Boost convenience products to grow, says cereal boss

Changing consumer needs and an increasingly challenging market will continue to push cereal manufacturers to develop convenience products, Bokomo Foods’s ceo John Hiles has said.

Bokomo, which manufactures own-label cereals for the major multiples and other retailers, had created its first branded convenience product last year, in response to market challenges, Hiles told FoodManufacture.co.uk in this podcast.

Perfekt For, Bokomo’s entry into the convenience market, consists of two wheat biscuits in a resealable plastic pot, which is ready for consumers to add milk and eat on-the-go.

“It’s a very competitive environment and there’s still room for variation in terms of what we have,” he added.

‘Consumers like variation’

“The theme is very much oat-based products at the moment, but consumers like variation.”

Although he believed the convenience breakfast market, which is dominated by breakfast biscuits and bars, would grow, boxed cereals wouldn’t disappear from supermarket shelves, he claimed.

“I think convenience has got its place in the cereal sector, but I don’t believe it’s the way forward for it,” said Hiles.

Meanwhile, subscribe to the May issue of Food Manufacture to read an exclusive interview with Hiles, in which he rips open the box on the own-label cereal sector.