Gulfood 2023: Millet, honey, buckwheat and lentil ingredients drive healthy snacking

21 Feb 2023 --- Driving creativity and change, the 28th edition of Gulfood is uniting F&B players from across the globe, and FoodIngredientsFirst is on hand to explore the latest innovations. Healthy snacking and functional beverages shine at this year’s event while beverages that boast nutrition and convenience are also in the spotlight.

Speaking to us live from the show floor, Anoona Janardhan, sales and marketing manager at Eatopia, a company that produces Indian snacks made of nuts, seeds and other superfoods, highlights the UN’s International Year Of Millets. 

Millet goodness
“Our first innovation is a superfood puff made using jowar (sorghum), a millet.”

Eatopia presents its jowar puffs made from millet at Gulfood 2023.Jowar is globally known as the “new quinoa” for its gluten-free and whole-grain goodness.

“The puff is slow roasted, not fried or baked, and  is cooked at a temperature that doesn’t destroy the fats and then shaped into a puff. So it’s very healthy and is 80% jowar, which you can’t find in many other markets. This specific product is 70% less fat than fried products.”

The jowar is available in a cream and onion flavor, Janardhan explains. “Another variant of the slow roasting method that the company presents is an oat puff, 80% oat, which again is slow roasted.” 

The company is also presenting a mixed millet puff. According to Janardhan, India produces many millet ingredients and the country is “proudly focusing on millet this year,” which are touted for their superfood status.

Eatopia also exhibits a millet cookie. “If you look at health products, there are often misconceptions that they aren’t tasty, but that’s not true for these products.”

Honey as a key ingredient
At the stand, Eatopia also presented its Honey Jam, a product nominated for the Innovation Awards at Gulfood 2023. “So, this is the first in the market to replace refined sugar with honey. So, what we have is just berries and honey and nothing else. So it’s all pure – it contains no additives or flavorings.”

“The jam category is shrinking,” according to Janardhan, as many parents don’t want to expose their children to sugar-laden jams and spreads. She says this Honey Jam “solves this problem.”

In terms of challenges, replacing sugar with honey can be difficult. Janardhan says that having something natural is very rare, and in the jam space, products generally have many additives and flavorings added.”

Meanwhile, the company also brought energy snacks to Gulfood 2023. “Our Nut Pops are made of seeds, nuts and honey. They are all bound together with honey and can be consumed on the go or atSuper Seven Sprouts by Ghodawat Consumer. work,” she adds. 

Eatopia also presented its “Fruit Minis, which are 70-75% fruit. “We have three variants of these which are also very well received because of the sweet taste of honey as a key ingredient.” 

Sprouted bean snacks
One of the fastest-growing FMCG enterprises in India, Ghodawat Consumer (GCL), part of Sanjay Ghodawat Group (SGG), was also on hand at Gulfood to speak with FoodIngredientsFirst. Shevam Sood, senior manager, discusses the company’s latest snacking innovation.

“Our Super Seven Sprouts snack is a ready-to-eat snack made using sprouted beans. So there are seven kinds of lentils, which are sprouted and then dehydrated.”

“You put the dehydrated sprouts in a bowl, add boiling water, and it’s ready to eat in two to three minutes. We have reduced the typical amount of time for people to eat sprouted grains, and with this method, it’s as good as fresh,” he explains. 

The seven different lentils used are a mixture of staple Indian lentils, such as moong, bengal gram and black-eyed peas, and western pulses. 

GCL has also been shortlisted for Gulfood’s Innovation Awards.

Natures Own Factory presents buckwheat beverages and chocolate marketed for kids.“We are the second Indian company to be shortlisted in the entire award categories, so we are super excited about that and the fact that people have given us a platform to showcase our product,” he explains.

“In India, it’s typical to have something healthy like sprouted grains/lentils for breakfast and so we are putting these traditions across to the rest of the world,” he adds. 

“We are enhancing our presence in our own country because India is quite a big country, and there are many people with different tastes. So, we are trying to push it across the world as well, with Gulfood being a good platform for that.”

Functional drinks garner attention
GCL also brought its energy drink to Gulfood as part of its range of functional beverages.  

“Usually, we find that energy drinks are all the same, but we are trying to tap into consumers’ different tastes,” notes Sood. “We are using tastes that many consumers like, which makes us different.”

Also presenting is a company called Nature’s Own Factory, which specializes in buckwheat drinks. The drinks come in different varieties and flavors, such as apple and cinnamon, and buckwheat tea with mango. The company also has a buckwheat chocolate spread that comes in coconut and coffee flavors.

The brand has been shortlisted for the Gulfood Innovation Awards. Its buckwheat chocolate with coconut is a finalist in the category “Best packaging design.”

Meanwhile, the brand also exhibits buckwheat tea for children with a banana and strawberry flavor. Its buckwheat white chocolate is also marketed for children.

Vitamin shots spotlighted 
German company, Only 4 You (O4U) presented its vitamin shots for visitors to Gulfood. Only 4 You presented its vitamin shots which are triggered when the cap is twisted.

“The shots are unique,” according to the company’s business developer Jurgen Schmidt. 

“We use patented technology for this innovation. We fill the inside of the cap with vitamin ingredients and flavor, then we close it and put it in a bottle of water with citric acid, and you activate the vitamin shot. You turn it, click it, shake it, and consume. The vitamin shots are triggered when the cap is twisted.”

“There is no need for preservatives, e-numbers, or other additives because we are using only natural ingredients and we have more stability using powder ingredients,” he explains. 

“We deliver 50% of the daily vitamin dosage for consumers and have developed seven tastes that can offer detox and perform other functions.” 

Other varieties are touted for beauty, energy, anti-stress and immunity. 

By Elizabeth Green, with additional reporting live from Gulfood in Dubai, by Benjamin Ferrer

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