Getting Across The Message Of Superfood Appeal...
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Superfood Superstar When Delia Smith showed us all how to prepare a tropical fruit salad in her How To Cook TV series back in 2000, demand for passion fruit, papaya, lychees and pineapple reached a phenomenal peak, leaving supermarkets struggling to secure sufficient volumes worldwide. And the Delia Effect' was echoed this season when Jamie Oliver promoted the virtues of home grown asparagus. Now Harvested from deep in the Brazilian rainforests acai (pronounced aa-sigh-ee), tastes like a vibrant blend of berries and chocolate. And according to UK importer Sublime Foods, which has recently started to bring acai into the UK, studies have shown that this ancient fruit is one of the most nutritious and powerful foods in the world. It is packed with essential antioxidants, amino acids and essential fatty acids in proportions not recorded in any other natural food. It also has powerful
eco-credentials. Sublime Foods director Ronan O'Meara says: Not
only is the acai berry super-nutritious but it offers a sustainable
economy for
The berry is already
causing a storm in juice and smoothie bars in the At this stage its application into other processed foods is yet to be explored but it presents an exciting opportunity to food producers. Currently, the pulp is supplied frozen in individual pouches suitable for a single serving in a juice drink. However, Sublime Foods will soon be able to offer a 2.5kg tub to offer suppliers a more economic way of bulk buying. Add A Little Health And the acai berry
is not the superfood that could soon be edging into the British
market. There are several other ingredients from around the globe
whose potential health benefits have been widely documented and
are now becoming more mainstream in culinary repertoires in the
In traditional folk medicine, ginger and galangal have been synonymous with relieving stomach upsets and nausea and in Western society they have been seen as herbal remedy for sea sickness. Similarly, lemongrass has been used in Eastern cultures for centuries to relieve the symptoms of cold, flu and indigestion. This is why it can be found as an infusion an alternative to more conventional black tea products.
The availability of such ingredients to small food producers could open new avenues for product development, with the opportunity to bathe in the glow of positive reports surrounding these foods. What is more, specialist raw material suppliers are processing these raw materials in manufacturing-friendly formats to help ease their incorporation into a wide number of further processed foods. For example, Beacon
Foods, based in the Brecon Beacons, processes several ingredients
typical of South East Asian cuisine, including lemongrass, galangal,
chillies and kaffir lime leaves. They are available in various formats
sliced, diced, pureed, etc depending on customers' requirements.
Another Welsh supplier, Sky Market, specialises in procuring unprocessed
authentic fresh ingredients directly from Regardless of their potential health benefits, the distinct, aromatic flavours inherent in these superfoods' suggests that they could have wide applications both in sweet and savoury food products, from fresh dressings, marinades and yoghurt/cream based desserts to cooked foods such as chutneys, curries and sauces. And the use of natural, fresh, authentic ingredients also means artisan producers can avoid synthetic flavours and flavour enhancers and offer a more natural and superior alternative to their quality conscious consumers. Many of the benefits of using superfood' ingredients are clear, and their mere presence on ingredient lists, or in the name of your product, will tell the consumer everything they need to know. But how easy is it to actively promote their super-nutritional properties or associated health benefits once incorporated intoa further processed food? Current food legislation can indeed be a minefield. It is extremely ambiguous and certainly not specific. But there arre several routes that manufacturers can follow to get some guidance. Firstly although possibly the least viable option for smaller companies is the Joint Health Claims Committee (JHCI). Set up in December 2000, the HCI is an impartial body of experts that considers the validity of specific health claims on behalf of individual food companies. The JHCI advises that food manufacturers should seek professional guidance from a body such as theirs when thinking about making a health or nutritional claim about a given food ingredient. It advises that currently it is only possible to make a direct nutritional health claim stating that a food can directly enhance a specific physiological condition if robust scientific evidence can support this claim since it could potentially mislead a consumer'. The JHCI charges for its service, which may prove to be prohibitive to producers on a tight budget. The validation process seems time consuming and with no guarantees that the health claim would ultimately be given the go-ahead it may not be the preferred route. The seemingly bureaucratic approach puts the small independent food producer at a distinct disadvantage against larger manufacturers. So what other options are there? The Food Standards Agency advises that, so long as a statement is not falsely describing a food or misleading a consumer (in line with the Food Safety Act 1990), it would be acceptable in most cases to make a straightforward factual claim, provided this can be backed up by evidence, such as nutritional analysis of the product, if required. This is a simpler and more realistic way for small food businesses to comply with the current legislation. Taking acai berries as an example, it would be acceptable to state that these fruits are rich in antioxidants in the body', with supporting nutritional data. However it would not be possible to claim that acai berries can help prevent cancer'. While the national food authorities seem to offer only generic or non-specific advice in the main, the next step for a food producer would be to clarify the use of its proposed claim or on-pack description with its local trading standards officer. Nottingham TSO Jane Bailey supports this view. She points out there is a wealth of in-house experience within Trading Standards both at regional and national level, which means TSOs can often quickly clear up any ambiguity about the legality of a specific food claim. Moreover, TSOs welcome the chance to work pro-actively alongside food companies to clarify their queries quickly and efficiently. The need for up-to-date and clearer legislation on nutritional and health claims has led to the development of a new Europe-wide regulation, which is currently beig negotiated at European Union level. Its introduction will clarify the position on what a food business can and cannot state with relation to food claims. However, its introduction is likely to be another 18 months away. Meanwhile, there is a wealth of opportunities for anufacturers to incorporate superfood ingredients into their product portfolio, even without the use of formal health-claim on-pack and help improve the state to the nation's diet!
*********************************************** Angela
Mitton is creative product developer for Beetroot and Orange, which
specialises in new product development support to the food industry. For
more information contact Angela Mitton: Tel: 0870 609 2819 Email:
info@beetrootandorange.co.uk
Website: www.beetrootandorange.co.uk This
article first appeared in Artisan magazine |
