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AI assists, but active ingredients still lead in wellness innovation. 27-Mar-2026 Last updated on 27-Mar-2026 at 13:22 GMT From left: Thomas Grotkjær, partner at Planetary Health Investments, Novo Holdings; Justin Whiteley, co-founder and CEO of Kioga; and Seth Crass, senior director of quality, R&D and regulatory at Olipop, at Future Food Tech San Francisco. (Image: Tim Inklebarger) Industry leaders at Future Food Tech said AI tools are helping product developers, yet rigorous ingredient science continues to set the pace for better-for-you foods and beverages. Better-for-you food and beverage innovators are betting big on artificial intelligence to help drive product development, but active ingredients - a different kind of AI - are still steering the ship, according to industry leaders at Future Food Tech San Francisco. The point became clear in panelists' responses to the question, "What is most important, AI or AI?" posed by moderator Thomas Grotkjær, partner at Planetary Health Investments, Novo Holdings. In the panel "The Wellness Wave: Enhancing Health with Functional Food & Beverage Innovations," R&D experts and legacy players in food and beverage agreed that wellness is being driven by marketing muscle, but rigorous science continues as the driving force behind innovation. Beyond new ingredient and product formulation, mainstay products like cereal and eggs remain familiar wellness vehicles central to a balanced diet, and companies that sell them are working to get that message out to a new generation of consumers. Which leads, AI or AI? Olipop, maker of prebiotic sodas focused on gut health and the microbiome, uses artificial intelligence to drive development of its drinks, but the active ingredients and science behind them remain the key to the company's innovation, according to Seth Crass, Olipop senior director of Quality, R&D and Regulatory. Artificial intelligence is illuminating for new developments and scientific methods, but the technology is serving a secondary purpose of bringing science and data closer to consumers. "The ability for consumers to digest complex scientific information is greater than ever before because of AI, so I think there's this cyclical loop that's really happening that's energizing the ability and accessibility of science and these active ingredients and their use, because consumers now have a better opportunity to understand them," he said. Artificial intelligence plays a key role in deploying those active ingredients in products that are engaging for consumers, said Eris Duro, head of Health and Nutrition Supply Chain at Sagentia Innovation, a product development consulting firm. "The challenge is making those tasty and making sure that they have the outcome that people relate to and understand and want to have over and over again, because otherwise it's not sustainable," he said. Duro reiterated the power of artificial intelligence to help tell functional ingredients' story, noting the technology's potential to "help drive consumers to the right sort of behavior." Data-driven proof of concept. Technology is helping raise consumer awareness and education, but it's also helping formulation companies like Kioga prove their ingredients to food manufacturers. The company uses an advanced AI platform to harness a database of soil-derived microbes to discover strains with anti-inflammatory properties that influence what Kioga describes as the gut-immune-brain axis. These postbiotics, expected to be released in 2026 for use in food and beverages, "represent the first solution capable of addressing the complete biological pathway from gut to brain," according to the company. "We're actually based on decades worth of research and epidemiological hypotheses, realizing that people in different parts of the world, especially rural parts of the world, have lower instances of chronic disease, lower instances of allergens and autoimmune diseases, and general recognition that this is due to their increased exposure to certain biodiversity," according to Justin Whitely, cofounder and CEO of Kioga. For Kioga to get its ingredients into products, it must effectively explain them to food and beverage manufacturers, and it's using technology and data to do it, Whitely said. "We're in the stress-relief food category for our very first ingredient," he said. "Historically, that's a little bit challenging because it is a lot of self-reported metrics on how people are feeling." Kioga is using hs-CRP (High-sensitivity C-reactive protein) and cytokine testing to show that Kioga's ingredients are lowering inflammation, according to Whitely. "Once you get that first proof point, then you go deeper with the latest wearables and get even more objective biomarkers, but it is a progression," he said. "This is the reality of being a startup. We'd all love to jump to that amazing clinical trial, but we have to get there in baby steps to show that what we're proposing is indeed working." Back to basics on protein and fiber. Educating consumers about the microbiome and gut health is among the biggest challenges of new product developers in the wellness space, but makers of time-tested products like cereal and eggs face a similar hurdle despite their longevity. WK Kellogg Co approached the messaging with a tongue-in-cheek Super Bowl ad in February featuring William Shatner that used toilet humor to describe the fiber benefits of its Raisin Bran brand cereal. Positive Nutrition broadcast series 2026. Coming up on March 31: The "Performance petfood: Functional ingredients for health & vitality" broadcast. Explore how functional ingredients are powering pet health & wellness, from immunity and digestion to cognition and vitality. Register for free!... Click here The brand also is going analogue to educate consumers on its fiber benefits labeling on the package, according to Sarah Ludmer, chief wellbeing and sustainable business officer at WK Kellogg Co. "It's helping people understand the true benefits of the category," such as key nutrients and single-digit added sugar, Ludmer said. "We need people to understand these basics." 18-Mar-2026 From Mondelēz and Barry Callebaut to Lindt, the future of chocolate is being defined by bold flavour innovation, smarter formulations and a refusal to compromise on indulgence

