Mondelez will emerge as the world's third-largest packaged cake company after it closes its $850 million acquisition of European cakes and croissants business Chipita, said CEO Dirk Van de Put. Mondelez is attracted to the $65 billion category, as it's "growing at or above the rate of our core snacks categories," added Van de Put.

American Licorice is growing its Red Vines Made Simple portfolio with an upcoming rollout of Black and Blueberry Pomegranate varieties, while consumer response to its organic Torie & Howard brand "has been tremendous," said Kristi Shafer, vice president of marketing. The company has also debuted Sour Punch Tajin Tasting Kits which include a mini bottle of Tajin seasoning.

An Oldways Whole Grains Council survey finds 95% of US adults report their daily whole grains intake has either grown or remains unchanged compared to five years ago, with health followed by taste as deciding factors in the purchase. "Interestingly, while we often assume that low-carb dieters have lower whole grain consumption, those who say they avoid carbs are more likely to also tell us they look for whole grains when shopping," stated the report.

Unilever's plans to spin off its Tazo and T2 tea brands, Instacart's entry into grocery microfulfillment and Walmart's 100% tuition assistance for employees caught SmartBrief readers' attention this week. Campbell's Soup's redesigned labels and its sale of 100 nonfungible tokens to support Feeding America led this week's Top 10 list.

With COVID-19 upending many long-term trends, what will the future of snacking and treating look like? The most recent Sweets & Snacks On Demand webinar took a deep dive into America's generations, their penchant for candy and snacks and the underlying motivations that drive their consumption. View the webinar recording.

Each year, the Most Innovative New Product Awards recognize leading new candy & snack products and companies across 13 categories, naming a winner along with four top performing nominees. Discover new gourmet & premium snack products submitted during the show, along with the category's winner and nominees, at SweetsAndSnacks.com.

TikTok created a "Re:Make by TikTok" campaign that features some of the platform's top creators reimagining three classic ads -- TBWA\Chiat\Day New York's "Touch" for Skittles, BBDO New York's "Game" for Snickers and Wieden+Kennedy Portland's "The Man Your Man Could Smell Like" for Old Spice. The push was created by BBDO, Mars and Mars Wrigley's The Hive and Procter & Gamble, and #TikTokRemake encourages others to share their own ad remakes or suggest other spots to be remade.

Grocers and other retailers are using technology including artificial intelligence to quickly crunch data and manage price optimization during the current period of inflation. Sporting goods retailer Academy Sports and Outdoors uses AI software from Revionics, which uses a data-driven approach that helps retailers balance pricing across categories and products.

More than half of respondents to a survey for Pitney Bowes said they are nervous about package theft, and 49% said smart lockers provide more privacy. One in three millennials surveyed said they have used smart lockers, and many appreciate them for their security and sustainability.