Despite Targets, Food Manufacturers Fail to Make Healthier Foods

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  • A study investigated how the nutritional value of products from the top 10 global food and drink companies changed in response to voluntary reformulation policies in the United Kingdom.
  • The results suggest that although these targets did not significantly affect products’ nutritional values, a soft drink industry levy was successful in reducing the sugar content in drinks.
  • The researchers say that further policy action is necessary to incentivize companies to change product composition to improve public health.

Poor diets, including those that incorporate foods high in calories, sugar, and salt, are a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseaseTrusted Source, cancerTrusted Source, and general mortalityTrusted Source.

In 2019, a study found that poor diets account for 18.2% of heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes costs in the United States, which equates to $50.4 billion.

In recent years, Public Health England (PHE) has published a series of voluntary reformulation targets to encourage manufacturers to improve the nutritional values of their food. These included reduction targets for calories, sugar, and salt.

There has been little research on how reformulation targets influence the nutritional values of products by individual companies. Monitoring this could help policymakers develop better ways to improve public health.

Scientists from the University of Oxford in the U.K. recently conducted a study investigating how the nutritional value of products from the top 10 global food and drinks companies changed in response to voluntary reformulation targets in the U.K.

“Our study shows it is possible to monitor the overall healthiness of company product portfolios and chart changes over time,” says Dr. Lauren Bandy of the University of Oxford’s Nuffield Department of Population Health.

“We saw little evidence that the recommended current targets have made a significant difference, and we believe that without more policy action and a transparent monitoring and evaluation system, it is unlikely there will be meaningful change.”

The researchers published their findings in PLOS ONETrusted Source.

Data analysis

The scientists used Euromonitor International to identify the 10 largest food and soft drink manufacturers and examine the sales data for their brands and products between 2015 and 2018.

Altogether, these companies accounted for 24% of the £71.3 billion in sales generated in the U.K. in 2018. They included names such as Coca-Cola, Mondelez International, and Premier Foods.

The researchers also used Edge by Ascential, a private analytics company, to collect nutrition data on all brands that the companies sold between 2015 and 2018.

They then applied a nutrient profile model — which the Food Standards Agency developed for the Office for Communications (Ofcom) — to each product to rate their healthiness.

The team awarded the products points based on their energy, saturated fat, total sugar, sodium level, fiber, and protein, as well as their fruit, nut, and vegetable (FNV) contents.

Between 2015 and 2018, the number of products that the companies manufactured decreased slightly from 3,471 to 3,273.

The researchers also noted a small increase in the proportion of healthy products that the companies offered. In 2015, 46% of products met the criteria for a healthy classification, compared with 48% of products in 2018.

They also found an increase in the proportion of healthy sales from 44% in 2015 to 51% in 2018. However, this change was largely due to an increase in sales of bottled water, low or no-calorie drinks, and fruit juice.

Overall, the researchers found that voluntary reformulation targets led to no significant changes in product nutritional values among the top 10 food and drink companies between 2015 and 2018.

They also found that the average nutritional values of these products collectively fell below the Ofcom threshold for broadcast advertising.

Sugar levy for soft drinks

To explain their results, the researchers say that the introduction of the Soft Drinks Industry Levy (SDIL) in 2018 likely drove the small increase in more healthy soft drink sales.

The SDIL works by charging companies for excess sugarTrusted Source in their drinks. There is a tax of £0.24 per liter on drinks with 8 grams (g) or more of sugar per 100 milliliters (ml), with a lower tax of £0.18 for those with 5–8 g per 100 ml, and no tax for those with less than 5 g per 100 ml.

“When you compare the lack of overall change, we saw in foods with the reductions we saw in the sugar content of soft drinks, it would be easy to draw the line between the voluntary nature of the food reformulation targets and the mandatory and fiscal nature of the soft drinks tax,” Dr. Bandy recently told Medical News Today.

“Other than for acting in a responsible way and to enable consumers to eat more healthily, manufacturers have little incentive to reformulate their products to meet the reformulation targets set out by PHE,” she continued.

