Foodservice News & Operator Intel

Ten years ago, General Mills announced it was removing artificial colors from its cereals. Consumers pushed back so hard that within two years, classic Trix, the neon-bright version with Red 40 and Yellow 6, was back on shelves. General Mills publicly acknowledged that customers had rejected the naturally colored version of its product, finding it […]

Many of us don’t want craft beer to fail. We’ve spent too many Saturday afternoons in taprooms sampling a flight of beers, then digging into one for the rest of the evening. Looking at the numbers for the business coming out of 2025, it may be hard to stay optimistic but the picture is worse […]

One day, you might order a burger from a voice AI, watch a robotic arm serve fries, and have another robot deliver your meal to your table. Tech companies have promoted this vision for nearly a decade. Industry magazines reported on it, and restaurant chains released statements using terms like transformative and revolutionary. The actual […]

The food industry spent 2025 trying to solve the GLP-1 problem. Strategies included offering smaller portions, emphasizing protein-rich dishes, introducing half-size options, and highlighting GLP-1-friendly choices on packaging. The entire conversation was about food. Which is partly correct. GLP-1 users are eating less food. But they are not consuming less across the board. They are […]

Summary In Q3 2025, 15% of c-store prepared food visits were converted QSR occasions. In 38% of those cases, the consumer had specifically considered McDonald’s first, according to Technomic’s February 2026 Future of Convenience Stores report. C-store foodservice grew 5.7% in 2025, outpacing QSR’s 4.7% growth. The food quality perception gap has narrowed from 13 […]