New beans mean pots of money

Heinz has sold over 5M packs of Snap Pots since they were introduced in 2007, making them one of the most successful product launches in recent years, bosses claimed.

The microwaveable pots of baked beans - made on a bespoke production line at the firm's Kitt Green factory in Wigan - had added incremental business, rather than cannibalising sales from traditional canned operations.

"75% of the volume sold to date is incremental to the category, which is great news as they are attracting new buyers, as well as bringing consumers back into the category more quickly," said corporate and government affairs director Nigel Dickie.

The pots had clocked up a 5.5% share of the beans market, he added: "Snap Pots is set to be one of the biggest new products of 2008, with sales forecast to beat other significant launches such as the Coca-Cola original shaped bottle that clocked up £18M worth of sales in 2007."