Snack brands catering for specific markets, rice-based FABs, functional dairy products and energy-giving or low-carb confectionery are among the recent highlights from the Mintel Global New Products Database (GNPD).
Dairy product producers are pushing the boundaries of their popular brands, many of them moving in fact into non-dairy alternatives. Danone, the French food group, is no exception, with its second attempt to gain a foothold in the growing market for soya-based products.
Danone first entered the soya yoghurt-style dessert market back in the late 1990s with the French introduction of Sevea, a 100 per cent vegetable soya and oat based yoghurt-alternative, free from cholesterol and gluten. However, the product was soon withdrawn following concerns over GM foods and its links with soya. Now, Danone is having another stab at launching a non-dairy product, this time in Spain. New there is a Danone Bio Soja functional range with Essensis active bifidus in regular, peach and red fruit varieties.
Another interesting functional launch has appeared in Italy. It has been introduced under the Zen Linea Salute brand by Techno-Foods and comprises a creamy, strawberry flavoured yoghurt which is claimed to be naturally rich in CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) and omega-3. It is said to be a unique yoghurt, produced with 100 per cent Jersey cow's milk coming from the Zootecnica Adelaide Company.
There is still plenty of room for innovation in the more traditional dairy product sector, it seems, with the GNPD reporting on a number of new cheese products aimed at consumers in the US.
Angel Technology has created a cheese which is said to reduce cholesterol levels - all milk fats are removed from the cheese before the curdling process, and the cheese is said to be high in polyunsaturated (good) fats and phytosterols.
Meanwhile, the Pasture Pride brand has been extended to include a product made using milk free of hormones, antibiotics and pesticides. Varieties include colby, muenster, and juusto (described as a buttery bread cheese). Finally, BelGioioso Cheese has launched Parveggiano, a vegetarian, animal rennet-free cheese aged for ten years.