Cargill spotlights permissible indulgence and plant-based trends
16 Jan 2023 | Cargill
Two Cargill executives talk through the company’s latest solutions, including the launch of Cargill’s soluble fiber, based on wheat and corn fibers, produced in a recently opened factory in Poland. Cargill is targeting sugar reduction as well as fiber enhancement and how solutions can improve the NutriScore of products.
This is Gaynor Selby for Food ingredients first FIE 2022 in Paris.
I'm at the Cargill stand with Robin Mavis.
Hi Robin.
Gay.
Right, let's jump into the questions.
Robin, Cargill's got some interesting innovations here at the show.
Can you talk us through your latest sugar reduction and fiber enriching solution?
Yeah, so we're a few number of key products that we're launching here.
I think one of the most important is the Cargill soluble fiber, which is a new product that was introduced.
It's based either on wheat or corn fiber.
New factory that opened just a few weeks ago in in Poland which is producing this now, and we're really targeting the food the sugar reduction in sugar, but also fiber enrichment, Nutriscore enhancements, a lot of kind of angles where this is really relevant today, and it's kind of, yeah, it was.
Based on the technology done in partnership with the Carlsruhe Institute of Technology, patented microreactor technology, you know, very, very innovative technology, and it makes it possible to help achieve a minimum of 30% sugar reduction in a multitude of applications.
And actually here at the show we're showing it in several applications including an ice cream with reduced sugar and including a gummy that's really made significantly reduced in sugar content.
Right, when we talk about sugar reduction, it's often that 30% sugar reduction.
Is there any particular reason why we sort of hone in on that?
Yeah, as far as I'm aware, that's that's that's more related to what's possible in terms of reduced sugar's claim, but it's also in terms of a significant amount in order to be able to get into an improved nutri score bracket.
I think that that's part of the reason to do this.
I see.
And you say that that's that's a very recent thing with this operation opening in Poland.
Yeah, it's the first time Cargill has entered the soluble fiber space, and it's very, it's called Healthy Choice Clear Results.
Basically that's the tagline.
It's a healthy choice because of sugar reduction and fiber enrichment, but it's also a clear, clear results because it's very, it is very high clarity in terms of the look and a very low color, so it means it makes it very suitable for multiple applications.
Is Cargill still finding then that your customers are really wanting that fiber enrichment?
It's it's very important positioning, absolutely.
Indeed, sugar reduction is also still very, very important, very on trend, and yeah, as you mentioned, the fiber gap is still, there's a lot to be closed there and that's it's a work in progress indeed, indeed.
OK, let's move on to something else that you've got.
How about the gherkins sweety cocoa powders?
Yeah, this is a particularly very interesting product and it's also one that we're sampling here at the show in a it's particularly meant for beverages.
So for cocoa beverages, for example, and it enables 30% reduction again.
In a, in a, in a natural way.
So it's basically just true, true formulation work from the R&D scientists over the last several years and through intense sensory consumer testing they've been able to optimize the flavor so that there's it really meets meets the trends of what's what's being looked for.
It's available in two varieties, just yeah, depending on the, on the target group that it's addressing.
OK, good stuff.
So there's a lot of innovation.
In textured plant proteins as , and I understand that cargill also has a new blend of cream, protein and wheat proteins.
Can you tell us more about that.
That's right.
The first time also the cargoi has entered the texturized protein space.
So by optimizing the blend of wheat and pea protein, it's possible and also for nutritional performance that you can get a more balanced performance of the different proteins together in order to mimic real meat, particularly for meat.
Alternative applications and yeah, a lot, a lot going on within, within that space.
I think it's just something to watch out for.
It's also yeah indeed being cooked up here at the show in a burger where we're kind of showing what's what's possible.
You still see that there's massive growth opportunities in the space.
Absolutely, there's there's there's lots going on.
Still many manufacturers are entering this space and they think they're still, particularly in Europe, there's enormous room for growth within the space, I think.
Good stuff.
You've got another innovation I understand as.
Cremo Flex A.
Can you tell us a bit more about that?
Yeah, so Cremo Flex is a customizable range of plant-based filling fats, so, and the latest addition to this range is Cremo Flex A, which is really about air to make create a more fluffier texture to products.
Also something we're showing here that we're showing actually concepts with all the different, there's 5 different filling paths from Cremaflex and this one is particularly nice, very airy, fluffy texture.
So it's from that respect it's really like, yeah, it's really call it like the volumizer basically to pump up the volume as I say.
Good stuff.
And aside from the company's prototypes here, what, what sort of trends are you seeing as we head into the new year?
Yeah, it's still a little bit early in the show to, to get a complete sense of what exactly the industry is speaking about, but plant-based is obviously very significant.
See a lot towards sugar reduction, so there is generally a health trend.
Obviously sustainability.
There's a lot of sustainability marketing still going on, but there's also obviously a huge trend towards permissible indulgence where you're trying to, Yeah, create, really replicate very indulgent products, but give them a kind of a healthier edge also through the Nutriscore enhancement, etc.
So there's a, yeah, there's a lot going on, but indeed also, you know, with the whole COVID situation, it has, it has changed a lot of what's going on and there's more convenience is is is remains on trend.
Absolutely.
All right, good stuff.
Robin, thanks very much.
Thank you, Gaynor.
Also at the Cargill stand is Renee who's going to talk us through the Let's meet concept.
So Renee, I think you've got about 13 prototypes here today.
Absolutely, and it could have been many more, but it's really to truly inspire.
And that's why let's meet in a sense is about people getting back together again after 3 years of absence actually.
But it's also about ideas that meet new business opportunities, and these 13 prototypes are here really to inspire, and I think it also tells a good story about how Cargill is positioned into providing solutions to our customers.
Any of our competitors here, which we also very much welcome, of course, they have pieces of the puzzle, and the nice thing of Cargill in this.
Type of setup is any type of visitor, whatever need they may have, can come up to the stand, talk to some of our experts to see what could be the solution to their new opportunity, and I think in that sense we are truly unique.
So instead of the piece of the puzzle, we think or we like to think that we provide the full picture, a fully integrated.
And then the 13 prototypes are examples of that, and they could have been anything else, but they are a starting point, and that's what you're seeing now.
People are tasting at any corner of the stand.
That's what we're here to do.
We'll have a look.
So what sort of things?
Can you give us some examples personally, and I think the hamster cheeks might give it away a bit.
I'm very much into the indulgence area, but I'm also a big fan of any nutrition nutrition score that we can improve without compromising on taste.
So whether it's soluble fiber in ice cream or in confectionery or gherkin Sweetie, which is a sensory innovation award nominee.
Which is enabling 30% calorie reduction in a cocoa milk drink.
All of those things are very enjoyable where taste is king.
And then still being able to have an improved nutrition score, the hamster cheeks give it away like I said, but that's something that I'm truly a fan of.
But there are many more.
You and your colleague Robin mentioned this healthy indulgence.
This is really something that you're seeing that the end consumer really wants, because ultimately that's what we are.
If all goes , we will have 25,000 visitors here.
That are looking through two lenses.
One, their unique responsibility within the industry that they operate, but also all of us are consumers.
We stand in supermarkets.
What attracts us is also something that's keeping us busy.
So that's why we provide an end product.
We don't put a bag of white powder on the stand because it's not just about a single ingredient.
It's about a good idea that's insights driven, and that's the starting point of business success.
Rene, thanks very much.
Thank you so much.
