Gabriel Bean, a Manchester undergraduate has recently developed ‘Grounded’ from Grounded Drinks, a fruit water to bridge the gap between refreshing water and sugar-loaded juices. packaged in 330ml PET bottles in three flavours: Cucumber&Mint, Lemon&Ginger, Lime&Lemongrass.
What was the thinking behind the launch – what inspired it?
I wanted to bridge the gap between refreshing water and sugar-loaded juices. It frustrated me that as a consumer, there’s a lot of smoke screening with drinks. I wanted to launch a product that was completely pure and natural, as well as transparent about its ingredients and production methods, hence the name ‘Grounded.’ A lot of marketing is still misleading; There’s a very fine line between a Technicality (what one can legally say on a packet) and a reality (what it really does).
Even so called healthy juices can have eye-watering sugar contents, so with this range I wanted to create an all-round, honest drink which didn’t have any potholes.
This has an ultra-low sugar count (average of 3.3g per 100ml; while typical fruit juice and smoothies are 9g+ per 100ml). It also has an ultra-low calorie count (average 14 per 100ml; where typical fruit juice & smoothies are 35+ kcal per 100ml)
Of course it is 100% natural and made from only raw ingredients; with no preservatives, additives or flavourings.
“Sugar is already established as a major problem in the food & drinks industry, so I believe the arrival of Grounded comes at an ideal time. Not only that, but consumers are increasingly aware of ingredients and claims, and they now demand more transparency.”
What does cold pressing involve?
Cold-pressing is the best way of getting juice out of fresh ingredients. It involves literally pressing fresh fruits and roots to squeeze the juices out. It gives the drinks a 30 day shelf life. The fundamental rule with cold-pressing is that the fresh ingredients don’t see a temperature of more than 7*c in their life. While it seems purist, we get a lot more juice and a richer flavour that way, so there is a very plausible argument for cold-pressing beyond its higher nutrition yield.
What are the challenges with HPP?
The supply chain isn’t a problem. As ever, the challenge lies in the demand chain and I’m meeting that challenge by using every channel at my disposal; Online sales, direct to retail sales, the wholesaler channel and on top of that, a site at the Portobello Market.
High Pressure Pasteurisation (HPP) is fundamental to this product and it’s definitely a point of difference to a lot other drinks. I chose to use HPP mainly for the way it preserves a real, fresh-pressed taste for beyond a month. Alternative methods of preserving (from heating to adding bucket-loads of preservatives) wouldn’t sit with this products ethos.
HPP deactivates bacteria but doesn’t damage enzymes, leading to a live product, which gives us this real fresh flavour, again, meaning we don’t need to add any flavourings or preservatives.
Chilled is notoriously hard to deal with. The product needs constant careful handling, and you’re always up against the clock. I sometimes sit and fantasise about dealing with ambient products… but as my dad always says, a principle isn’t a principle until it costs you money (or in my case time. Lots of it.)
Why choose these flavours – what did you reject?
I chose ingredients that had strong flavours, but with low sugar contents to keep our drink naturally low in sugar. Lemon, lime, ginger, mint, cucumber and lemon grass are all strong flavours, and more than anything, incredibly refreshing. I use a lot of ginger and citrus at home, so it seemed natural to start with flavours that I understood and enjoyed. They also have this added benefit of being high in flavour, and low in sugar.
There were a few flavours such as strawberry and mint which were actually really good, but they didn’t quite sit with the launch range. There’s a huge scope for expanding this range in the near future.
In which aisle and which channels will it sell?
It’s currently being sold into premium retailers (such as Harvey Nichols London), gyms and health-food stores. I’ve aspirations to see this in the on the go market, whether that’s boutique cafés or high-street outlets. They’re the ultimate refreshment.
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