The UK roll-out of gluten-free Quaker oats follows the nationwide US launch of gluten-free Quaker oats in January this year following a limited launch in selected US stores last November.
Available from this week (September 26), the UK products are being sold in two formats: A 510 g canister of Traditional Rolled Oats with a recommended price of £2.49 ($3.22) and a 350 g box of 10 Oat So Simple instant sachets at £2.99 ($3.87).
While oats are naturally gluten free, they can come into contact with grains containing gluten during farming, storage or transportation, said Quaker.
Sourced from mill in Iowa
The oats in the new UK products are produced and sourced in the US from the Quaker mill in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where Quaker has a dedicated cleaning house for gluten-free oats, as well as dedicated cutting and flaking lines to produce gluten-free oats.
As in the US, the UK has seen growing demand for gluten-free food.
According to analysts Mintel, the UK free-from market is currently worth £470m ($610m) and is predicted to grow by 43% in the next four years.
Citing Kantar Worldpanel data for the 52 weeks ending January 31 2016, Quaker said the UK gluten-free oats market is currently worth £4.2m ($5.5m) and has grown 20% year on year.
Yogurt and cereal in a pouch
Quaker has also recently launched a new ‘on the go’ pouch format called Quaker Oat & Fruit Breakfast, which is designed to meet increasing consumer demand for on the go breakfast options.
The 200 g pouches contain oats, fruit purée and natural yogurt and have a recommended retail price of £1.39 ($1.80). They are available in three flavors - Red Fruits, Apple & Cinnamon and Blueberry- and contain no added sugar.
The pouches are initially available in Tesco supermarkets only, and will be supported with social media and in-store shopper marketing.
“Demand for convenient on the go breakfast options is at a peak and our new Oat & Fruit Breakfast is unique to the market, so we expect it to do very well,” said senior marketing manager Duncan McKay.
Launching at the same time as the pouches are three variants of Quaker Oat Muesli designed to appeal particularly to the over-45s.
Sold in a 650 g re-sealable Ziploc stand-up pouch priced £2.69 ($3.50), the three flavors are Strawberry, Nuts & Seeds and Dates & Coconut.