10 Best Future Food Stocks to Invest in Today

Published April 30, 2021 at 8:48 am EDT Updated September 7, 2026 at 1:28 pm EDT

In this article, we will take a look at the 10 best future food stocks to invest in today.

Food is an extremely lucrative industry where major companies and new entrants are relentlessly trying to outdo each other through taste, safety and transparency, innovation and product differentiation, as well as capitalizing on new trends like plant-based meat alternatives that are often touted as a solution to food security problems. According to the National Restaurants Association in the United States, there were close to $700 billion in food sales made by restaurants in 2020 despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

New Trends in the Food Industry and the COVID-19 Impact

In the convenience food sector, sales went up more than 70% due to supply chain chain disruptions to large food suppliers. For example, The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ: KHC), a large cap multinational food company based in the US, reported a 7% increase in organic ketchup sales as restaurants loaded up on the condiment last year fearing a shortage. Kraft Heinz Company controls more than 70% of the $1 billion industry in the country. It raised prices by 13% and also ramped up supply of the item to meet demand.

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), the Washington-based retail company, is forecast to overtake food industry giant Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) in terms of gross market value within the next few years. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) is a disruptor in the food industry, which entered the market with its purchase of Whole Foods. However, with competitive pricing and technological innovation, it has managed to close the gap on Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) in retail and grocery sales in the United States.

Beyond Meat, Inc. (NASDAQ: BYND), a Los Angeles-based alternative meat provider, has also grown by leaps and bounds in the past few years. The company has signed lucrative deals with McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) and Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM) in the past few months and seen share price skyrocket to all-time highs. It has also introduced a new type of plant-based meat that is cheaper and healthier than previous iterations. Beyond Meat, Inc. (NASDAQ: BYND)’s new product has 50 fewer calories and costs almost 40% less than the previous version.

Global management consultancy McKinsey claims that data driven innovation is going to drive the food industry forward in the next few years. These data trends would also result in a pivot towards personalized marketing of food products, the consultancy has forecast. It also says that big brands will face stiff competition from challenger firms, but bigger companies are likely to prevail as the post-pandemic economy will shift focus towards private label products. The pandemic-induced wellness preferences are also here to stay.

10 Best Future Food Stocks to Invest in Now

The technological innovation in the food industry is also affecting the stock market. The entire hedge fund industry is feeling the reverberations of the changing financial landscape. Its reputation has been tarnished in the last decade, during which its hedged returns couldn’t keep up with the unhedged returns of the market indices. On the other hand, Insider Monkey’s research was able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the S&P 500 ETFs by more than 124 percentage points since March 2017. Between March 2017 and February 26th 2021 our monthly newsletter’s stock picks returned 197.2%, vs. 72.4% for the SPY. Our stock picks outperformed the market by more than 124 percentage points (see the details here). We were also able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that significantly underperformed the market. We have been tracking and sharing the list of these stocks since February 2017 and they lost 13% through November 16th. That’s why we believe hedge fund sentiment is an extremely useful indicator that investors should pay attention to. You can subscribe to our free newsletter on our homepage to receive our stories in your inbox.

With this context in mind, here is our list of 10 best future food stocks to invest in today.

Best Future Food Stocks to Invest in Today

10. Dover Corporation (NYSE: DOV)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 32

Dover Corporation (NYSE: DOV) is an Illinois-based industrial firm with significant stakes in the refrigerated food equipment business. The company makes and sells refrigeration systems, refrigeration display cases, commercial glass refrigerators and freezer doors, and brazed plate heat exchangers for industrial-scale heating and cooling. It also markets commercial food service equipment and can-related machines. The firm was founded in 1947 and is placed tenth on our list of 10 best future food stocks to invest in today.

Dover Corporation reported quarterly results on April 20, beating market estimates on revenue and raising full-year guidance. The firm posted earnings per share of $1.81, beating expectations by $0.35. The company raised guidance on revenue to 12%. The share price of the firm climbed more than 2% after the update.

At the end of the fourth quarter of 2020, 32 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $738 million in the firm, down from 40 the preceding quarter worth $687 million.

9. BRF S.A. (NYSE: BRFS)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 11

BRF S.A. (NYSE: BRFS) is a Brazil-based food company that owns more than 30 brands. It is placed ninth on our list of 10 best future food stocks to invest in today. The firm concentrates on raising and slaughtering animals for meal production and other products. It sells frozen whole and cut chicken, frozen pork, beef, processed food products, and frozen processed meats like hamburgers, steaks, breaded meat products, kibbeh, and meatballs. It owns the Sadia, Perdigão, Qualy, Chester, and Kidelli brands, among others.

