Food gets fruity
Ever since the term 'superfruit' was dreamt up in the mid-90s it has been exploited to the hilt for commercial purposes by the food and drink industry and consumers have lapped it up. Soft drinks and functional beverages are the main beneficiaries as both small and large manufacturers cash in on the popularity of superfruits.
Beverage giants, such as Pepsico, Coca-Cola and Cadbury Schweppes have all launched superfruit juices in the intervening period but it has been the more innovative smaller companies that have blazed the trail, like UK-based Pomegreat, The Berry Company and Fairjuice.
Tom Vierhile, director at Datamonitor Productscan Online, suggests that soft drinks are the ideal vehicle for new ingredients because consumers seek novelty within this category. "Consumers are much more open to new flavours in soft drinks and it is natural to experiment; it's also easier to experiment with soft drinks than it is with some food categories, like cookies, for example," he says.
Superfruits appeal mainly to consumers who are health and body conscious, and want to buy food and drink that deliver additional nutritional benefits. It is therefore only natural that they are added to foods already perceived as healthy and, in addition to soft drinks, there has been a steady stream of superfruit variants in the cereal, cereal bars and bakery categories - although on a much smaller scale than soft drinks.
Between January 1, 2007 and September 23, 2008 there were 303 new fruit and fruit-flavoured drinks launches containing superfruits, compared with 105 tea launches; 62 isotonic/energy drinks; 49 bottled waters; 39 snack bars, and 34 yoghurt and yoghurt imitations, according to figures from Datamonitor Productscan Online.
Senior consultant Deborah Carter at brand agency Dragon believes the focus on juices and chilled produce may be a result of their "perceived effectiveness" in terms of their convenience, freshness, and the fact that they appear less processed than other sectors in store, she says. "This means that consumers are more likely to want to get their antioxidant vitamins, like vitamin C, from fresh fruit than from taking supplements. That seems to be why brands such as Ocean Spray do well. Their [cranberry] products continue to provide handy, easy-to-drink refreshment in a non-threatening way - and although sold at a small premium, they are not priced out."
Progress within other food categories has therefore been slow, both because of the difficulty in preserving nutrients in processed food and due to the fact that consumers are trying to avoid processed foods wherever possible. The pace is picking up though.
According to Kerry Fruit Preparations' strategic business manager Belinda Smith: "Consumers look for the healthy connotation rather than the actual goodness of superfruits in food products. Superfruits have been introduced into more indulgent products such as cookies, cakes, confectionery and ice cream presumably to suggest a healthier positioning and offset negativity and they are increasingly being used in ready meals, salads and dressings to suggest healthy eating.
"The addition of superfruits within some foods, such as yoghurt for example, may tempt consumers to buy but not necessarily for healthy reasons. They will buy yoghurt anyway. The quantity of superfruits used in food applications isn't enough to gain the health benefits. Superfruits are perceived to offer a healthy quick fix and have also probably encouraged the consumer to think more about their fruit consumption in general."
Among the most prolific superfruits currently in circulation are pomegranate, cranberry, açai, noni, goji and mangosteen, however new variants are appearing on the superfruit scene all the time.
The baobab 'tree of life' fruit is likely to make an appearance on UK and EU markets, following confirmation of its novel food status last June. Hundreds of tonnes of fruit is harvested in southern Africa but it is woefully under-utilised, despite the fact that it contains a rich amalgam of calcium, vitamin C, fibre, potassium, phosphorus and antioxidants and has a naturally long shelf-life.
Cyril Lombard, head of market development at African trade association PhytoTrade Africa, says: "Baobab has a very hard shell and when opened it is almost dry inside (it contains approximately 14/15% of moisture); this makes it easy to extract the pulp and produce the white powder to transport it. There is no need for refrigeration or preservatives. Baobab is stable for at least two years in this format, which is very different from other novel superfruits like goji and blueberries."
Some leading smoothies and snack food manufacturers have already embarked on research and development (R&D) to ascertain the product and marketing potential of baobab and Lombard predicts a raft of launches over the next couple of years.
"Timescales will vary depending on the progress of the R&D work, but some product launches will take place by the end of the year, and there will be many more in 2009," he says.
Consumer acceptance
When developing products containing superfruits manufacturers usually rely on consumers already knowing about their health benefits. Few, if any, products carry specific health claims; if they do, claims need to be supported with scientific evidence, according to European Nutrition and Health Claims Regulation. Nevertheless, the term 'superfruit' has become a real asset as a marketing tool and launches are often supported by novel marketing activity.
Carter says: "There has been a 'buzz' around new entrants like The Berry Company or Fairjuice who are bringing new and exciting drinks to the marketplace with a newsworthy story about the superfruits they contain. Fairjuice, a company that provides niche juice blends has cleverly created a story around the benefits of long-established mulberries, and are reinforcing their nutrient content including a 24% higher concentration of antioxidant vitamins, including vitamin C, than cranberries and 79% more than blueberries."
The success of Superjam, which launched five years ago, is attributed to the brand's efficacy and authenticity, and word of mouth endorsement. Founder Fraser Doherty (featured in the main image on p63) says: "The story behind the jam has a lot of consumer appeal. Together with the health benefits they are a winning package. The jam is produced using minimal processing and with no added preservatives or colours."
The main difficulty when introducing new generations of superfruit is the long process of acquiring novel food status; it took the best part of four years for baobab to prove its case. "Baobab has been a priority for us since 2001 and we actively started to look at how to deal with the regulatory barrier in 2004," says Lombard. "Four years later the barrier is lifted and interested manufacturers now have the opportunity to put their ideas into practice."
For the time being manufacturers seem content to focus on new product development using existing fruit varieties although there will be a shake-up in the market. "Lesser-known superfruits will have a harder time moving forward," admits Vierhile.
Superfruits may add value to products but their shelf-life is often limited and many novelty fruits lack sustainability compared with mainstream varieties - such as pomegranate, cranberry, blueberries - which are less vulnerable to shifting consumer fads. "Superfruit tends to be more popular when it can be bought by the punnet, rather than simply as a fruit blend in a drink," explains Smith. "The more familiar consumers are to a variety of fruit the more willing they are to try it."
Taste is another key issue with superfruits since quite of few of them have a bitter and sometimes unpleasant taste that needs masking. Carter explains: "Some of the more obscure superfruits are less palatable in high doses and therefore do not offer the enjoyment benefits. We all know that while we will make some dietary trade-off for the sake of health, we will only do so if what we eat provides as much appetite appeal."
Even so, there is a lot more mileage in superfruits in snacks, yogurt drinks, salad dressings, pastries and baked goods, says Vierhile.
Freeze-dried fruits will also continue to expand in snack formats and dairy products will continue to evolve, says Carter: "The chilled yoghurts and desserts sector will continue to develop new interesting flavours and benefits, possibly combined with growing awareness of probiotic benefits."
Inevitably, price and availability will dictate the pace of growth, and food miles connected with the transportation of superfruits from their native countries bring another set of concerns. "There are many superfruits in product ranges abroad that could make an appearance in Britain," says Carter.
"There have been far more introductions in Australia and the USA of, for example, superfruit waters and bars and in recent months Bossa Nova beverages launched range of drinks with mangosteen, acerola, goji and dragonfruit variants. However, with the price of imports, concern about regular supply and questions about the welfare of growers etc, it is unlikely that they will ever enter the mainstream in the UK." FM
