Intersnack relaunches following NPD investment
The company, which is part of the Dusseldorf-based Intersnack Group, also owns the Chio, Your Nuts, Imperial and Mr Mash brands.
Intersnack has recently completed a £50,000 investment in new innovation facilities at its base in Tanfield, County Durham.
A company spokeswoman said: “It’s specifically to grow the UK business but it may be we do share product ideas with other parts of the business in other countries.
“Although each division is autonomous, we do share ideas around different markets.”
She said Intersnack would be “overhauling and relaunching” all its brands next year.
Snack products
The Tanfield investment includes a new product development kitchen where recipes will be developed for a range of snack products. Those include popcorn, nuts, seeds, fruit mixes, pretzels and crackers.
It features a range of pilot equipment, replicating facilities at its three production sites at Haverhill, Tanfield and Corby.
A refurbishment plan is also underway at Haverhill’s new product development (NPD) facility.
Innovations controller Lynn Saul said: “Our investment in these new facilities highlights the importance of innovation to our growth plans.
“My team have successfully launched some amazing products out of our previous, albeit limited, facilities. So with these improvements we are confident of even more exciting developments to come.”
Appetite for experimentation
The firm’s latest news follows md Richard Robinson’s disclosure in July that UK consumers’ “appetite for experimentation” was driving growth in the snack sector.
A former director of Northern Foods’ frozen division, Robinson told FoodManufacture.co.uk: “Frozen is a relatively slow growing and traditional sector that can be quite conservative in terms of NPD. Unlike snacks where innovation is not just desirable but indispensable to success.”
Penn State Pretzels is a brand that was conceived and developed in the UK by Intersnack and realised using American equipment and cooking techniques.
Intersnack is a privately owned company, employing 6,000 people and achieving an annual turnover of €1.5bn.
Its branded and private label output stands at 400,000t a year.