Zevia doubles down on AI satire in ads starring creepy robot coworker. The better-for-you brand continues to draw a connection between the AI marketing craze and its biggest rivals' use of artificial ingredients to build awareness. Published March 12, 2026 Dive brief: * Zevia is again skewering artificial intelligence with a new advertising campaign meant to shore up a positioning as a better-for-you soda brand made with natural ingredients, per news shared with Marketing Dive. * "Real Soda for Real Humans" follows an office employee as he's confronted by a robot coworker for buying Zevia at a vending machine instead of "artificial sludge" with "chemicals to grease your inside circuits." The office drone then takes a sip of Zevia and begins to shut down, a robotic arm falling off in the process. * Media includes 15- and 30-second national connected TV ads, Meta and YouTube buys and a multiday activation at the South by Southwest festival inspired by CAPTCHA human-verification prompts. Zevia has made critiquing AI a central part of its awareness-building strategy, an increasingly common approach in CPG. Dive insight: Zevia continues to draw a connection between the AI advertising craze and the artificial ingredients it has dinged Big Food rivals for using in their products. The nearly 20-year-old brand, which sweetens its beverages with stevia leaf extract, says its new national campaign is part of a larger anti-artificial platform that is targeted at consumers who are seeking better-for-you options and experiencing AI fatigue. The humorous effort developed with independent creative agency Party Land embodies AI frustrations in the form of a creepy but clunky robot coworker who questions peers making healthier choices at the vending machine before malfunctioning over a single, euphoric sip of Zevia. Creative shows off newer flavor additions like Strawberry Lemon Burst. Along with paid advertising, "Real Soda for Real Humans" features an activation at the SXSW conference through March 14 where visitors must participate in a CAPTCHA-inspired verification check to enter the space. In addition, Zevia is running a "Prove You're Human" digital sweepstakes and paid and earned social extensions of the creative. The campaign lands as Cola Wars sparring is again on the rise, aligning with a larger uptick in combative marketing. Pepsi appeared at the Super Bowl in February with an ad that shows a polar bear - an icon typically associated with chief rival Coca-Cola's marketing - taking the Pepsi Challenge and experiencing an identity crisis after preferring Pepsi Zero Sugar in a blind taste test. Zevia previously criticized Coke for the soft drink giant's controversial decision to use generative AI to produce its holiday marketing. Zevia's "Break from Artificial" campaign, which debuted in 2024, is loaded with AI-generated imagery that underscores the uncanny valley effect while "Real Soda for Real Humans" has a more grounded look. Multi Agency was behind "Break from Artificial." Marketing has been in focus for Zevia as it tries to capitalize on the booming interest in better-for-you soft drinks, a field that includes probiotic competitors like Poppi and Olipop. Net sales at Zevia rose 4% last year, to $161.3 million, bolstered by wider distribution of its products at Walmart. The brand expects marketing to account for between 12% and 13% of revenue in 2026, slightly up from 2025 levels. "Our improved performance for the [2025] year was supported by powerful marketing that clearly differentiated Zevia PBC as the antidote to the artificial, and as a product with no fake ingredients and no fake claims," said Zevia PBC CEO Amy Taylor on a recent earnings call with investors. "Key campaigns showcased Zevia PBC's use of creative, culturally relevant content and high-profile brand fans to boost brand awareness, reinforce our positioning and appeal to consumers that are just trying to do a little bit better with healthier choices." Upcoming summer marketing activities with new and existing brand ambassadors will represent Zevia's "most significant investment in reach and cultural relevance to date," Taylor added. Other better-for-you food and beverage marketers have portrayed AI as a foil for their authenticity and all-natural ingredients. Blue Diamond's Almond Breeze in January debuted a campaign starring the Jonas Brothers, where the musical sibling trio are pitched AI slop by a pair of clueless agents before settling on just being themselves to endorse the product. Liquid Death around the Olympics also ran a commercial that leans into technology fears with an AI-generated figure skater who turns into a fiery-eyed demon in the rink after mentioning the brand doesn't use artificial sweeteners.