Olam Food Ingredients ramps up traceability of cascara iced tea

27 Nov 2020 --- Olam Food Ingredients (OFI) is leveraging its AtSource platform to ensure the sustainable cultivation of ingredients for its antioxidant-rich cascara (coffee cherry) iced tea and deZaan D11MG, a Ghana single-origin cocoa powder. Olam’s AtSource platform is a finalist in the sustainability category at this year’s ongoing Fi Europe Innovation Awards, at the Fi Europe Connect event.

With a focus on creative ingredients, other showcased products include GardenFrost, Olam Spices’ proprietary purée line, applicable across multiple product applications and according to the company are easy to farm, and boast a clean label.”

According to Kamesh Ellajosyula, global head of innovation at OFI, ingredient lines such as GardenFrost, emphasise how the company can make formulating products easier for its customers. “Consumers are concerned about additives, but with this range, it only has vegetable glycerin and sea salt as additives, nothing else,” he maintains.

Valorized agricultural waste
In terms of sustainability, OFI has launched several programs over the years, including engaging with farmer communities. 

OFI at the Fi Europe Connect virtual event.“We work directly with our farmers, trying to make a difference in those environments and new investments. We are trying to try and impact the quality of the material that is produced in response,” Ellajosyula tells FoodIngredientsFirst.

“In the example of cascara, we’re trying to generate more value from what comes out of that particular process. We’re trying to valorize and convert agricultural waste into wealth,” he adds.

“There’s so much material that's produced in the farm and very little of that actually ends up on a customer’s plate.”

“If you consider something like a coffee food coffee cherry. Cascara is an output of that, it's a beverage that is created from coffee, which is full of antioxidants. So we’re super excited about exhibiting this at Fi Europe Connect,” explains Ellajosyula.

AtSource recognized among eco-centric F&B initiatives
The AtSource platform provides food brands and manufacturers with visibility into their supply chains through more than 100 sustainability metrics, as well as action plans to influence these elements for the better.

“Even in a virtual format, our business offerings have never been integrated in a more immersive, compelling way to provide a full flavour of what we can offer and co-create with customers to meet specific tastes and requirements,” says Briony Mathieson, chief marketing officer at OFI.

Traceability, transparency, storytelling and more were discussed during the FoodIngredientsFirst-hosted webinar “Hardwire your supply chain sustainability ambitions with AtSource by Olam,” which also delves into how consumer interest in traceable food ingredients has never been as big as they are today.

Innova Market Insights recently pegged “Transparency Triumphs” as its Top Trend for 2021.

By Benjamin Ferrer, with additional reporting from Elizabeth Green