Dispatches from FiE, Paris
Refreshment and nutrition drive demand for vegetable ingredients
This content item was originally published on www.beveragedaily.com, a William Reed online publication.
Vegetables that offer refreshment – such as cucumber and rhubarb – are becoming more popular, says Johan Cerstiaens, sales director at fruit and vegetable ingredients supplier SVZ.
Naturex, a company specializing in natural ingredients, demonstrates how cucumber can be used in a post-workout drink concept. Baptiste Demur, business manager, says the vegetable helps create a refreshing and hydrating drink.
Yannick Troalen, consultant at Mintel, sees consumers using vegetables as a way to improve their diet. He believes that vegetables which can deliver on nutrition will do particularly well in the marketplace, such as kale and beetroot.
Beverages are using vegetable ingredients to fight the sugar content in fruit juice, but demand is found in other categories as well. Dairy products – such as icecream and yogurt – are using vegetable ingredients, as are children’s cereals and snacks, says Troalen.
Cerstiaens, Demur, and Troalen were speaking from the show floor at Food Ingredients Europe last month.
