Convenience, innovation under the spotlight

Convenience, health and innovation are once again the order of the day in the food and drink industry, as the latest visit to the Mintel Global New Products Database​ (GNPD​) shows.

Breakfast cereal manufacturers are constantly looking for new ways to interest consumers in their products at a time of day when many are pressed for time. To meet growing demand for convenient products, US cereal giant has recently launched a range of on-the-go cereals for the German and Austrian market called Kellogg's Fjølk & Corn Flakes.

The product comprises a portion of multi-grain cornflakes with a separate serving of ‘fjølk’, which is described as a fresh, mild yoghurt-milk made with original Scandinavian cultures. In addition to this health-oriented adult variety, Kellogg has also introduced a variety for children, based on Frosties Crrrunchy Choco cereal with vanilla yoghurt. For added convenience, they both come with a folding plastic snack spoon attached to the tub.

Kellogg has experimented before with convenience-oriented cereals. In the UK, in 2001 the company introduced To Go Twinpots, an on-the-go breakfast solution comprising a portion of cereal, a portion of extended life semi-skimmed milk and a sachet of sugar, presented in a plastic bowl complete with a plastic spoon. That product was sold shelf-stable, but best served chilled.

Although it was positioned at the front of store alongside fresh sandwiches, the relatively high price point undoubtedly deterred some consumers. The new product in Germany carries a lower price point, and also has the advantage of a unique ingredient (fjølk), which adds value to the basic cereal proposition and draws the consumer's attention.

But Kellogg is not the only company innovating in the breakfast cereal market this month, reports Mintel. Hipp, a company best known for its baby food and milk formulae, is venturing into the good-for-you adult breakfast cereal market with the German introduction of Hippness Crisp.

The company already markets some children's breakfast cereals, but it is the first time an adult range appears to have been launched. The range is vitamin and mineral fortified, with some varieties also offering functional properties. Varieties include chocolate & nut with lecithin, probiotic strawberry & raspberry and apple & cranberry with vitamins A, C & E. They are packaged in modern style flexible, stand-up pouches as opposed to the more traditional carton.

From pots to coffee​

Moving away from cereals to another breakfast time favourite – coffee – Mintel reports that US company Sunbeam Products has launched its first ever coffee brand under the Mr Coffee name. Mr Coffee brand is familiar to many US consumers, as it appears on the majority of coffee pots, filters and espresso machines in most offices or restaurants there, but up until now has never made coffee.

The ground coffee is being launched in conjunction with the Creative Marketing Group, and will come in regular and decaf variants. It will be sold in supermarkets, club and convenience stores and mass merchandise outlets.

Sweet Nescafé coffee speciality​

A much better known brand of coffee is Nescafé, produced by Swiss giant Nestlé, and the company has extended the brand with a wide variety of variants over the past few years. The latest to be launched is Bombon, an instant version of the traditional Spanish coffee drink made with sweetened condensed milk.

The drink is normally served layered (a bottom layer of condensed milk and a top layer of plain coffee) and then stirred before drinking, but Nestlé is making it easier for consumers to recreate the drink at home with its new Nescafé sub-brand. Made with La Lechera brand condensed milk, the liquid soluble coffee and condensed milk blend is packaged in a plastic bottle with a plastic valve dispenser. It simply needs to be squeezed into a cup and topped up with hot water or hot milk.

Chill out with Tetley​

Another beverage frequently associated with breakfast, in the UK at least, is Tetley tea, but the popular British brand is now trying to attract a new set of drinkers with the launch of an iced tea product.

In the past, British consumers have tended to shy away from iced tea, perhaps finding it hard to associate a popular and traditional hot drink with a cold version. However, this may be changing as new RTD iced teas continue to be introduced, often focusing on the healthy antioxidant benefits of tea.

Many recent launches have tended to be from niche players providing high-quality taste and content (e.g. MangaJo Anti-Ox Tea and Indian Chai Tea from Spring Fine Foods), but Tetley's new line is attempting to change this. Past attempts by the company include Tetley Ice Blend back in 1997, but the new version is called T of Life. It is described as a refreshing blend of spring water, fruit juice and Tetley tea with energising herbs (ginseng and guarana) and vitamins (B3, B5, B6, B9, and B12). It is available in Raspberry & Cranberry, and Lemon & Lime flavours.

Good-for-you yoghurts​

The addition of herbs and vitamins is of course not limited to tea. A number of other products highlighted by Mintel this month show that producers from a wide range of product sectors are increasingly going down the ‘better for you’ route.

Dairy producers, for example, have found that yoghurt in particular is a convenient medium for adding extra herbal ‘goodness’ to their products, and the GNPD reports on a number of recent examples such as Parmalat Kyr Principia Agrumi e Ginseng, a low fat, citrus-flavoured fermented milk drink with vitamins, ginseng and fibre, introduced in Italy. Another example comes from Malaysia, where Magic Food has introduced herbal yoghurts under the Sunglo brand available in fennel and echinacea varieties - two ingredients new to the yoghurt market.

Energy drinks have long been including herbal ingredients to give a natural boost to consumers, and the popularity of such products is showing little sign of waning. Mintel comments that several new beverages from major manufacturers are hitting shelves in the US specifically targeted to the emerging Hispanic and Latino market.

SoBe (part of PepsiCo) is presenting Fuerte, a mango and passion fruit beverage displayed with Spanish labelling containing the phrase ‘SoBe Tu Mismo’, translating to ‘SoBe Yourself’. The beverage also contains herbal extracts like yerba mate and guarana. It is the company's first beverage targeted to the market and is available in San Diego, Texas, and South Florida.

Also being released is Clamato Energia, a non-carbonated vegetable-based energy drink from Mott's (Cadbury Schweppes). The tomato-based drink contains 30 per cent juice along with ginseng, taurine, guarana, and B vitamins. It retails nationally for $1.99 per 8-oz. can.

Ethnic & mini snacks driving market​

But while healthy products continue to grow in popularity, the number of indulgent snack and other products is also on the rise, as consumers become increasingly sophisticated in their snacking desires.

The UK is one of Europe’s biggest snack markets, but there is still plenty of room for growth there, according to Mintel. While potato and corn based savoury snacks are popular in the UK, the use of bread dough in a snacking format has also recently emerged there, in particular with an Indian flavour.

For example, the Bredz range of bagged bread dough savoury snacks from Butt Foods is available in flavours such as Tandoori, while retailer Sainsbury's has developed something similar with the introduction of crisp baked naan stick snacks in Tikka (medium hot) and Korma (mild) varieties.

Within the more traditional savoury snack market, Mintel also noted the launch of more mini formats in different packaging styles. Past product examples include mini Hula Hoops Shoks potato snacks from KP Foods in the UK, available in a cube-shaped flexible pack, while the latest has been introduced in the Netherlands by Smiths Food Group (PepsiCo).

Bits, mini corn snacks in two varieties (Twisties twist shapes in Honey BBQ, and Zero's hoop shaped in a Texas Paprika flavour), are packaged in long flow wrap sachets, and their USP is that they are said to be easy to consume with one hand. Details and images on the packaging explain that the sachet simply needs to be torn, the head tilted backwards, and the snacks poured into the mouth.

Sweet innovation​

So much for savoury indulgence, but what about sweet products? Mintel has highlighted one in particular this month. Eat-a-Bubble, introduced in South Africa by Toytech, works like a child’s bubble-blowing toy. It comprises a liquid candy which poured into a special tube. A ring is then dipped into the solution and candy bubbles can then be blown – and eaten. Flavours include apple, strawberry, grape, blueberry, lemon, pineapple, orange, melon, chocolate, cola, coffee and banana.