Hitting the Shelves: Global Trends -- July 2009

Nutrition-aware consumers are becoming more knowledgeable about what truly constitutes “healthy” foods and drinks. As these perceptive individuals become more product savvy, many are learning to read product labels closely to better understand the ingredients and additives in the products they consume. Manufacturers have studied these label-reading consumers and accordingly marketed new product offerings, not only specific to ingredient transparency, but also to product sourcing and preparation techniques. In Australia, Donny Boy Fresh Food Company unveiled a line of juices with an innovative pasteurization process that helps preserve product taste and nutrition benefits. Preshafruit fruit juices are pressurized cold under high-pressure processing, as opposed to traditional methods that rely on cooking, heating or the use of chemicals. Preshafruit maintains that these common processing practices reduce fruit’s natural nutrient content, whereas the cold-pressure processing conversely allows the juices to retain their high nutrient content, flavor and freshness. The cold-pressure method also kills unwanted microorganisms, while allowing vitamins and natural flavor components to remain unaltered. The beverage maker further distinguishes itself by boasting a portfolio of fruit juices categorized not by flavor, but by apple varieties, including Pink Lady, Fuji, Granny Smith and Royal Gala.

From the foodservice side, the high-end retailer Yogen Früz is known for nutritious and premium frozen yogurt. Yogen Früz is made fresh, with each serving of the frozen yogurt low in fat, high in fiber, boasting vitamins and probiotics or antioxidants, depending on the flavor. A few months ago, the franchiser joined forces with Big Sky Brands to develop a confection product under the Yogen Früz name in Canada. Yogen Früz Smoothies All Natural Hard Candy is formulated with natural fruit flavor and probiotic yogurt. While numerous products designed with probiotic cultures have launched globally in the dairy category, Yogen Früz smoothies are one of the first boiled sweets to contain the beneficial bacteria in its ingredient list.

Information in this column is from the Global New Products Database, the premier source of global product intelligence, published by Mintel International Group; 351 W. Hubbard, 8th Floor; Chicago, IL 60610; call: 312-932-0600; fax: 312-932-0474; or e-mail mhollihan@mintel.com.