South American soy milk market sees steady growth as consumers increasingly embrace plant-based. According to a new market report by DataM, the South American soy milk market is growing steadily as consumers embrace plant-based alternatives for health, wellness, and sustainability reasons. By region, Brazil takes the lead with a 45% market share, followed by Argentina at 30% and Colombia at 25%. By distribution channel, supermarkets and hypermarkets are in the top spot with a 54% share, likely due to their wide range of products, accessibility, and promotional offers. In comparison, online stores have a market share of just 22%, while convenience stores and other channels collectively capture 12%. The report cites recent developments in the industry, including: * Nestlé South America expanded its soy-based ready-to-drink beverages this month, introducing fortified calcium and vitamin blends tailored to regional nutritional needs. The launch targets rising demand for dairy alternatives across Brazil and Chile. * AdeS (owned by Coca-Cola Company Latin America) upgraded its soy beverage formulation last month to feature less sugar and an enhanced protein content, aligning with South America's growing health-conscious consumer base. * In September, NotCo introduced new soy-based milk alternatives created using its AI platform, Giuseppe. The products aim to replicate the texture and flavor of dairy for retail and foodservice channels. * Piracanjuba expanded the production capacity for soy beverages at its Goiás facility in August, supported by an investment of US$22 million to modernize equipment and increase output efficiency. A market poised for sustained growth. The growth of the South American soy milk market is believed to be fueled by lactose-intolerant individuals, vegans, and health-conscious consumers seeking dairy alternatives. Awareness of the nutritional benefits of soy is reportedly on the rise in the region, while technological advancements in flavor enhancement, fortification with vitamins and minerals, and extended shelf-life processing are improving product appeal and convenience. Furthermore, collaborations between soy producers, beverage manufacturers, and research institutions are claimed to be accelerating product innovation and diversification, resulting in the creation of options such as flavored and functional soy beverages. Government initiatives and marketing campaigns promoting nutrition, sustainability, and food security are also believed to be playing a role in the growth of the market. "With technological advancements, growing awareness of plant-based nutrition, and expanding distribution networks, the South American soy beverages market is poised for sustained growth," says DataM.

Barry Callebaut partners with NotCo AI to unlock next-level chocolate innovation. Zürich-Switzerland-based Barry Callebaut AG and NotCo AI, the first foundational AI platform for the consumer goods industry, have entered into an agreement to explore implementing artificial intelligence in chocolate recipe development. | / | More about Barry Callebaut AG | According to the press release, the strategic partnership merges Barry Callebaut's century-long chocolate expertise with NotCo's cutting-edge AI capabilities, aiming to accelerate innovation and deliver faster, more tailored customer experiences. By exploring new frontiers in taste, texture, and sustainability, the collaboration promises richer, more chocolatey solutions to meet evolving consumer expectations. The partnership marks the first AI powered integration in the food industry and aims to merge Barry Callebaut's high- quality ingredients data, global manufacturing, supply chain, and distribution infrastructure with NotCo AI's advanced platform to create an end-to-end AI innovation hub. Together, the companies are exploring to build a new framework for chocolate innovation: one that is smarter, faster, more sustainable, and fully scalable to meet evolving customer and consumer needs. "This agreement marks an exciting step forward for Barry Callebaut and for our customers," said Peter Feld, CEO of Barry Callebaut. "It reflects our commitment to creating best customer experience by boosting innovation and speed to market. By combining our deep chocolate expertise and global reach with NotCo's advanced AI capabilities, we're aiming to unlock speed for breakthrough recipe solutions - from health-forward formulations to functional ingredients and Nutri-Score-friendly options. With the pace of change across the industry and the cocoa market, our customers' needs are evolving rapidly. This collaboration enables us to test how AI can enhance process efficiency and scale our innovation efforts to meet future demands and allows us to accelerate our ways of working to deliver the best possible customer experience." The project aims to explore the development of the next generation of chocolate, potentially setting a new standard for how food companies innovate. By testing AI-driven formulation processes, the collaboration seeks to shorten development cycles, improve hit rates, and digitally empower every scientist and chef to create with unprecedented speed and precision, delivering exceptional taste while advancing sustainability goals. "Our high fidelity data corpus collected for the past 10 years has become the most fundamental value proposition for the next generation of CPG and ingredient companies of the future," said Matias Muchnick, Co-Founder and CEO of NotCo AI. "By integrating Barry Callebaut's unparalleled chocolate knowledge with our general purpose approach platform, we're creating a personalized and unique innovation engine that will set a new standard for the entire industry." The initiative forms part of Barry Callebaut's multi-year digitalization agenda, where Barry Callebaut is pioneering the chocolate industry by entering into the AI era and reinforcing the company's commitment to deliver breakthrough innovation and its position as the trusted partner for chocolate solutions and one of the biggest chocolate suppliers worldwide in the food and beverage industry.

The CPG giant and food tech company NotCo are launching a spicy mayonnaise and a portable cup version of their Kraft NotMac & Cheese.