Beverage fortification:Reducing time to market

GONE are the days when all a beverage had to do was quench one’s thirst and taste good. As health creeps into the picture, more people are striving to become healthier through their everyday diet. This is reflected in their purchase decisions as well. A growing number of individuals are turning to better-for-you foods, making the functional/fortified foods market one of the most successful and fastest-growing sectors in the food industry in recent years.

Much to the delight of healthy-minded consumers, key players in the food and beverage industry are quick to capitalise on this promising trend.

“In recent years, the beverage industry has been swept away by the increasingly pressing need to provide healthier options. However, understanding the benefits of functional ingredients is hardly sufficient – we need to pursue superior ingredients that adequately perform the functions desired by consumers,” says Wouter Moormann, market unit manager (food division) at Purac Asia Pacific, a leading ingredients company.

In essence, the ultimate fortified beverage has to address the needs and desires of the consumers, and aid them in reaching their goals. In order to flourish in this segment, beverage manufacturers have to formulate products that promise consumers extra value by incorporating healthy or functional ingredientsfor the delivery of multiple benefits.

Take for instance consumers who aim to lose weight. Zero-calorie beverages with novel flavours used to be enough for them, but these are quickly losing allure. In order to sustain the consumers’ interest, the beverage has to contain ingredients that curb hunger, burn body fat and facilitate weight loss. Meeting such soaring expectations can be a tall order.

Formulation hurdles

Whilst there is a growing list of active ingredients that can potentially be used in functional foods, manufacturers also face formulation hurdles that concern appropriate ingredient combinations. As some ingredients can be sensitive or highly reactive, incorporating each ingredient into a food or beverage application is far more complex than it seems.

Common ingredients currently being used in functional foods include vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, probiotic bacteria, phytochemicals, peptides and poly-unsaturated lipids, specifically omega-3. Enriching foods and beverages with nutrients and bio-active agentsMen's Shorts - Shop Men's Shorts Online