Beyond the coffeehouse: FrieslandCampina Kievit taps into premium trends

Coffee is trending among Millennial and Generation Z consumers and with the experiential associations of coffee we are seeing their application as ingredients more often and made in ways that are more convenient to consume and moving from the coffeehouse to the home. The coffee sector appears to be undergoing somewhat of a renaissance and the focus seems to be on upscaling premium coffee experiences or remaking them in the comfort of consumer homes.

Innova Market Insights tipped Beyond the Coffeehouse as the #5 trend for this year, and FrieslandCampina Kievit sees this to be true.

 

Launched late last year, the Vana-Cappa range offers high milk foam from the convenience of your own home. In particular, the Vana-Cappa 25W promises unparalleled foam height with reasonable high density fitting a customarily sized sachet.

FoodIngredientsFirst spoke with Floortje Bijleveld, FrieslandCampina Kievit’s Product Group Manager EMEA, who discussed the development of the range and the trend towards easily-available and premium coffee.

“We have been developing this range for a long time, and we have just launched a unique foaming layer in addition to the range, which we are positioning as a solution for a more premium cappuccino experience using an instant coffee making format.”

Initially, the range took three years to develop and Bijleveld says this was driven by the trend for premiumization. The coffee art culture has led consumers to become familiar with coffee specialties. Consumers demand high-quality cappuccino with a premium foam layer and a great taste; they also want an instant solution close to a fresh cappuccino without the hassle of cleaning a machine.

“We saw a trend for more premium solutions needed at home but still with a convenience factor, so we created the foamers that have a high foam feeling which is different to anything that is on the market, with this specific creamy mouthfeel and taste,” she explains.

“The high foam experience is what we were seeing demand for from our customers,” adds Bijleveld.

“It’s really easy to recreate this experience at home,” she says. “You pour it into a cup and then the foam will appear. It is made with real dairy, coconut oil and dairy solids in it.”

The Vana-Cappa 40V can be seen as a very versatile foaming creamer with a premium taste. Its high-fat level and a matrix based only on skimmed milk powder and sweet whey powder ensure it is versatile in use: from a premium cappuccino or indulgent hot chocolate to an affordable coffee with milk.

Vana-Cappa 26W and 23W are the extra-texture foamers in the portfolio. With the four Vana-Cappas combined, FrieslandCampina Kievit launches a portfolio of excellent foaming creamers that provides an attractive foam layer and a perfectly balanced coffee and milk taste for a delightfully smooth mouthfeel.

To meet increasing consumer awareness of what’s on the label and demand for responsibly sourced ingredients, the new Vana-Cappa 25W and 40V are dairy enriched. Moreover, all four products in the range are free from hydrogenated vegetable oil (non-HVO) and are low in sugar.

According to Bijleveld, the response to the range has been positive. “A lot of our customers enjoy the real dairy feel, high foam and creamy feel. There is still a high demand for dairy.” Consumers enjoy the indulgence of a coffee shop-style treat with the convenience and premium experience of coffee made at home.

“We see the premium flavors trend for single serve coffee growing, such as latte macchiato, cappuccino, for example.  From a premium perspective, not everyone can afford a machine in the home, so it’s very convenient and more premium than an instant coffee mix,” she explains.

These trends are very popular in both Borth America and Europe, according to FrieslandCampina Kievit. “We see cappuccino as a favorite, banana-chino, for children and Irish coffee, which is popular in Eastern Europe. I do see a lot of new flavors which consumers see outside of the home, thus becoming an inspiration for these trends,” Bijleveld notes. “We aren’t responsible for creating flavors, but we have to make sure that our products can be combined with different flavors.”

“The US is ahead of these trends, but I do think that premium experiences and coffeehouse evolution will spread across the world and consumers are quickly catching on to enjoying these premium solutions at home, so as a company we must keep up with these trends.”

The continuation of discussions around sustainability and palm oil is still a focal point for FrieslandCampina Kievit.

“While Vana-Cappa does not contain palm oil, some of our products do, like a few products from our Vana-Blanca portfolio. Consumers often use both a creamer and a foamer in a product they’re making at home. Our aim then is to be as sustainable as possible, making sure the palm oil we use is traceable and sourced sustainably,” she states.

“We are looking at making sure that the ingredients we use are fully traceable, and even more sustainable,” Bijleveld continues. “It is what our customers request and it’s hard to replace, we are looking into alternatives, but so far the demand for palm oil is not diminished.”

By Elizabeth Green

 

Visit www.kievit.com for more information.