Tetra Pak's 14 new Best Practice Lines for cheese manufacturers will benefit cottage cheese, semi-hard cheese, fresh cheese, mozzarella and cheddar production. The solutions optimize profitable cheese production to fit customers' needs, enable a longer shelf life and help reduce water, steam and power consumption, according to Tetra Pak.

Shake Shack has a tradition of partnering with chefs and its latest collaboration series, called Now Serving, features menu items from chefs across the country and benefits nonprofits that support the restaurant industry. "If there is one thing I've learned throughout the development of this series, it is the importance of thinking big while acting locally and working with people that are committed to doing good and helping others," writes Mark Rosati, Shake Shack's culinary director.

Golden Corral franchisee Eric Holm said he expects buffet dining to come back strong, and sales at the 21 units operating under his 1069 Restaurant Group are climbing back toward pre-pandemic levels. Holm installed glove dispensers as a safety precaution for diners using the self-serve buffet, and he predicts takeout meals will be a growing source of revenue for his restaurants.

Registered dietitians say there are actually some processed foods that offer not just convenience or affordability but nutritional benefits as well, such as canned tomatoes, canned beans, nut butter and rotisserie chicken. RD Shahzadi Devje says frozen fruits and vegetables still have their natural nutrients, while the pasteurization that processed milk goes through is necessary to remove harmful pathogens while maintaining its nutritional value, like calcium, zinc, protein, and vitamins A, B12 and D.

Nondairy food and beverage products tallied $7 billion in sales last year, according to a study from SPINS, the Plant Based Foods Association and Good Food Institute, and the plant-based sector is expected to grow by 6% annually through 2024. Restaurants and food and beverage producers are stepping up to offer a greater range of dairy-free choices, ranging from oat milk beverages at Dunkin' to Perfect Day's vegan, lactose-free ice cream.

Greiner Packaging and Ennstal Milch have developed a plastic yogurt cup with 20% less material. The carbon footprint is further reduced during transportation due to the cups' decreased weight, according to Greiner Packaging.

I'm a journalist by day and mom to two milk-guzzling children by night. I edit two marketing briefs and several food and beverage briefs for SmartBrief, mainly focusing on food retail, dairy and the confectionery industry.

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