The researchers conclude that transparent monitoring and evaluation of food nutritional values could make it easier for policymakers to work with companies to improve public health.

Assessing the healthiness of UK food companies’ product portfolios using food sales and nutrient composition data

Lauren Kate Bandy, Sven Hollowell, Richard Harrington, Peter Scarborough, Susan Jebb, Mike Rayner

Published: August 4, 2021    https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0254833

Abstract

Background

The provision and over-consumption of foods high in energy, saturated fat, free sugars or salt are important risk factors for poor diet and ill-health. In the UK, policies seek to drive improvement through voluntary reformulation of single nutrients in key food groups. There has been little consideration of the overall progress by individual companies. This study assesses recent changes in the nutrient profile of brands and products sold by the top 10 food and beverage companies in the UK.

Methods

The FSA/Ofcom nutrient profile model was applied to the nutrient composition data for all products manufactured by the top 10 food and beverage companies and weighted by volume sales. The mean nutrient profiling score, on a scale of 1–100 with thresholds for healthy products being 62 for foods and 68 for drinks, was used to rank companies and food categories between 2015 and 2018, and to calculate the proportion of individual products and sales that are considered by the UK Government to be healthy.

Results

Between 2015 and 2018 there was little change in the sales-weighted nutrient profiling score of the top 10 companies (49 to 51; p = 0.28) or the proportion of products classified as healthy (46% to 48%; p = 0.23). Of the top five brands sold by each of the ten companies, only six brands among ten companies improved their nutrient profiling score by 20% or more. The proportion of total volume sales classified as healthy increased from 44% to 51% (p = 0.07) driven by an increase in the volume sales of bottled water, low/no calorie carbonates and juices, but after removing soft drinks, the proportion of foods classified as healthy decreased from 7% to 6% (p = 33).

Conclusions

The UK voluntary reformulation policies, setting targets for reductions in calories, sugar and salt, do not appear to have led to significant changes in the nutritional quality of foods, though there has been progress in soft drinks where the soft drink industry levy also applies. Further policy action is needed to incentivise companies to make more substantive changes in product composition to support consumers to achieve a healthier diet.

Citation: Bandy LK, Hollowell S, Harrington R, Scarborough P, Jebb S, Rayner M (2021) Assessing the healthiness of UK food companies’ product portfolios using food sales and nutrient composition data. PLoS ONE 16(8): e0254833. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254833

 Editor: Jane Anne Scott, Curtin University, AUSTRALIA

Received: January 21, 2021; Accepted: July 4, 2021; Published: August 4, 2021

Copyright: © 2021 Bandy et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

 

Data Availability: This study used data from two commercial sources. The sales data was accessed under licence from Euromonitor International (https://www.euromonitor.com/packaged-food) via the Bodleian Library, University of Oxford, using Euromonitor’s database portal Passport GMID. The product information dataset, including nutrition composition data, was purchased for the purpose of the lead author’s DPhil research project from Edge by Ascential (https://www.ascentialedge.com/our-solutions). Due to licencing restrictions, the Euromonitor and Edge by Ascential datasets can only be requested under licence for the purpose of verification and replication of study’s findings via the research group’s Data Access Committee (contact: Trisha Gordon [email protected]). Further use of these datasets must be negotiated with the data owners (Euromonitor contact: Ashton Moses – [email protected], Edge by Ascential contact: David Beech – [email protected]). The authors received no special privileges in accessing the data.

 

Funding: LB, SH and MR are funded by the Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford. PS is funded by a British Heart Foundation Intermediate Basic Science Research Fellowship (FS/15/34/31656). All authors are part of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Oxford Biomedical Research Centre (BRC). SJ is also funded by the NIHR Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care Oxford at Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust and is an NIHR senior investigator. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Introduction

The provision and consumption of foods high in energy, saturated fat, free sugars or salt is an important marker of poor diet and associated with substantial morbidity [1]. To support improvements in public health nutrition, Public Health England (PHE) published a series of voluntary, category-specific reformulation targets for calories, sugar and salt [2–4] to encourage manufacturers to improve the nutritional quality of everyday products. Progress has been monitored by measuring change in the levels of individual nutrients and does not include a more holistic view of how the nutritional quality of products has changed overall.

