From the Editor
2025: An Eventful Year in Food Manufacturing
From major acquisitions to economic and policy changes, the food industry has had an eventful year. EIC Alyse Thompson-Richards takes a moment to reflect.
It’s hard to believe we’ve already reached the end of 2025.
Perhaps we say this every year, but it seems like the last 12 months have passed by in a blink. The food industry has certainly had an eventful year, and maybe that’s why I’m looking at the calendar, scratching my head and wondering where the time has gone.
December offers the perfect opportunity to pause, reflect and prepare for the year ahead. In the spirit of reflection, let’s look back at the major developments in the food industry this year:
Reciprocal Tariffs
In April, the Trump Administration announced reciprocal tariffs on imported goods with the goal of reducing trade deficits with global trading partners and support the use of domestic goods and services. The move prompted criticism from some industry groups, noting the costs would likely be passed on to consumers.
Facing increasing pressure over high grocery prices, Trump rolled back reciprocal tariffs on certain agricultural products in November.
Move to Natural Colors
We started 2025 with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration revoking the authorization for the use of FD&C Red No. 3 in food and ingested drugs, and in April, the agency followed by announcing a series of measures to phase out petroleum-based synthetic dyes.
The agency has since approved four colors from natural sources for use in food products. Several major manufacturers, including Kraft Heinz, General Mills, Grupo Bimbo and Utz, then announced initiatives to remove FD&C colors from their product portfolios.
Major Industry Moves
2025 brought a handful of major acquisitions. In May 2025, PepsiCo completed its acquisition of poppi, a fast-growing prebiotic soda brand for $1.95 billion.
In July, Ferrero announced it would snap up WK Kellogg Co., the North American cereal spinoff of Kellogg’s, for $3.1 billion. The acquisition, which was set to close sometime this year, represents the latest in Ferrero’s decade-long push to acquire North American food brands.
Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) also announced it would acquire JDE Peets’s for $18 billion. Once the transaction is complete, KDP plans to split into two companies: a refreshment beverage company, with estimated annual net sales of $11 billion, and a global coffee company with annual net sales of $16 billion.
In September, Kraft Heinz announced it would separate into two companies a decade after the merger of Kraft Foods and H.J. Heinz. The two resulting companies, whose names will be determined later, will include “Global Taste Elevation Co.,” a global leader in shelf-stable meals with approximately $15.4 billion in 2024 net sales, and “North American Grocery Co.,” a portfolio of North American staples with approximately $10.4 billion in 2024 net sales. The company expects the transaction to close in the second half of 2026.
Major Recalls
Several major recalls resulting from listeria and salmonella also made headlines this year. In February, Lyons Magnus LLC recalled frozen supplemental shakes distributed to foodservice and long-term care facilities due to a listeria outbreak that has sickened at least 38 people across 21 states and resulted in 12 deaths.
The fall brought a multistate listeria outbreak connected to ready-to-eat pasta meals that sickened at least 27 and resulted in six deaths. The subsequent recall affected several retailers, including Albertsons Companies, Demers Food Group, Giant Eagle, Inc., The Kroger Co. and Sprouts Farmers Market.
The August Egg Company in California and Black Sheep Egg Company in Arkansas both recalled millions of shell eggs after positive salmonella tests. While the outbreak connected to the August Egg Company resulted in 21 hospitalizations, there were no illnesses connected to the Black Sheep Egg Company recall. No deaths were reported.
We also covered dozens of investments, expansions and plant openings throughout the year. These projects total hundreds of millions of dollars, and it’s encouraging to see that investment in food manufacturing is persisting, despite a difficult economic environment.
On a personal note, I’m closing out the first year serving as editor-in-chief of FOOD ENGINEERING. It’s been a whirlwind taking the helm and diving into the realities of smart food manufacturing. Seeing what’s possible with automation, artificial intelligence and robotics has been eye-opening. It’s also been a pleasure to visit some of the most advanced food manufacturing facilities out there, including Carolina Foods’ Pineville, N.C. facility, our 2025 Plant of the Year winner, as well as The Campbell Company’s Goldfish production facility in Utah.
I’m looking forward to what 2026 will bring — not only for FE and me — but for the food industry as a whole.
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