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Consumer packaged goods companies (CPGs) are currently navigating one of the most turbulent periods in their history. Supply chain fragility, rising trade tensions, and shifting shopper behaviours are reshaping the landscape. Volumes remain subdued, pricing power is waning, and insurgent brands are capturing share across markets.
Yet leading businesses are not simply reacting to these pressures. By fine-tuning portfolios, adapting go-to-market models, and harnessing state-of-the-art technology, they are actively finding new ways to stay ahead.
This blog explores the practical steps CPGs can take to succeed in today’s volatile environment, and highlights the roles that will prove most critical in achieving resilience and driving growth.
Biggest challenges CPGs face today
Record costs
Cocoa prices soared to unprecedented levels earlier this year, hitting a record high of $10.75 per kilogram in January. Although levels have since eased, the pressure on P&Ls has forced businesses to make tough choices on pricing, pack sizes and promotional depth.
Regulatory step-ups in Europe
On 30 December 2025, the EU’s Regulation on Deforestation-free Products (EUDR) will enter application. This will require large and medium-sized companies to prove products such as cocoa and palm oil have not contributed to forest degradation or come from recently deforested land. Broad application of the EU’s new Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) will also begin in 2026, forcing producers to meet tighter recyclability and waste-reduction demands.
Pricing pressures
CPGs raised prices regularly between 2021 and 2023. While these increases were largely necessitated by rising costs, they also helped fuel profitable growth. However, a recent Deloitte survey found that most industry executives no longer see pricing as a viable lever for revenue growth. Any attempt to raise prices in 2025 is instead likely to be met with retailer pushback or drop in consumer demand. We are already seeing cost-conscious shoppers switching to own-brand options both in Europe and, even more dramatically, in the US.
Supply chain volatility
Geopolitical tensions and shifting trade dynamics are continuing to disrupt global supply chains, requiring CPGs to remain focused on building resilience. The ongoing uncertainty surrounding tariffs, quotas and other protectionist measures is also pushing many business leaders to delay critical investment decisions, with potentially serious knock-on effects for innovation.
Rise of GLP-1
Over the last four years, the US has seen a 700% increase in the number of patients without diabetes using Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonists. These new weight-loss treatments, which include Mounjaro, Saxenda and Ozempic, suppress people’s appetite by mimicking the effects of naturally produced digestive hormones. The precise impact of GLP-1 use on consumer behaviour remains unclear, but calorie-dense, low-satiety lines are likely to be at risk.
5 steps CPGs should be taking moving into 2026
#1 Decouple growth from price
Amid pricing headwinds, forward-thinking CPGs are finding alternative ways to drive profitable growth. This includes actively tuning pack sizes and price ladders. Set a 12- to 18-month plan to adjust your product mix, targeting affordability packs in channels where own brands are thriving.
#2 Optimise marketing spend
Marketing is one area where it is possible to reduce costs without sacrificing results. We are already seeing CPGs reallocating budgets towards retail media networks (RMNs) and connected TV (CTV), where closed-loop sales attribution is stronger. Marketers should now focus on coordinating RMN and CTV activity to capture full-funnel effects.
#3 Step up AI adoption
Many businesses have been piloting GenAI solutions. Where ROI is proven, it is now time to move from experimentation to implementation. Areas for CPGs to focus on include demand forecasting, trade promotion optimisation, and content automation at scale. Factory productivity should also be prioritised. Unilever recently delivered double-digit OEE gains by investing in a combination of talent development, robotics, and AI.
#4 Establish a regulatory sprint room
Is your business fully prepared for the impacts of EUDR and PPWR? Set up cross-functional squads to assess and address potential trouble spots, including supplier attestations and recyclability roadmaps.
#5 Get GLP-1-ready
Satiety is set to become more important than ever. To prepare, CPGs should focus fresh attention on protein-forward, portion-controlled SKUs. This is also a good time to retest marketing claims with shoppers who are undertaking modern weight-loss treatments.
Key figures who will make the difference
Every employee has a part to play in helping CPGs navigate today’s volatile environment. But some individuals have a singularly large impact. Talent development and acquisition teams should focus on the following roles, which are likely to prove critical in the current climate:
Chief Growth Officer / Chief Commercial Officer
- Why critical: They integrate revenue growth management, brand, media, and retail activation under one view, which is key when pricing levers are maxed out and growth must shift back to volume/mix.
- Impact: Help unify portfolio, pack architecture, and media strategy, linking retail media spend to actual incrementality.
Head of Retail Media & Data Partnerships
- Why critical: RMNs and clean-room collaborations are now central to CPG growth.
- Impact: Those who can standardise KPIs across different retailer platforms and stitch incrementality into marketing mix modelling are enabling their organisations to spend with confidence.
Chief Sustainability Officer / Director of Sustainability Compliance
- Why critical: The EU’s PPWR and EUDR compliance deadlines are looming. Having cross-functional leaders who own supply chain traceability, packaging compliance, and reporting is becoming a competitive advantage.
- Impact: They allow businesses to move from simply firefighting (avoiding fines) to proactively achieving cost efficiency and brand advantage.
Data Science / AI Product Leads
- Why critical: GenAI and advanced analytics are shifting from pilots to scaled deployments.
- Impact: Companies with commercial-facing AI product leads (not just central IT) are faster at turning AI into real trade and marketing ROI.
Chief Supply Chain Resilience Officer
- Why critical: Cocoa, sugar, palm oil, and packaging volatility require risk scenario planning, dual sourcing, and resilience modelling.
- Impact: Those who can balance cost, resilience, and sustainability sourcing (not just lowest-cost buying) are cushioning P&Ls and protecting growth.
Category / Portfolio Strategy Leads
- Why critical: Private-label pressure + GLP-1 health trends are creating new category rules.
- Impact: Teams with dedicated foresight and category shaping leads are refreshing value ladders ahead of retailers.
Change Agents in HR
- Why critical: Most organisations don’t fail on strategy but on speed and execution.
- Impact: Roles focused on upskilling marketers in data fluency, sustainability compliance, and retailer co-planning are accelerating adoption and cutting through silos.
Conclusion
The CPG industry is at a crossroads. Rising costs, tougher regulation, and seismic shifts in consumer behaviour are challenging the traditional playbook. Yet the companies that embrace change are proving that volatility can also unlock opportunity. By decoupling growth from price, accelerating AI adoption, preparing for regulatory deadlines, and responding to evolving consumer demand, CPGs can move from defence to offence. Ultimately, success in 2026 will depend less on any single strategy than on the people who lead the charge – from sustainability champions to supply chain strategists. With the right capabilities in place, today’s uncertainty can become tomorrow’s competitive edge.
We are here to secure the leaders who will tackle the challenges facing consumer businesses and help them emerge stronger. https://savannah-group.com/contact-us/
