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Food for Thought Leadership: AI Agents Are on the Rise in the Food Industry and Here’s Why

| December 2, 2025

| December 2, 2025

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In this episode of Food for Thought Leadership, Food Institute vice president of content and client relationships Chris Campbell sits down with Barry Thomas, senior thought leader at Kantar, to unpack the rapid rise of agentic AI — a new class of AI systems that don’t just generate information, but take action on behalf of the user. Thomas, who brings nearly four decades of experience across Walmart, Coca-Cola, and other roles, explains why agentic AI represents a foundational shift in how consumers discover, evaluate, and shop for products. He explores how AI-powered shopping apps, answer-engines, and agentic browsers are reshaping the digital journey, and why businesses should prepare now for changes that will accelerate through 2026.

The conversation also dives into how this technology impacts retailers, CPG manufacturers, and foodservice operators — from the rise of metadata marketing and AI-optimized product visibility to the growing influence of user-generated content in agentic shopping environments. Thomas outlines the challenges ahead: data governance, shifting retail media dynamics, consumer trust, and the delicate balance between authenticity and automation. With younger demographics adopting AI at record speed, the companies that invest in upskilling and AI-readiness today stand to gain the strongest competitive advantage tomorrow.

More About Barry Thomas:
Barry is one of Kantar’s foremost global commerce experts with a distinguished history of serving customers, partners, and people throughout his more than 30 years in the retail, food service, and FMCG industries. His 25-year career with The Coca-Company featured landmark achievements in the areas of customer leadership, customer marketing, ecommerce, innovation, consumer insights, category management, and future strategies. Before joining the Coca-Cola system, Barry worked for Pfizer (formerly Wyeth-Ayerst) for seven years in commercial, customer, marketing, and insights roles. Barry earned a bachelor’s degree in business from the University of North Florida and an MBA from Mercer University. He is currently on the advisory boards of the Digital Marketing Institute, George Washington University Digital Marketing Program, and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

More About Kantar:
Kantar is a data and evidence-based agency providing insights and actionable recommendations to clients, worldwide. We combine the most meaningful attitudinal and behavioral data with deep expertise and technology platforms to track how people think and act.

Partnering with Kantar Retail IQ means unearthing new and shifting demand moments and being entirely up to speed with forces impacting channel dynamics, consumer behaviour and attitude, and the mega-trends influencing long-term growth. Working alongside retailers, manufacturers, CPG brands, and more, we help clients capitalize on early success and propel them to the next phase of growth among changing dynamics and competitive forces.

With 250+ years of collective retail experience, our experts use reliable data and analysis to guide strategic planning, tactical execution, and growth.

To learn more, visit https://retailiq.kantar.com/.

Transcript (Edited for Brevity/Clarity)

What Agentic AI Actually Is

Chris Campbell:
People understand generative AI, but “agentic AI” is newer and more complex. How do you define it for clients?

Barry Thomas:
I start with the word agency. Agentic AI systems act on your behalf. They use data, rules, and learning to take action — and they’re already influencing retail, marketing, and branding.
At Brandweek, the big message was that brands must become AI-visible within the emerging agentic web.

How Agentic AI Works (and Why It’s Different)

Chris Campbell:
People may think “chatbots,” but this is more powerful. How does it actually work?

Barry Thomas:
Generative AI produces content. Agentic AI takes action.
It can conduct deep research, compare products, and even create a product card — a critical concept — recommending items based on rules and data. Brands want to appear in those results.

I break the impact into five areas:

  1. AI-powered shopping apps that educate shoppers (e.g., Yuka).

  2. Answer engines that inspire exploration (e.g., Google AI mode).

  3. Agentic browsers like ChatGPT’s Atlas, which use memory and personalization.

  4. Conversational retail through AI assistants like Walmart’s Spark and Amazon’s Rufus.

  5. Agentic checkout, where retailers integrate with OpenAI and other platforms.

Implications for Retailers, CPGs & Foodservice

Chris Campbell:
Walmart’s investment in agentic AI is massive. How broad will adoption be across food and retail?

Barry Thomas:
Routine purchases may shift fastest — similar to Amazon subscriptions. High-frequency FMCG brands must prepare now.
At the other end, high-consideration products already rely on answer engines for discovery.

Agentic Checkout & Retail Strategy Shifts

Chris Campbell:
Let’s go deeper on agentic checkout. How does this help operators?

Barry Thomas:
It’s early but important.
Walmart views it as a new convenience-driven channel. Amazon, in contrast, has restricted AI crawlers to protect retail media and proprietary data.
Even with one-item baskets today, brands should be learning and preparing for agentic commerce.

Pros, Cons & the Rise of Metadata Marketing

Chris Campbell:
Retail media networks could be disrupted here. What are the pros and challenges?

Barry Thomas:
Agentic AI is pushing brands toward metadata marketing — where packaging is data, and visibility is driven by structured product information.
Answer engines are increasing new-to-brand discovery, often elevating challenger brands that traditionally struggled in paid search environments.
Brands must adopt new metrics like share of model and share of prompts.

Authenticity, Automation & Consumer Behavior

Chris Campbell:
Consumers want authenticity and convenience simultaneously. How does that tension play out?

Barry Thomas:
Convenience wins — especially for younger consumers. A significant share of holiday shopping is already influenced by AI.
Authenticity comes through reviews and UGC, which heavily influence AI assistants like Rufus and Spark.
One winner in this space? Club stores — due to transparency, supply chain strength, and consistent value.

Will Some Consumers Reject AI?

Chris Campbell:
Do you expect a subset of consumers to opt out entirely?

Barry Thomas:
Short term, yes — think Trader Joe’s, which centers its human-led, in-store experience.
Long term, some people will avoid deeper AI integration for values or mental health reasons. But they’ll be the minority.

What to Watch in 2026

Chris Campbell:
What else should the industry be tracking for 2026?

Barry Thomas:
Three things:

  1. Upskilling — every professional needs a learning plan and credentialed AI skills.

  2. Meta’s upcoming agent — their data depth could make it the most personalized AI in the market.

  3. The ChatGPT App Store — partnerships with Walmart, Spotify, Etsy, Shopify signal a new commerce ecosystem.