Leftovers is our look at a few of the product ideas popping up everywhere. Some are intriguing, some sound amazing and some are the kinds of ideas we would never dream of. We can’t write about everything that we get pitched, so here are some leftovers pulled from our inboxes.
PepsiCo packs protein into Doritos
Doritos has entered the protein craze.
The PepsiCo-owned brand is launching Doritos Protein this month. Each one-ounce serving has 10 grams of protein, and Doritos will release a single-serve bag with 17 grams of protein later in 2026.
The launch includes a classic nacho cheese flavor and a sweet and tangy BBQ option.
“We wanted to ensure we were delivering that unmistakable snacking experience, but in a new way with the added benefit of protein,” Jess Spaulding, vice president of marketing at PepsiCo Foods U.S., said in a statement. “As consumer desires shift, we’re showing that Doritos is a brand that can evolve and expand with those desires.”
The launch is part of a broader effort by PepsiCo to better position its brands to meet consumer demand for functional ingredients and healthier formulations. The snacking giant is also cutting prices on some of its traditional snack brands as it struggles with declining volumes.
PepsiCo said 86% of Americans are actively adding protein to their daily diet, while 7 in 10 consumers want salty snacks to have protein. Over half of shoppers prioritize protein in their snacking occasions, the New York-based company added.
America’s protein obsession has led the ingredient to wind up in a variety of foods from Pop-Tarts to Kraft Natural Cheese. The Doritos launch adds to PepsiCo’s other functional-focused innovations, including SmartFood fiber-coated popcorn and SunChips fiber whole grain and black bean snacks.
PepsiCo also announced a partnership with Jack Link’s on Doritos flavored meat sticks and jerky, touting the collaboration as another example of giving consumers their protein without compromising on convenience or flavor.
— Sarah Zimmerman
Jack Link’s cleans up meat snacks
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Courtesy of Jack Link’s
Jack Link’s is keeping it simple for protein-hungry consumers.
The meat snack giant is debuting a clean-label line of sticks, steaks and air-dried beef slices. The snacks have just three ingredients that are displayed on the front of the pack. Jack Link’s is comparing its formulation to other “clean” products on the market that the company says contain “a list [of ingredients] longer than a store receipt.”
“Building a 3‑ingredient meat snack at scale doesn’t happen by accident. It takes serious infrastructure, discipline, and decades of category expertise,” Troy Link, CEO of Link Snacks, said in a statement. “A lot of brands talk ‘clean,’ but their labels tell a different story.”
The Wisconsin-based company said its 2‑ounce bags of the air‑dried beef slices will debut this spring in original and hickory. Each bag has 31 grams of protein. The clean-label sticks and steaks will hit shelves later this year.
It wasn’t that long ago that meat sticks were shunned due to the fact that they were viewed as salt-laden and highly processed. But sales have surged in recent years as the snacks benefit from consumer obsession with protein and convenience.
Sales of dried meat snacks, excluding jerky, rose 10.7% to $3.3 billion in 2024 from the prior year, according to data provided by Circana.
Even though shoppers are more willing to accept some processing as convenience and other qualities hold more weight, consumers still want clean-label offerings. The ability of Jack Link’s to offer a slimmed-down ingredients list, along with protein and portability, could give the brand an edge in the crowded meat snacks category.
— Christopher Doering
Honeymaker sweetens up nut butters, fruit spreads
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Courtesy of Sweet Harvest Foods
Nate’s Honey is bringing the popular sweetener to nut butters and fruit spreads, addressing an untapped market for a pair of pantry staples.
The honey brand is embracing a simple-is-better mantra, with three ingredients in its nut butters(peanuts, honey and salt) and four in its fruit spreads (fruit, honey, lemon juice and citrus pectin.) The ingredients are featured on the front of the packaging.
Honey has become a popular sweetener as consumers gravitate toward ingredients that are natural, minimally processed and functional. The Nate’s brand was among the beneficiaries, growing 18% in 2025, with its owner, Sweet Harvest, projecting long-term retail growth in the high single, or low double digits.
Honey was a $550 million category in 2013, but is projected to be worth $1.7 billion this year, according to market data provided by Nate’s. Mike Carle, Sweet Harvest Foods’ CEO, said honey has “so much more runway for growth” as health trends intensify and household penetration for the sweetener, currently at 55%, increases.
Nut butter, he said, was a natural extension for Nate’s because the company observed many consumers pouring it into natural peanut butter to sweeten it.
“You take those kinds of stories, coupled with the research we’ve done … and that makes us feel really confident that this is the first sort of product for us to launch as an extension outside of core honey,” Carle said.
For now, the nut butters and fruit spreads will debut in Texas at Kroger, Sprouts, HEB, Safeway, Albertsons and Target, as well as on Amazon. The fruit spreads are available in berry, strawberry and sour cherry.
Carle added that while other food products on the market tout their connection to honey, it’s often one of the later ingredients – along with refined sugar and “other junk.” This provided Nate’s with an opportunity to tout its slimmed-down ingredients list and really promote its connection to honey.
“We view this as a great time to expand or extend honey into many products,” Carle said. “Consumers have demonstrated this really strong appetite.”
— Christopher Doering
