Food companies at McCormick Place expo spotlight innovations amid economic uncertainty

Plant-based protein, less sugar and healthier options were common trends at the Institute of Food Technologists expo at McCormick Place. Tariffs were also a concern at the annual food science and technology show organized by IFT, a nonprofit scientific organization based in the Loop.

More than 1,000 exhibitors attended the four-day convention that ended Wednesday,including food manufacturers, researchers and entrepreneurs. Snapshots of some exhibitors with Illinois and regional ties gives a glimpse of how industry trends — as well as challenges such as tariffs — are affecting businesses.

Caputo Cheese

Caputo Cheese in Melrose Park unveiled a plant-based mozzarella-style cheese made of chick pea protein and other ingredients. The debut adds to the variety of cheese it distributes to U.S. restaurants and food service companies. Caputo mainly processes cheese, such as shredding and shaving it, but also makes fresh mozzarella at its facility.

The company, founded in 1978, saw an opportunity for plant-based cheese as consumer interest in sustainability and animal welfare grows, said Frank Belfiore, Caputo’s vice president of marketing.

Caputo sources most cheese domestically so it has been largely shielded from tariffs, said Belfiore. The company does import some Italian cheese but it’s not as affected as others. “A lot of importers are struggling,” Belfiore said.

Burcon NutraScience

Burcon, based in Vancouver, Canada, makes plant protein from peas, canola, hemp, fava bean and sunflower. Food manufacturers use its protein powders in beverages, bars, snacks and more. In addition to health and environmental reasons, plant-based protein is in demand due to booming weight loss regimens with GLP-1 medications such as Ozempic.

The Canadian company has been focused on research and development since 1998, but started shifting toward manufacturing in recent years. This spring it opened a factory in Galesburg, about three hours from Chicago. The facility is near farmers and key transportation routes and is not too far from the Canadian border, Burcon CEO Kip Underwood said.

The facility makes pea and fava bean protein and has 20 employees. Burcon will expand to produce canola and sunflower protein.

The company’s plans in Galesburg to focus on the U.S. market started before President Donald Trump’s tariffs. But the “well-timed” launch of Burcon’s U.S. facility “mitigates short-term tariff concerns,” Underwood said. Yet the long-term impact of tariffs is uncertain.

Quick Dry Foods

As a major importer of dried spices and vegetables, Quick Dry Foods is feeling the brunt of tariffs. “Prices change daily,” said Jim Lancaster, owner and president of Quick Dry in Gurnee, an hour north of Chicago. “It’s a mess.”

He declined to say how much prices have increased but said, “If tariffs are 50%, that’s way above our margins.”

Quick Dry, in operation since 1996, distributes imported dried onion and garlic widely used by food manufacturers. Lancaster estimated that 90% of the U.S. supply of dried onion and garlic comes from overseas, mostly from India and China, the main target of Trump’s trade war.

Tariffs are “not going to spur domestic production,” he said of onion and garlic crops. People also don’t want to live near odiferous drying factories, Lancaster added.

Consumers aren’t seeing the full impact of food companies’ cost increases yet. “But they will. Maybe not next month, but next year,” Lancaster said. Tariffs are a “back door tax.”

Ingredion Inc.

Food scientists among Ingredion’s 12,000 global employees create ingredients that increase protein or fiber, enhance texture and add sweetness with fewer calories, among many other innovations. The company has about 950 employees in Illinois, including its headquarters in Westchester, as well as manufacturing and R&D facilities in Bedford Park.

At IFT’s expo, the ingredient maker showcased how pea and stevia can be used in chocolate protein bars with less sugar, as well as biscuits with tapioca flour that cuts egg use in half.

Ingredion’s customers are large global food manufacturers. But tariffs have had a minimal impact because it’s one of the only ingredient companies with plants in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, said Rick Wion, director of communications at Ingredion.

Barrington Packaging

This year, Barrington Packaging has seen more interest in its machines that seal products in plastic bags. Owner George Bunny attributes this to customers such as bakeries and food makers trying to manage steadily rising labor costs, especially as Illinois raises the minimum wage.

Instead of packaging donuts and cookies by hand, one $40,000 machine seals them in plastic in seconds. The equipment also doesn’t call in sick or take vacations, Bunny added.

The Barrington-based company has also seen an uptick in business from makers of THC products, such as brownies and gummies. In 2020, recreational marijauna became legal in Illinois.

Layn Natural Ingredients

Layn manufactures ingredients and extracts for makers of food, beverages, nutritional supplements and pet products. It makes ingredients from ginseng, tea, fruit and plants, such as pomegranate, monkfruit, citrus and stevia.

The company, based in Guilin, China, sells globally to the U.S., Europe and Asia. This fall, it will open a factory in Jeffersonville, Indiana, about five hours from Chicago. It will start producing ginseng extracts made from Wisconsin-grown crops.

Layn has been marketing to the U.S. for more than a decade, but the Indiana site will be the company’s first manufacturing plant outside China. It will initially have about 30 employees but could grow to 60 as it expands.

Tariffs have affected its production in China. That’s one reason to accelerate plans for its Indiana factory and to focus on ingredients from the U.S., Elaine Yu, president of Layn USA, said.

The Indiana site boosts Layn’s supply chain security. And when the trade war settles down, the company might process imported raw materials there, Yu said.