BRF S.A. announced a ten-year expansion plan late last year and the share price of the firm has soared since it promised to explore new markets in Turkey and Saudi Arabia. The company outlined that it would spend more than $55 billion in a bid to raise revenues beyond $100 billion over the period.

Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, New York-based investment firm Renaissance Technologies is a leading shareholder in the firm with 2.5 million shares worth more than $10.7 million.

8. The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 36

The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) is an Ohio-based retail brand that was founded in 1883. It is placed eighth on our list of 10 best future food stocks to invest in today. The company is one of the largest retailers in the US in terms of revenue. The firm operates more than 2,700 stores in more than 30 US states. The firm is famous for a grocery-pharma store model that sells fresh food items as well as medicines. The firm has a market cap of more than $27 billion and reported more than $132 billion in revenue in 2020, up from $122 billion in 2019.

Investment advisory Argus on April 8 called The Kroger Co. a winner of the post pandemic economy and maintained a Buy rating on the company with a price target of $42. The advisory said that the retailer was gaining market share from competitors with the help of competitive pricing, a trend it forecast would continue well into the year.

At the end of the fourth quarter of 2020, 36 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $2.3 billion in the firm, up from 35 in the preceding quarter worth $2.4 billion.

7. Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDLZ)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 50

Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDLZ) is a Chicago-based multinational food company. It sells food, beverages, and snacks in more than 160 countries around the world. It was founded in 2000 and is placed seventh on our list of 10 best future food stocks to invest in today. The company is famous for selling snack items like biscuits, crackers, chocolates, as well as gums and candies. Some of the renowned brand names it owns are Cadbury, Milka, Toblerone, Oreo, LU, and Tang, among others.

Mondelez International, Inc. has a market cap of more than $82 billion and posted annual revenue of $26 billion in 2020, up from $25 billion in 2019. On April 28, the firm posted strong quarterly results and stock rallied by more than 5% to all time record-highs.

Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, New York-based investment firm Trian Partners is a leading shareholder in the firm with 12.2 million shares worth more than $715 million.

6. Ingles Markets, Incorporated (NASDAQ: IMKTA)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 20

Ingles Markets, Incorporated (NASDAQ: IMKTA) is a North Carolina-based supermarket chain that operates close to 200 stores in the southern part of the United States. It was founded in 1963 and is placed sixth on our list of 10 best future food stocks to invest in today. Some of the food-related products that it sells at the markets include grocery, meat and dairy products, produce, frozen foods, and other perishables items. The firm also has stakes in the pharma and fuel station business, operating more than two hundred such units in the US.

Ingles Markets, Incorporated declared a quarterly dividend of $0.165 per share on March 29, in line with estimates. It also approved a $2 million share repurchase program earlier that month, which left close to 20 million shares outstanding in the firm.

At the end of the fourth quarter of 2020, 20 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $91 million in the firm, up from 16 in the previous quarter worth $71 million.

5. Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 70

Walmart Inc. is a Bentonville-based retail brand. It is one of the largest retailers in the United States and operates through hypermarkets, discount department stores, and grocery stores. The stores of the firm sell dry grocery, snacks, dairy, meat produce, deli and bakery, frozen foods, as well as alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages. The firm was founded in 1945 and is placed fifth on our list of 10 best future food stocks to invest in today. The firm operates more than 11,000 stores and numerous e-commerce websites as well.

On April 30, Walmart Inc. was identified by Bank of America as one of the companies that would gain from an increase in spending on grocery at local stores and on the internet as stimulus cheques issued by the US government to provide COVID-19 relief were issued to the public. The bank said Walmart had better pricing disciplines than competitors and stood to benefit from it through the economic recovery as the pandemic subsided.

Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Washington-based investment firm Fisher Asset Management is a leading shareholder in the firm with 11.8 million shares worth more than $1.7 billion.

4. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 273

Amazon.com, Inc. is a Bellevue-based technology firm that has diversified business to own significant stakes in the publishing and food industries. With the e-commerce business of the firm booming during the pandemic, Amazon has been quietly opening up smart food stores around the US. In 2017, the firm had purchased Whole Foods for $13.7 billion, forcing grocery and retail brands to pay attention to online parts of their business, and establishing itself as a major player in the market in the process.

