Weekly Digest #22
29.12.2025
Welcome to The Fork’s Lens
Every week, we serve up a quick, flavourful dose of what’s cooking at the intersection of food, drink, and entrepreneurship.
Expect:
🍴 Sharp founder insights
📊 Bite-sized industry trends
🛠 Tools & tips to level up
🔥 Events & openings worth your time
For those of you building food brands, launching products, or just hungry for what’s next – this one’s for you.
Pause, Plan & Perform
📨 Weekly #22: Pause, Plan & Perform
🍴 What’s Up?
Before we shut the laptops, refill the coffee, and step back for a proper break…
We wanted to share a quick hit of the biggest F&B trends and movements that shaped 2025. The stuff that really moved the needle once the hype wore off and the sales data came in.
Think of this as the “what actually happened” edition:
what shoppers stuck with
what retailers doubled down on
and what founders quietly fixed instead of shouting about
Then…we’re wrapping up for the year.
We’ll be back on the first Monday of 2026, refreshed, caffeinated, and ready to get stuck into whatever the industry throws at us next.
Until then, rest well, file away the lessons 2025 taught us, and maybe have one last treat (or two).
🌎 Editor’s Top Picks for 2025 F&B + CPG Trends
🍽️ Product & Consumer Trends
Value with standards: Own-label value tiers grew +9–12% YoY, proving shoppers traded down on price, not quality.
Protein everywhere: High-protein dairy, snacks and bakery delivered double-digit growth, with protein yoghurt alone up +10%+.
Ultra-processed scrutiny: “Simple ingredients” claims grew ~2x faster than category averages.
Functional foods 2.0: Gut health, sleep, and mood-focused launches accounted for ~40% of functional NPD.
Permissible indulgence: Smaller packs and premium treats outperformed diet swaps, with chocolate countlines under 100g showing volume resilience.
Pet food humanisation: Premium and science-led pet foods grew ~8%, outpacing mainstream.
🛒 Retail & Channel Shifts
Private label levelled up: Own-label share hit ~52% of UK grocery units, with premium tiers (M&S, Waitrose No.1) growing faster than branded equivalents.
Convenience won quietly: Chilled ready meals and food-to-go grew 7–10%.
Fewer launches, higher bar: Retailers cut average SKU counts by 5–10%, backing proven velocity over novelty.
DTC cooled, marketplaces matured: Amazon and grocery retail became the main growth channels, while DTC spend was refocused on loyalty and retention.
🏭 Brand & Founder Behaviour
Profitability > growth: Over 60% of UK food founders prioritised margin protection over expansion.
SKU rationalisation: Reducing ranges by 20–30% improved margins and service levels.
Brand clarity mattered: Single-use or occasion-focused brands outperformed “platform” strategies.
Founders stayed closer to the floor: Ops, supply chain, and retailer roles grew faster than marketing hires.
💰 Investment & M&A
Capital became selective: UK deal volumes fell, but average deal quality increased.
Strategics went shopping: Bolt-on acquisitions dominated M&A.
Pet, snacks & essentials attracted capital: Durable demand outweighed trend-led categories.
Valuations reset: Revenue multiples compressed to 1–2x for most growth-stage brands.
🌍 Sustainability Reality Check
Less greenwashing, more pragmatism: Cost-neutral sustainability initiatives won out.
Packaging optimisation > reinvention: Lightweighting and incremental improvements scaled fastest.
Local sourcing regained relevance: Resilience became as important as carbon footprint.
🔥 The Forks & The Flame
2025 showed us that hype is like a fizzy soda — fun for a second, then flat. Brands that quietly nailed the basics, stayed human, and didn’t overthink it were the ones that actually grew. 2026 is about repeating that trick… and maybe adding a little sparkle.
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About Forks & Founders
We believe bold food brands deserve bold support. That’s why we’ve built a collective of seasoned foodies, retail rebels, creative storytellers, and numbers nerds – people who’ve been in the kitchen, the boardroom, and the shop floor. We jump in where you need us most, helping you turn big ideas into bites people can’t stop talking about. Because building a food brand isn’t just business – it’s passion, flavour, and a little bit of chaos. We’re here to make sure it’s the good kind.
