Mane launches Costa Rica-inspired tropical flavors for F&B at SupplySide Global 2026

Mane has launched Taste of the Tropics, a natural flavor collection that brings Costa Rica-inspired fruit profiles to food and beverage formulations. Unveiled at SupplySide Global 2026 in Las Vegas, US (Oct 28–30), the range spans 11 fruits and is available in liquid and spray-dried formats for the US and Canadian markets. 

The collection draws on visits by Mane’s flavorists and consumer insights experts to Costa Rica, where firsthand tasting helped shape profiles intended to reflect the character of individual fruits. For manufacturers, it offers options for new products and reformulations across beverages, bakery, confectionery, dairy, snacks, and savory applications. 

Familiar profiles, including banana, coconut, mango, and pineapple, sit alongside guava, lulo, papaya, passionfruit, star apple, tamarind, and tree tomato. The range gives developers scope to explore tropical flavors and unexpected combinations, from fruit-led drinks to sweet-sour sauces.

Familiarity to branch out

Mane’s September 2026 consumer study found tropical fruits were perceived as the most premium of the six fruit families tested, ahead of berry, citrus, melon, orchard, and stone fruit.

More than half of respondents placed tropical fruits among their top two categories for premium appeal. More than twice as many selected tropical fruits as the most premium group compared with berries.

The research also suggests familiarity can help introduce consumers to less recognizable fruits. Nearly half preferred combining an unfamiliar fruit with a familiar one, while others were willing to try unfamiliar flavors on their own. Authenticity was an important consideration when exploring fruit flavors from other countries.

For formulators, pairing familiar and less familiar fruit profiles offers a route to experimentation without asking consumers to make an entirely unfamiliar choice.

“Authenticity is increasingly important as consumers seek flavor experiences that more closely reflect the character of the fruit itself,” says Amy Bennett, director of Sweet Flavor Creation for Mane’s North American Flavor Division.

Mane’s new range gives developers scope to explore tropical flavors in fruit-led drinks and sweet-sour sauces.“Mane’s new Taste of the Tropics flavor collection gives formulators the flexibility to explore distinctive fruit profiles, informed by our firsthand tasting and evaluation of authentic fruits in Costa Rica. That direct experience helped us understand each fruit’s nuances and translate them into differentiated, true-to-fruit sensory experiences.”

From functional gummies to savory snacks

Mane is demonstrating the collection through five prototypes at SupplySide Global 2026.

Sunshine Focus Bites combine passionfruit and papaya flavors in functional gummies containing caffeine, L-theanine, vitamins B6 and B12, and Mane Kancor Bacopa extract. The concept is positioned around energy and focus.

In beverages, Costa Rican Sunrise blends papaya, guava, and mango with juice and fiber in a low-calorie, naturally colored soda.

Tropical Twist Energy Drink takes a banana-pineapple, piña colada-inspired direction. The formulation contains 5 g of sugar and Reb M stevia sweetener, alongside 150 mG of caffeine from green tea, L-theanine, magnesium, and B vitamins.

The savory concepts include pineapple and onion chutney topped with sweet tamarind sauce, and a Costa Rican Style Sauce Kettle Chip. The chip uses Mane’s Powerdry PR lime flavor, with paprika and annatto extracts providing color, to deliver a tangy-sweet profile inspired by a Costa Rican condiment.

In other coverage of this year’s event, Food Ingredients First has explored how suppliers are tackling taste and stability in functional F&B and bringing protein into everyday products.

Meanwhile, ADM is bringing targeted nutrition into familiar food formats at the event, with biotic slushies, digestive support muffins, and a GLP-1 companion protein bar.

Taking fruit beyond the known

Many flavors in the collection feature Antillone, a natural molecule developed through Mane’s proprietary biotechnology process. According to the company, it delivers pineapple and tropical fruit notes with a crisp, juicy character.

Beyond the prototypes, Mane is targeting applications including dressings, marinades, rubs, sauces, sports drinks, and other functional beverages. The liquid and spray-dried options give developers different formats for taking the fruit profiles into wet and dry products.