From Evian's plastic 'bubble' that cuts plastic and links to an e-commerce fulfilment offering to further innovation in the meat-free space, here is FoodNavigator's round-up of some of the most interesting innovations from around Europe.
From Evian's plastic 'bubble' that cuts plastic and links to an e-commerce fulfillment offering to further innovation in the meat-free space, here is FoodNavigator's round-up of some of the most interesting innovations from around Europe.
Danone’s in-home water appliance, Evian (re) new provides consumers with Evian water with a “significant” reduction in plastic packaging.
A collapsible 5 litre ‘bubble’ surrounding the water incorporates what the company described as “new generation design thinking leveraging the physics of materials”.
The thin and light ‘bubble’ of Evian water is 100% recyclable and made of a 100% recycled plastic (rPET) skin that contracts when the mineral water is consumed, taking on a new shape after each use.
It uses 66% less plastic than a 1.5L Evian bottle.
Consumers will be able to order the 5 litre pouch at the touch of a button on the base of the appliance, which is connected to the Evian (re)new app. The app is able to track the amount of water consumed and notify the user when a re-fill is needed
The introduction of the in-home Evian water appliance is part of the brand’s effort to become a circular brand by 2025 and will build on the brand’s ambition to be carbon neutral by 2020.
Patricia Oliva, Evian Global Brand VP said: “At Evian we owe everything to nature and are committed to a healthy planet. This will only be achieved by new ways of thinking and of doing business. And this is why we’re challenging ourselves to reinvent new ways to provide Evian natural mineral water to consumers. This unique bubble design represents a breakthrough in design thinking which brings the purity of Evian natural mineral water from the source to the home in a more circular way.”
Evian (re)new will launch as part of an initial pilot in Paris and London this month.
The Meatless Farm Co is expanding its UK offering with the launch of a range of plant-based sausages.
The new SKU will rollout in more than 200 Sainsbury’s locations this month. The sausages are made from plant-based ingredients, including the company’s “signature” mix of pea, soya and rice proteins. The sausages join The Meatless Farm Co’s plant-based mince and burgers. As well as being high in protein, they are a good source of fibre, vegan and gluten-free.
Rob Woodall, CEO of The Meatless Farm Co, commented: “We’re a British start-up that’s carefully created the recipe for our new plant-based sausages over the course of two years and we’re thrilled with the result. Our sausages provide the same taste and texture of meat whilst remaining nutritionally sound, this was really key to us.
“We wanted to add another product to the range which further champions ‘kind eating’ and provides a healthy, centre of plate solution for families - whether they’re veggie, vegan or just swapping out the odd meat meal.”
Meatless Farm Co recently launched The UK Meatless Consumption Target, a campaign aimed at encouraging UK households to swap one more meat meal to plant-based a week by 2021.
Danone is launching cold brew brand STōK – “much more than cold coffee” – in Germany. It will be available in three flavours: black, mocha and vanilla.
According to the company, the new cold brew coffee offering contains less acid and bitter taste than conventional coffee.
STōK is also lower in sugar than other cold brew products on the market, Danone claimed. Black STōK is sugar-free while vanilla and mocha options are around 30% lower in sugar.
STōK will be available from this month with a recommended retail price of €1.99.
Distribution will be nationwide and the product has already been picked up by Kaufland, Globus, Bünting and Metro.
Finnish food group Raisio is giving oats, a traditional staple of the Finnish diet, a new look with the launch of oat steaks.
The new vegetarian centre-plate option is high in fibre and protein, the company said. They can be headed in a frying pan, in the microwave or on the barbecue, the company said.
The new Finnish oat steaks will be launched under Raisio’s 94-year-old Elovena brand. The line consists of Classic and Mexican varieties.
The launch comes as 46% of Finns report they want to increase the amount of vegetarian food in their diets. However, Mervi Nieminen, communications manager for Elovena, stressed that taste was central to the product development process.
“Taste always comes first,” Nieminen said. “The most important factors in the development of Elovena products are what is important for diners.”
Raisio also offers an oat-based mince as an alternative protein product.
Kerry Foods is launching Richmond Thin Chicken Sausages to complement its existing chicken sausages range.
The brand first expanded into chicken two years ago, with the launch of Thick sausages. This was followed up with a frozen SKU last year. Richmond chicken varieties now have a retail sales value of almost £3 million.
The new Thin Chicken Sausages have been developed to further build the Richmond Chicken Sausage portfolio, the company said. Available in a 12 pack, each sausage is 48 calories.
Kerry said the innovation reflected consumer demand for healthier choices and a broader range. “The new Richmond Thin Chicken Sausages respond directly to consumer demand to see healthier options on shop shelves.”
Dawn Spencer, Marketing & Category Director, Richmond added: “There continues to be a noticeable attitudinal shift towards alternative proteins in sausage, especially chicken sausages and we are excited about this launch. We are feeling incredibly positive about the success it will bring following the positive reaction to our other chicken products with consumers. The full chicken portfolio will help strengthen our master brand and drive further sales for our retail partners.”
The Richmond Thin Chicken Sausage range is available now in Asda stores nationwide and will continue to roll out across the market in 2019 and 2020.
Germany’s Steinhaus is rolling out an addition to what it described as its “modern” Creazioni di Pasta range: beetroot and goat’s cheese.
“The light sweetness of the red beet harmonizes especially with the fresh goat's cheese and [delivers] a completely new flavour in the chilled pasta shelf,” the company said.
The line is available in single-servings of 200g for an RRP of €1.99.
It will be distributed nationally in delicatessen and convenience channels, Steinhaus said.