McCain Sweet Potato Chips excelled in the Product of the Year 2012 annual survey of over 5000 South African consumers. The brand was awarded top prize in the frozen vegetarian foods category at an awards event, on 2 February 2012.
Product of the Year is the world's largest consumer-voted award for product innovation. Operating in 28 countries, Product of the Year is aimed at guiding consumers to the best new products in their market and rewarding manufacturers for quality and innovation.
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Twenty-eleven was a year filled with milestones. Let's surge forward next year, with a renewed outlook on the industry. Innovation for affordability; longer shelf-life; Fairtrade and organic; computer savvy consumers of tomorrow; and climate change will be discussed in this extensive analysis of the top trends for 2012.
The African focus – innovation for affordability
Affordability and functionality are top priorities for most South Africans. Convenience, health and wellbeing and the indulgence trends mean nothing to the majority. The challenge R&D teams face is, how can cheap, quality food with added benefits be developed cost-effectively and sold at an affordable price?
Read more...To help food manufacturers stabilise costs in the midst of supply issues and volatile cocoa prices, Tate & Lyle has manufactured a cocoa replacement ingredient using a high-quality carob powder. The product, called Carcao, should enable manufacturers to reduce the overall outlay on recipes that include cocoa. Read more...
Research conducted by Beneo confirms consumers are hankering after a healthier alternative to sugar-coated chocolate sweets and are willing to pay 10 per cent more for tooth-friendly alternatives. The consumer survey looked into the acceptance of and interest in tooth-friendly coated chocolate sweets by measuring price sensitivity. Read more...
When times are tough, the not-so-tough get discounting. The temptation to give away what you can’t sell is strong, but it’s a guaranteed hiding to nowhere. Sure, you’re getting turnover, but profits are small (or non-existent), there’s no customer loyalty, and when times improve you’re going to have a hard time convincing those customers to stay with you and pay more. Read more...
