Drivers and developments in free-from food production

As consumers seek free-from food products for both dietary and lifestyle reasons, Food Manufacture explores the major trends driving growth in the market and key considerations producers need tot take into account when manufacturing these products.

One company seeing an explosion of growth in the free-from sector is EHL Ingredients, with demand for gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free and sulphite-free ingredients growing in recent years – a market that the ingredients firm expects to develop further.

“The free-from foods market has grown exponentially over the last few years and foods without dairy, gluten or animal products are becoming much more mainstream and readily available within retail,”​ explained joint managing director Tasneem Alonzo.

“Consumers of all ages are becoming increasingly experimental with their food choices, with a surge in those following a vegan, vegetarian or flexitarian diet, and those cutting out certain food groups for health and lifestyle reasons.”​

As Brits’ tastes get more adventurous, demand grows for new flavour combinations and unusual dishes. Just because they might be cutting certain ingredients out of their diets doesn’t mean they want to sacrifice the flavours that go along with them.

“There’s no need for free-from offerings to be boring or difficult as long as you have good quality ingredients and look to international foods for inspiration,”​ Alonzo continued. “Perceptions towards plant-based foods are changing at pace and manufacturers should embrace this and get creative with the free-from foods they supply to customers. ​

“We’ve seen bakeries, retailers, brands and foodservice outlets launch vegan versions of existing products, from sausage rolls, pasties and pies, croissants, and pains au chocolat, and this is certainly a trend to watch as more products launch into the marketplace.​

Vegan ‘junk food’

Vegan casual dining and ‘junk food’ in particular – such as pizzas, burgers, kebabs, grilled cheese and fried foods – is becoming increasingly mainstream and widely in demand.  

Meat-free foods such as cauliflower steak, halloumi, seitan, sausages and plant-based burgers are popular among British consumers too and it is key to trial and test products to ensure they are hitting all the key notes in terms of flavour, texture, aroma, visual appeal and overall satisfaction.

“The food industry as a whole is under pressure to bring high quality, differentiated, plant-based products to market to offer consumers the foods they would normally eat, but in a free-from format,”​ Alonzo added. “We have seen production of these foods increase in quality and popularity, with many consumers choosing to eat plant-based foods and meat alternatives as part of a healthy lifestyle, and not because of allergies or intolerances.​

“We have received a surge in requests for free-from bouillons and stocks – these are versatile and can be used across a number of dishes such as soups and sauces, stews, curries and savoury pie fillings. The blends are all dry mixes, making them highly versatile for use on vegetable, free-from and plant-based foods, and they are available in vegan, non-allergen, and organic formats.”​

EHL aren’t the only ones that have identified a growing trend of consumers opting to reduce various allergens from their diets. Tash Jones, commercial director at crisp maker Fairfields Farm, noted that while medical dietary restrictions were on the rise, there have been an increasing number of consumers who are opting to reduce various allergens from their food without a diagnosis.

“In particular, milk and gluten are being excluded from diets by consumers who have not been tested for an intolerance or allergy but have chosen to reduce their presence in food or have detected for themselves an intolerance,”​ she explained. “Our own 2023 research showed that 6.3% of the UK adult population pursued a gluten-free diet, with Coeliac UK estimating that this could be as high as 10%.”​

Price premium

“As a wider cohort, there is also an increasing unrest that gluten and milk-free options seem to come with a price premium. That is something we are keen to tackle, and although we are a high-quality snack, Fairfields Farm can go toe to toe on pricing with larger crisp manufacturers as a result of our own integrated supply chain.”​

Allergens are kept at a minimum at Fairfields’ site – milk is the only controlled allergen that is used in the factory. After a production run that contains milk, the manufacturer performs a full clean down of the parts of the equipment that touch seasoned product, before swabbing and testing for the presence of milk.

Potatoes themselves are by their nature a free-from product, making it much simpler for Fairfields to control allergens that could make their way into its crisps.

“The second biggest ingredient, making up anywhere from 25-30% of the final product, is the oil they are cooked in,”​ Jones added. “We source this from a reputable company which tests for allergens before the rapeseed oil is sent to us. So far, so good in terms of allergen exclusion. The real challenge comes in that final 5-10%, which is the seasoning.”​

While it’s simple enough to exclude any ingredients that contain the 14 major allergens, the challenge comes when trying to create traditional flavours which often contain milk (such as in cheese and onion) and gluten (present in vinegary seasonings).

This has led to some out of the box thinking for the manufacturer as it's had to devise new ways to meet demand for staple crisp flavours. In the case of its cheese and onion snacks, it managed to develop a flavour that ‘beats the real thing in taste tests’ and has the added benefit of being vegan as well.

“By working with talented and fastidious suppliers who can demonstrate full traceability to us, including certificates of analysis, we can produce our crisps in confidence,”​ said Jones. “We also routinely do our own testing to ensure full conformity across the range.”​

Weighing up your options

As already explained by Jones, the raw materials for free-from products often carry a price premium that can see costs quickly mount for a manufacturer.

With ingredients such as rice flour – a key component to many gluten-free baked goods – being at the mercy of sudden shifts in price due to socio-economic reasons, manufacturers need to keep on their toes and make sure they waste as little product as possible in the factory.

As Fortress Technology Europe applications engineer Daniel Shail explained: “With a growing demand for gluten-free dietary preferences, the cost of rice flour could see a major increase. Affected by agricultural harvests, which fluctuate depending on seasonal and climate conditions, global shortages can lead to even greater price volatility for bakery products. Consequently, gluten-free products could cost double that of their conventional baked good counterparts.​

“Maintaining batch-to-batch consistency in free-from and dietary products also requires formulation conformity. The average free-from bread recipe often comprises 20 or more ingredients. Combined with higher prices for specialty gluten-free flour ingredients and starches, this places even greater emphasis on tightly controlling waste and giving away good product.”​

Shail offers a simple solution to this problem – inline checkweighing. When incorporated into free-from lines, manufacturers can identify individual pieces that are off target weight to be removed and reworked, as well as provide corrective feedback to the dough divider.

In turn, this can mitigate costly giveaway and target operational inefficiencies.