Aug 25 2010 --- Ocean Spray has expanded its fruit ingredient portfolio with the launch of a new fruit sweetened dried cranberry. The new sweetened dried cranberry (SDC) offers the same processing advantages as Ocean Spray’s flagship soft and moist SDC, while removing the need to call out sugar as an ingredient.

Ocean Spray’s sweetened dried fruits bring attractive points of colour, great taste and a healthy profile to finished products such as cereals, trail mix and baked goods. Highly process tolerant and easy to incorporate into the production process, the cranberry represents a new way to innovate in mature product categories.

Fruit Sweetened Dried Cranberries are produced from superior grade cranberries. The SDCs are dried to a specific moisture specification, depending on the characteristics desired. Made from real fruit, the ingredient lends fruit appeal while delivering the whole-body health benefits associated with the cranberry.

Marion Burton, marketing manager, Ocean Spray, comments: “This latest addition to our extensive ingredient portfolio is based on customer demand for ingredients with all fruit appeal.”

Ocean Spray ITG is part of Ocean Spray. In Europe, combined sales of branded products and ITG ingredients have topped $100 million. Ocean Spray ITG offers an extensive portfolio of fruit ingredients including sweetened dried cranberries, BerryFusions Fruits, cranberry powders and purée.