FlavorSum, a North American flavour producer, welcomes Beverage Flavors International (BFI), a U.S.-based manufacturer of proprietary beverage flavour bases and sweetener solutions, into the FlavorSum platform. The move will expand FlavorSum’s extensive beverage systems capabilities and segment leadership.
BFI provides complete, ready-to-use flavour bases for both carbonated beverages and still fruit-flavored drinks and supports bottling operations internationally. “BFI’s focus on delivering turn-key solutions for beverage companies looking for high-quality, consistent products and development expertise aligns well with FlavorSum’s mission to streamline flavour sourcing. This acquisition continues our strategy to bring a market-leading toolkit of solutions and resources to growing and disruptive food and beverage companies,” said Brian Briggs, FlavorSum CEO.
“BFI provides comprehensive, end-to-end production support that adapts to the unique market, facility, and flavour requirements of each client,” said BFI CEO Mark Boden. “Our commitment to providing exceptional service and superior flavour at the point of bottling, not just at the point of sale, reinforces FlavorSum’s focus on refreshing beverage solutions.”
Following the close, operations will continue at the BFI’s current facility in Chicago, IL, where the existing team will remain in place supporting beverage flavour and base development.
SummerStar Ruby builds on 2025 momentum with new markets, retail partnerships and an elevated digital campaign
SummerStar Ruby Grapefruit growers have officially launched the 2026 European summer campaign, expanding into new European markets — France and the Netherlands — and scaling retail and digital activity following a strong debut season.
Backed by a coalition of growers within the Citrus Growers’ Association of Southern Africa (CGA), the initiative aims to reposition grapefruit in Europe. Last year the group launched a new brand – SummerStar Ruby Grapefruit – with a clear mandate: to shift perceptions from bitter and old-fashioned, to sweet and tangy and relevant for young and modern consumers. Participating growers contribute voluntarily to a collaborative marketing fund to drive long-term category growth.
Building on a breakthrough 2025 season
The 2025 campaign targeted Germany and focused on digital brand-building, growing awareness through influencer marketing and public relations, and building strong partnerships within the supply chain.
“Last year was about fundamentally changing how consumers see grapefruit through clear, consistent messaging,” says Nicci Stewart, SummerStar Ruby marketing lead. “We positioned SummerStar Ruby as sweet, tangy and incredibly versatile. It’s not just a breakfast fruit, but something consumers can enjoy throughout the day, from post-workout snacks to salads and cocktails.”
Early indicators suggest the strategy is gaining traction, with positive sentiment across media and social platforms, and increased engagement from retail and supply chain partners.
The campaign also coincided with a strong export season. South Africa packed 15.3 million cartons of grapefruit in 2025, a 7 % increase on the previous year, supported by favourable growing conditions and stable pricing.
Scaling up: new markets and stronger retail integration
This year the growers are expanding in Germany, while also setting their sights on France and the Netherlands. The team will ramp up last year’s efforts and introduce new ways to grow awareness and demand.
Retail partnerships will play a central role, with in-store promotions across all three markets designed to establish SummerStar Ruby as a recognisable consumer brand. QR-coded stickers have been pasted on individual fruits — linking shoppers to a language-specific landing page containing recipes and product information. All promotional activity will be tracked to measure sales impact and optimise future campaigns.
“We’re moving from awareness to action. This year is about converting interest into consistent purchase behaviour,” says Stewart. Digital activity will also scale, with even more engaging content on our owned channels and an increased investment in high-performing content creators across food, health and lifestyle. Last year our influencer content received over 9 million views and tens of thousands of engagements and likes.”
A user-generated recipe competition has also been launched on social media to encourage consumers to experiment with grapefruit in multiple ways over the summer.
The expansion comes as export volumes are expected to rise by a further 16 % in 2026, providing the supply needed to support growing demand.
Looking ahead
While it remains early to quantify the full commercial impact of the campaign, growers believe the category is at an inflection point.
“We’re seeing meaningful shifts in perception, alongside growing engagement across the value chain,” says Barry Landman, Chairman of the Grapefruit Variety Focus Group. “From the outset, the growers aligned around a single goal: urgently change how grapefruit is perceived, particularly among younger consumers. What started as a bold repositioning effort is now evolving into a scalable growth platform for grapefruit in Europe. I’m pleased with the direction and believe that the foundations are in place for SummerStar Ruby to become a staple of the European summer.”
GNT has extended its plant-based EXBERRY® Organics portfolio with the launch of a new pink colour that delivers bright shades in a wide range of food and beverage applications.
