and retail industries, changing the business from the boardroom down. In response to this transformation, the Path to Purchase Institute developed TransparencyIQ, the only conference focused on the revolutionary force of product transparency and its ability to drive consumer trust and brand loyalty. In its second year running, Label Insight is proud to again serve as the event’s Founding Sponsor.

In May of 2016, the FDA announced the new Nutrition Facts label for packaged foods. The purpose of the new label is to make it easier for consumers to make better informed food and beverage choices.

During a recent keynote address at the National Food Policy Conference in Washington, D.C., Scott Gottlieb, the Drug Administration Commissioner, stated regulations dealing with consumer information — as well as labeling, ingredient and standard of identification initiatives — are at the center of a new nutrition innovation strategy.

 Digital technology is responsible for reshaping many industries - but in particular, the use of big data and analytics has transformed the business of food.

Last week our CEO, Paul Schaut, spoke about the expanding role of big data, AI and advanced analytics in the food industry at the Future Food-Tech event in San Francisco.

Hop to it: It’s not too late to shop for a better-for-you Easter basket

With Easter right around the corner many Americans are gearing up for a big family celebration. According to Packaged Facts’ “Food Gifting in the U.S.: Consumer and Corporate” report, those celebrating Easter last year spent an estimated $18 billion on products including candy, gifts, food and flowers, with $152 spent per celebrant. Food and candy comprised more than $6 billion of consumers’ Easter spending.

Company to deliver combined image and data solution to the second largest food retailer group in the U.S.

Label Insight, the market leader for product transparency, today announced that it has signed an expansive, multi-year deal with Topco Associates LLC, a provider of innovative business solutions for its food industry member-owners and customers. Under the agreement, Label Insight will provide high quality product images alongside the industry’s largest and most complete product attribute data set to better inform Topco stakeholders about the nutrient and ingredient composition of all Topco-procured private label products. The agreement includes all product categories such as food, beverage, baby, pet and cosmetics. Label Insight will also power SmartLabel™ pages, including images and data, for all Topco brand products.

Serving up Data Bites, One Slice at a Time

March 14, or 3.14, is National Pi Day. A day when America pays homage to the mathematical constant π. Pi is that unique, never repeating or ending, fraction that many of us remember from geometry class -- the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. So it’s appropriate that we celebrate with food in the shape of a circle. Many grocery stores offer deals on pizza pies, fruit pies and even chicken pot pies. There is no doubt a pie for everyone.

American consumers are demanding more transparency about the ingredients being used within the food products they consume, with the majority of consumers preferring natural, socially-conscious food items. And they are beginning to expect the same for their pets, who are increasingly being viewed as an extension of the family.

Two of the most persistent challenges for brands and retailers over the past several years, have been maintaining consistent, uniform, high-quality product images and satisfying the demand for transparency, which requires more detailed product data, specifically designed to meet the increasing consumer demand for better information and transparency. To make the situation more complex, linking data and images has been a daunting process due to the myriad image sources, data sources, distribution points and consumer touchpoints.