CPG Showdown: Love vs Strength

February is an annual showdown among new seasonal food products, pitting love vs. strength.

• For romantics, Valentine’s Day ♥️ product introductions command top placement on the digital shelf and store endcaps.
• For health & wellness enthusiasts, interest in protein-rich products has reached an all-time high in 2026, driven by New Year’s resolutions for improved strength 💪🏼 and functional diets.

Welcome to Foodgraph’s newest catalog, packed with new products and updated attributes, across food and non-food categories. Our newest release (v48) includes 1,380,000+ products, up 119% in the past year.

Protein hits all-time high

Consumer interest in protein-enriched foods hit a 20-year high in the new year. Brands of all types continue to bulk up their products with protein-forward positioning. Across all food aisles, here are some of the newest 1,000 protein-titled food products in our latest catalog release.

Private label retailers are aggressively launching protein-centric offers.

• Kroger is betting big on protein going into the New Year with 110 “Simple Truth Protein” products -- such as bowls, chips, and infused waters.
• H-E-B rolled out “Protein Lifestyle” meals on December 31, focusing on convenience.
• Sprouts’ eCommerce storefront leads with Find Your Protein Routine, featuring hundreds of meat and plant-based items.

Big CPG innovates, but can’t keep up with demand.

• Danone’s high-protein yogurt brands Oikos and Activia cannot serve all the demand, with supply chain constraints blocking sales and stalling innovation.
• Barilla’s Protein+ product line is broadening its portfolio, but the company recognizes it’s not always first to launch new items in its category.
• DTC brands like 1440 Foods and Truvani -- a common channel for protein powders, bars, and supplements -- are now scoring shelf space at grocers Raley’s, Sprouts, and Walmart.
• Newer brands like Kola and Whey Good are grabbing slots when big CPG has gaps.

The FDA’s new Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025-2030 moved protein to the top of the list, encouraging consumers to “Prioritize Protein Foods at Every Meal”.

Google searches for protein achieved “Peak Popularity” for the first time in 20 years, reaching the highest-level of interest relative to all Google search terms, including both AI and traditional methods. Here’s a snapshot using data from Google Trends:

Valentine’s Day 2026

New products for Valentine’s Day showcase how Foodgraph’s catalog is rich with opportunities to explore actual product trends and which brands are leading.

Dubai chocolate continues to skyrocket.

• 79 Dubai Chocolate products are now in circulation, up 500%+ since 12 in August, and up from zero products a year ago.
• Smaller brands dominate the shelf, such as BeeMax, Leonessa, and Nutty & Fruity.

Big CPG missed the start of the trend.

• Since the summer, Ghirardelli and Lindt caught up and launched new products in time for Christmas and Valentine’s Day.
• But Hershey’s doesn’t believe in Dubai Chocolate’s staying power, saying "Only 10,000 exist. Ever. This isn't going into regular production."
• Nestlé’s Damak brand already had chocolate/pistachio products, but hasn’t yet repositioned packaging to “Dubai Chocolate”, missing out on consumer awareness.

Pistachio health & beauty products have caught the Dubai wave.

• Pistachio -- a key ingredient in Dubai chocolate -- has taken the non-food aisles by storm.
• Body creams, candies, and perfumes -- with pistachio scents -- are in rotation now.

Foodgraph saw CPG’s embrace of this trend early.

• See our August blog for more info about Dubai Chocolate: School’s In. So Are 60,000+ New SKUs.

Ramping up data sources

Our newest release adds 17 new retailers to the catalog, now incorporating 47 data sources in total, up 235% in the past year.

All new sources include CPG products in food, plus alcohol, health & beauty, household, and pet.

To represent the national product assortment, our mix of sources includes retailers -- to capture the explosion of new private label products -- plus brand syndicators, wholesalers, and government.

Foodgraph News and Next Catalog

Welcome to our new Head of Sales Andrew Haney, who joins Foodgraph with deep industry experience across retail and CPG at Toluna, Profitero, Epsilon, and Nielsen. Please reach out to connect.

Our next major update arrives in March, with more products and fresh data for Easter, Passover, and St. Patrick’s Day.

Thank you for following our progress. Send me a note with thoughts or questions. I’d love to hear how we can support your work.

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Warm Regards,

David Goodtree

Founder and CEO, Foodgraph