The food industry in the UK is powerful and consolidated; in 2018, the retail value sales of packaged food and soft drinks products was £71.3 billion, with the 10 largest companies accounting for nearly a quarter (24%) of the total [5]. In order for PHE’s voluntary reformulation targets to be successful in improving quality of the UK population’s diet, food manufacturers–especially the largest companies whose products dominate the market—must make changes across a range of products. So far, PHE has focused on changes in specific food groups and has published only limited company-level analysis, but progress by company is vital to understanding the industry response to the targets.

Nutrient profiling is “the science of classifying and ranking foods according to their nutritional composition for reasons related to preventing disease and promoting health” [6]. Nutrient profiling generally involves the application of a model that classifies or ranks foods based on their overall nutrition composition, rather than looking at individual nutrients in isolation. It has multiple purposes, including supporting health-related labelling schemes and restricting the marketing of foods to children [7]. The UK Government’s current nutrient profile model was developed by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) to provide the Office for Communications (Ofcom) with a tool to differentiate between foods that can and cannot be advertised to children, based on their nutrition composition [8].

The aim of this study was to assess how the nutritional quality of products offered by the top 10 global food and drink companies has changed over time by applying the FSA/Ofcom nutrient profiling model to a composition database, and weighting it using product sales data.

Methods

Data types and sources

Volume sales data was sourced from Euromonitor and accessed through the Oxford University Library. The top 10 UK food and soft drink manufacturers and their brands were identified based on global company names using 2018 sales data from Euromonitor [5]. A company is defined by Euromonitor as: “the legal entity that produces or distributes an individual or group of brands in the UK”. All of the brands manufactured by these companies between 2015 and 2018 were identified, including those that dropped in or out of the market. Brands were defined as a set of products that have the same generic name and are manufactured by one company.

The composition data were provided by Edge by Ascential (previously Brand View), a private analytics company that collects product information, including nutrient composition data, by scraping the websites of the UK’s three leading retailers: Asda, Sainsbury’s and Tesco. These data were scraped from these three websites on the same date (13th December) for four consecutive years (2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018). The sales data and nutrition composition data were automatically matched in Python based on three identifier variables that were present in both databases: brand name, category and year. A 10% random sample of brands was checked manually for any errors. Of the 20 brands checked, 4 brands were identified as pairing with the correct brand name but incorrect category. All 4 of these errors were brands that appeared in more than one category (e.g. Cadbury is present in five categories, including baked goods and confectionery). The matching code was adjusted so that it first paired based on matching categories, and then brand names, and no errors were identified after further checks.

Applying the FSA/Ofcom nutrient profile model

The FSA/Ofcom nutrient profile model was applied to the individual product composition data. The appropriate points were awarded based on each product’s energy, saturated fat, total sugar and sodium content (“A-points”) and fibre, protein and fruit, nut and vegetable (FNV) content (“C-points”) per 100g, as set out by FSA/Ofcom’s technical guidance [9]. This system was developed for the purposes of restricting advertising of food to children, but here we have used it to classify products as healthy and unhealthy. A food is classified as ‘less healthy’ if it scores four points or more. A drink is classified as ‘less healthy’ if it scores 1 point or more. For the purpose of comparing companies’ entire product portfolios, we converted the nutrient profile score to a 1–100 scale (-2(original score) +70), so that a higher score indicates healthier products. In order to directly compare drink scores with food scores, we also applied a linear adjustment to the distribution of the soft drinks scores (11x – 704, where x is the score for drinks on the 1–100 scale). The linear adjustment was selected so that the 33rd percentile and 66th percentile of both foods and drinks received the same score (44 and 66, respectively). After the scale conversion and linear adjustment, the thresholds for products to be considered healthy according to the FSA/Ofcom nutrient profile model were 62 or more for foods and 66 or more for drinks.