EXBERRY® Organics Brilliant Pink is a liquid-based concentrate made from purple sweet potatoes grown in compliance with both EU and US organic standards. It is created using physical processing methods and supports simple label declarations, such as “concentrate (sweet potato*)” (*from certified organic agriculture) in the EU and “organic vegetable juice for colour” in the US.
The new shade provides a vibrant pink colour and is designed to perform well in formulations that require high heat processing. It is well-suited to low-pH applications including beverages, gummies, chewy toffees, frozen desserts, yogurt, and fruit preparations.
Anne van der Meijde, Product Manager at GNT Group, said: “The organic sector is seeing renewed interest as consumers look for more natural and sustainable food and drink, but there can be a perception that these products are less indulgent. EXBERRY® Organics Brilliant Pink helps manufacturers create attractive, appetising organic products without having to compromise on the ingredient list.”
The EXBERRY® Organics range features a broad spectrum of shades, including pink, red, purple, blue, green, orange and yellow. This gives manufacturers the tools they need to match both visual and technical requirements across product categories.
Anne van der Meijde said: “At GNT, we pride ourselves on offering a wide range of plant-based colouring solutions to meet different application requirements. Our experts will work with manufacturers to select the best colouring solution for their project needs and help them achieve the results they need.”
The company will build new storage tanks for not-from-concentrate orange juice, supporting increased commercialization to European markets
Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC), a leading global merchant and processor of agricultural goods, announced the construction of new orange juice storage tanks in the city of Matão, located in Brazil’s largest citrus producing region, in the state of São Paulo. The project aims to increase the company’s production and storage capacity for not-from-concentrate (NFC) orange juice, a product with high added value for the consumer market.
The new investment in Matão, where LDC operates since 1988, will bring NFC storage capacity at the site to 30 million liters, and annual juice production capacity to 300 million liters.
“Increasing production and storage capacity for NFC will allow us to meet growing consumer demand for this high value-added product, especially in Europe, while reinforcing our position among the top three global processors and merchandizers of orange juice,” said Juan José Blanchard, Head of the LDC’s Juice Platform.
This project is the second phase in LDC’s plans to expand commercialization of NFC in Europe, North America and Asia. In 2020, the company announced a new, dedicated fleet for juice transportation that reduces fuel consumption by 40 % and sulfur emission levels by 85 % per ton of product. LDC also increased storage capacity by more than 50 %, and blending capacity by more than 20 %, at its port terminal and processing facility in Ghent, Belgium.
Brazil is the world’s largest exporter of orange juice, a business in which LDC has been active for over 30 years. The company’s operations in the country are fully integrated, comprising more than 25,000 hectares of sustainably grown citrus groves – strategically located in Brazil’s citrus belt – as well as three citrus juice processing plants and an export terminal in the Port of Santos (São Paulo state).
“This project also reinforces the company’s commitment to long-term investment in Brazil, a key origination market for over 80 years,” added Jorge Costa, Global Operations Director for LDC’s Juice Platform.
The new storage tanks are expected to be operational by the end of 2023.
About Louis Dreyfus Company
Louis Dreyfus Company is a leading merchant and processor of agricultural goods, founded in 1851. We leverage our global reach and extensive asset network to serve our customers and consumers around the world, delivering the right products to the right location, at the right time – safely, reliably and responsibly. Our activities span the entire value chain, from farm to fork, across a broad range of business lines (platforms) including Grains & Oilseeds, Coffee, Cotton, Juice, Rice, Sugar, Freight, Carbon Solutions and Global Markets. We help feed and clothe some 500 million people every year by originating, processing and transporting approximately 80 million tons of products. Structured as a matrix organization of six geographical regions and nine platforms, Louis Dreyfus Company is active in over 100 countries and employs approximately 17,000 people globally.
Tate & Lyle expands partnership into Greece, Bulgaria and the Republic of North Macedonia
Tate & Lyle PLC, one of the leading global providers of food and beverage ingredients and solutions, is expanding its successful partnership with distributor Azelis in Europe into three new countries, Greece, Bulgaria and the Republic of North Macedonia, from early 2022.
This means Azelis will now be the distributor of Tate & Lyle’s broad portfolio of ingredients and solutions, including its PROMITOR® Soluble Fibres, CLARIA® Clean Label Starches and Stevia sweeteners, to customers in 17 countries.
Azelis is already Tate & Lyle’s biggest distribution partner in Europe and have worked together since 2003. The strengthening of this partnership will allow Tate & Lyle’s customers in Greece, Bulgaria and North Macedonia to benefit from Azelis’ extensive capabilities in solution selling, application and technical services, as well as their market knowledge and supply chain excellence.
