FiE 2024 live: Vitalfood showcases dairy, ice cream and bakery solutions while “protein croissant” shines

Italy-based Vitalfood by Italcanditi, which supplies fruit and water-based preparations, is showcasing its solutions for bakery, fine pastry, dairy and ice cream segments at the ongoing trade show FiE in Frankfurt, Germany (November 19-21). The team aims to expand its pan-European presence with the move.

The company is focusing on three innovations at the event — the Creams Collection, the Gelato Solutions and the Yogurt Collection 2024/25. It has also formulated a protein croissant to tap consumers’ increasing high protein demands.

Food Ingredients First catches up with Cristiana Ballarini, category director, Fruit and Ice Cream at Vitalfood, to unlock how these innovations fulfill consumers’ dynamic demands.

“We are here to showcase our solutions for three main industries — dairy, ice cream and bakery. It’s the first time we are here because we have recently acquired the Goes plant in the Netherlands,” she tells us live from the showfloor.

Luxembourg-based CSM Ingredients previously owned the Goes facility and its natural ingredient brand HiFood is presenting alongside Vitalfood at the show. 

“CSM Ingredients, HiFood and Vitalfood are presenting solutions that can be combined to offer everything from functional ingredients to ingredients for bakery, creams and fillings that we are producing as a 360-degree concept,” adds Ballarini.

Ingredient-tech platform

CSM Ingredients, HiFood, Comprital, Rubicone and Vitalfood are part of an “Ingredient-Tech Platform” that aims to support the evolution of the food ecosystem, improving the well-being of society and planet health.

Vitalfoods’s Gelato Solutions range aims to improve ice cream quality for enhanced sensory experiences (Image credit: Vitalfood).“Our CSM colleagues produce a wide range of ingredients for bakery, such as fats, oils, bread ingredients and pastry ingredients, filling and so on. Vitalfood deals with fruit fillings, water-based fillings and candied and semi-candied fruit,” Ballarini tells us.

“Comprital and Rubicone are two Italian companies which are actively producing and selling ingredients for ice creams.”

Italy-based Comprital produces and distributes semi-finished products for ice cream and pastry shops, while Rubicone formulates gelato ingredients.

Tapping high protein demands

Vitalfood’s Creams Collection includes a range of high-quality, versatile water-based creams in 12 flavors, targeting frozen croissant manufacturers. It includes four categories — vegan, protein-enriched, with semi-candied fruit inclusions and with gourmet inclusions. The formulations target “stability and durability,” notes the company.

The Italian firm is showcasing its protein croissant as a “hero product” at FiE, Ballarini shares. 

The product incorporates its chocolate protein cream and combines HiFood’s Proteios plant-based proteins, CSM Ingredients’ protein mixes for baked goods and Vitalfood’s chocolate protein cream all in one concept.

“High-protein is a huge trend and we believe it’s there to stay. The protein croissant combines the capabilities of the three players of the Ingredient-Tech Platform.”

Vitalfood’s fruit and water-based ingredients can be used in fine pastries, ice cream and baked products (Image credit: Vitalfood).While the texturized vegetable protein goes inside the croissant, the high-protein filling from Vitalfood is placed on the top. 

“On the top of the croissant we use magic glaze, a vegan solution to make the croissant shine, along with a fat reduction solution. So it’s a comprehensive concept that includes vegan high protein fat reducers,” she notes.

Combining tradition with innovation

The company is also showcasing its innovative Gelato Solutions, which enhance ice cream quality while combining tradition with innovation and elevate consumers’ sensory experiences. 

The range includes fruit-based preparations, made with quality fruit, whole or in pieces, warm flavor creams, smooth or with inclusions, in different variants, such as low-sugar, high-protein or vegan options. 

Additionally, the company says it leverages a “slow, low-temperature candying process” to formulate semi-candied fruit inclusions to preserve the color, flavor and texture of fresh fruit when frozen.

Supporting sustainability

Vitalfoods’s classic and plant-based yogurt Taste Collection 2024/25 explores the theme of Time based on research conducted in synergy with Strategy Innovation, a spin-out of Ca’ Foscari University of Venice.

“Each of the 12 flavors represents a different nuance of the concept ‘to take a pause,’ through combinations of traditional flavors with more unusual ingredients such as popcorn, Sichuan pepper or shiro miso,” notes the company.

In future, Vitalfood aims to explore more yogurt innovations (Image credit: Vitalfood).Through this range, Vitalfood aims to encourage a more conscious and responsible approach to consumption and support slower and more sustainable lifestyles.

The company is also exhibiting Fruffi, its range of fillings featuring “up to 90% fruit content.” The fillings contain real fruit pieces and can be used for decorating, garnishing, filling and coating a variety of classic and modern cakes, mousses and fruit ice creams. 

Looking ahead

As consumer preferences evolve, Ballarini says Vitalfoods tries to follow as well as anticipate the market trends.

“We answer to the needs of our customers, but also proactively work in that direction, particularly with our yogurt taste collection. Even though we are presenting the current flavor collection, we are already thinking about what could be next.”

“We have a lot of ideas and will look into the new era for our yogurt collection,” she concludes.

With live reporting from Joshua Poole at FiE 2024 in Frankfurt, Germany