Amazon.com, Inc. stock has been rallying in recent days as rumors about a possible stock split dominate the market. The firm has also been fighting controversies related to worker conditions and has announced that it will increase the salary of more than 500,000 US-based workers by $0.5 to $3.

At the end of the fourth quarter of 2020, 273 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $51 billion in the firm, up from 245 in the preceding quarter worth $43 billion.

Alger Spectra Fund, in their Q1 2021 investor letter, mentioned Jeffrey Bezos‘ Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN). Here is what Alger Spectra Fund has to say about Amazon.com, Inc. in their Q1 2021 investor letter:

“Long position Amazon.com, Inc. was among the top detractors from performance. Amazon continued to generate strong high unit volume growth by taking market share from brick and mortar retailing. In the recent quarter, retail sales surprised notably on the upside as coronavirus has accelerated the adoption of e-commerce. Some of these shoppers will remain loyal beyond the end of social distancing further pushing the permanent market share gain of e-commerce at the expense of brick and mortar. Amazon.com’s guidance includes a modest deceleration in the retail sales growth but at still strong levels in the upcoming quarter. The same accelerated trend in adoption was also seen at Amazon’s AWS as corporate America embraced cloud offerings in the new distributed workforce environment although profitability in this segment fell short of expectations due to Amazon.com investing ingrowth initiatives.

Despite the continuing gains in these large addressable markets, Amazon’s share price detracted from performance as investors wait to see how the significant 2020 growth comparisons generated during the economic shutdown affect Amazon’s reported growth rates in 2021. Meanwhile, value versus growth equity returns in recent months indicate that investors possibly prefer to chase the transitory performance associated with pure play beneficiaries of economic re-openings while eschewing the potential compounding benefits garnered from high-quality, long-duration innovation led growers like Amazon.”

3. Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE: HRL)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 31

Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE: HRL) is a Minnesota-based food company that makes and sells several meat-related and other food products. It has separate wings dedicated to making grocery products and refrigerated foods. The firm was founded in 1891 and is ranked third on our list of 10 best future food stocks to invest in today. Some of the items sold by the company include sausages, hams, canned luncheon meats, peanut butters, chilies, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, salsas, tortilla chips, and others.

Hormel Foods Corporation announced back in February that it had made a deal with rival Kraft for the purchase of nuts brand Planters for more than $3 billion. The deal will likely provide the firm with tax benefits totaling $560 million. The Planters made sales worth more than $1 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow further under new owners.

Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Greenwich-based investment firm AQR Capital Management is a leading shareholder in the firm with 3.7 million shares worth more than $172 million.

2. The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ: KHC)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 36

The Kraft Heinz Company is a Chicago-based food firm. Some of the products that the company makes and sells include condiments and sauces, cheese and dairy, meals, meats and seafood, frozen and chilled foods, packaged drinking pouches, appetizers, nuts and salted snacks, and others. It offers these under brand names such as Kraft, Oscar Mayer, Heinz, Philadelphia, Velveeta, among others. The company was founded in 1869 and is placed second on our list of 10 best future food stocks to invest in today.

The Kraft Heinz Company reported quarterly earnings on April 29 and posted organic sales growth of 2.5%, beating market estimates by 0.6%. The company forecast a single digit percentage increase in organic sales for the second quarter of the year and said it was confident of beating targets set in a strategic annual plan.

At the end of the fourth quarter of 2020, 36 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $11 billion in the firm, down from 39 in the preceding quarter worth $10 billion.

1. Beyond Meat, Inc. (NASDAQ: BYND)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 27

Beyond Meat, Inc. is a Los Angeles-based company that makes plant-based meat alternatives. It was founded in 2009 and is placed first on our list of 10 best future food stocks to invest in today. The firm offers plant-based substitutes for beef, meatballs, ground meat, pork sausage links and patties, among others. The firm uses grocers, mass merchandisers, clubs, convenience stores, restaurants, and a website to market products to tens of different states in the United States.

On April 22, investment advisory BTIG said that Beyond Meat, Inc. investors needed to be patient to see the benefits that the meat substitute brand would gain from partnerships with fast food giants like McDonald’s and Yum Brands. The advisory maintained a Neutral rating on Beyond Meat stock till the firm reported quarterly results in May.

Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Chicago-based investment firm Citadel Investment Group is a leading shareholder in the firm with 1.3 million shares worth more than $162 million.

You can also take a peek at 10 Best Travel Stocks to Buy Right Now, and 10 Best Automotive Stocks to Invest in Now.

Follow Insider Monkey on Twitter