Andrew Christophers – director of brand creation company Brand Genetics – speaks out on four emerging movements observed in the dairy industry.
‘The essence of creativity is combinatory play’ – at least according to Albert Einstein – and this is more true than ever today. With global travel and increased technology speeding up our ever-changing world, mature categories are looking to the edges to find genuine innovation. And the dairy category is no exception. Once the domain of mainstream mass-market products, we are beginning to see new influences coming into dairy, to create new growth and value opportunities. Four movements in particular have caught our attention:
In 2013 we saw savoury ice creams trending over the hot summer, and even Magnum got in on the act, with its pop-up stores offering the addition of rose petals or sea salt. This summer, it looks as if vegetables are set to continue their resurgence, with the ubiquitous kale now becoming an ice lolly. Green Wave Pops’ intriguing range blends whole fruit and greens to create intriguing flavours such as the Kalelicious Powerhouse and the Coconut Greena Colada. Meanwhile, savoury yogurts are breaking new ground, again with vegetable ‘heroes’ replacing high-sugar fruit ‘villains’. Blue Hill’s tempting New York yogurts use naturally sweet vegetables, such as carrot, tomato, parsnip and beetroot.
The merging of food and drink brands is part of an industry trend towards combination foods, like the yogurt drinks popular in Europe, and PepsiCo’s fruit, dairy and grain smoothie, Naked. PepsiCo’s CEO Indra Nooyi talks about “the emerging opportunity to ‘snackify’ beverages and ‘drinkify’ snacks”. Meanwhile other more niche players are also bringing new snack values into dairy. Little Smoothies describes itself as ‘a creamy dreamy tasty dairy bite’: it’s a countline bar made of soft and creamy ‘quark’ cheese, so is a naturally low fat dairy product. And Tevye from Russia is another indulgent dairy snack: the name ‘Sirok Molochnik’ translates roughly as ‘Little Cheese’ and ‘Rural Milkman’, and the product is a sweet soft cheese in a bar that’s covered in chocolate, and is kept in the fridge.
Carbonated milk beverages look set to build on their loyal following in Asia and Africa to take a foothold in the West. It has taken time for the unusual concept of ‘fizzy milk’ or ‘sparkling dairy’ to catch on. Coca-Cola tried with Vio, initially launched as a vibrancy drink, and later described as tasting ‘like a birthday party for a polar bear.’ Now Alcon Group in Russia has recently launched Mio, an attractive looking range of carbonated fruit milkshakes. Targeting teenagers and young adults, the drinks come in colourful and eye-catching aluminium cans. And what about the dairy to alcohol crossover? The tempting Frozen Pints brand from Georgia US describes itself as ‘craft brewed ice cream’, and at 2% ABV you can indulge in flavours such as Malted Milk Chocolate Stout, Vanilla Bock or Pumpkin Ale. It sounds like going on a pub crawl with Ben & Jerry!
And it seems to be the ice cream makers that continue to push dairy flavour boundaries, whether via nostalgic, indulgent or sheer cutting edge inspiration. Black Dog Gelato, a boutique ice cream maker in Chicago, has its roots in the city’s culinary industry, inspiring seriously indulgent fusion flavours such as Goat’s Cheese Cashew Caramel, White Chocolate Banana Curry and Maple Cayenne Bacon. Closer to home, UK food inventor Charlie Harry Francis has set up ‘Lick Me I’m Delicious’, making mould-breaking ice cream creations, including Horseradish & Roast Beef and Gin & Tonic sorbet. But his latest venture is Glow in the Dark ice cream, which harnesses the luminescence of jellyfish protein, reacting with the tongue that licks it. Next up will be Invisibile Ice Cream – so any scientists or magicians should get in touch! Surely Einstein would have been first in the queue?
So in summary, start looking beyond the confines of your immediate category to find new ideas and stimulate different thinking. Define your innovation strategy first, but then seek cross-category stimulus and inspiration. You’ll be amazed where it might just take you!
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2024