If the nutrient content for a product was missing, then data was imputed by calculating a brand average for foods in the same category, and if this was not possible, an overall category average. FNV content was estimated based on the ingredients list to categorise ingredients into ‘fruit’, ‘nut’, ‘vegetable’ and ‘other’. The percentage composition of ingredients was identified if this information was provided in the ingredients list. For the products where percentage of ingredients were not given, values were imputed based on a brand and category average, or if this was not possible, a category average.

Variables calculated

The total value (£ millions) and volume of food and soft drinks (tonnes) and the sales weighted mean nutrient profiling score (referred to in figure labels as sales-weighted score) were calculated in R for each company and brand, both overall and by category. When one brand had multiple product variants, a simple mean was used. While all brands were included in the analysis, only the top five for each company (n = 50) were presented for the brand-level analyses (Fig 3) for clarity. Bubble and chewing gum and milk formulas for infants, toddlers and children were excluded.

Statistical analysis

Chi-squared tests were performed in R to test if there were any significant changes in the number of brands and products each company manufactured over time (2015–2018). ANOVA tests were used to test for differences over time in the nutrient profiling scores overall and for each company, category and brand.

Results

In 2018, the top 10 food and soft drink companies had total value sales of £17.1 billion (Table 1). The top 10 companies by value were also the largest 10 in terms of volume sales, although there is variation in the ranking between these two measures. Food company Mondelez is the largest in value terms, while Coca Cola is the largest company in volume terms.

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Table 1. Number of products, brands and total volume sales by company, 2018.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254833.t001

In 2018, there were 3273 individual products produced by these companies and included in the dataset under 222 different brands. Premier Foods had the largest product portfolio in 2018, with 613 individual products. Kellogg had the smallest, with 91 individual products. There was a decline in the total number of products that were manufactured by the top 10 companies over the period of analysis, from 3471 in 2015 to 3273 in 2018, a reduction of 6% (p <0.05). Seven out of ten of the companies reduced the number of products they manufacture.

Between 2015 and 2018 there was little change in the sales-weighted mean nutrient profiling score of all the products manufactured by included companies, moving from 49 to 51 (p = 0.28). The number of individual products that could be classified as healthy also remained relatively unchanged, at 46% in 2015 and 48% in 2018 (p = 0.23) There was an increase from 44% to 51% in the total volume sales classified as healthy (p = 0.07). Once soft drinks were removed, the proportion of volume sales that were classified as healthy decreased from 7% in 2015 to 6% in 2018 (p = 0.33).

The company that saw the largest increase in sales-weighted nutrient profiling score was Coca-Cola (48 to 51), although its score still remained below the FSA/Ofcom threshold (Fig 1). The company with the highest sales-weighted nutrient profiling score was Danone, with a large proportion of sales from dairy and bottled water, followed by Kraft Heinz, which has high volume sales of high-scoring pre-prepared baby foods. Coca-Cola, Mars, Unilever, Nestlé and Mondelez scored poorly, with portfolios dominated by confectionery and snacks.

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Fig 1. Total sales-weighted nutrient profiling score by company and year.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254833.g001

Baby food had the healthiest nutrient profiling score in 2018, at 72 (Fig 2) but little change over time. Spreads, confectionery and ice cream and desserts were the categories with the lowest nutrient profiling score. There was weak evidence of increases in score over time of staples, dairy, soft drinks and baked goods.

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Fig 2. Total sales-weighted nutrient profiling score by category and year.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254833.g002

There was great heterogeneity between companies within some categories (Fig 3). For example, the company scores within the baked goods category ranged from 22 (Nestlé) to 69 (Premier Foods). In contrast, there was less variation within savoury snacks (39–52) and confectionery (26–42). Coca-Cola was the least diverse company producing only soft drinks, while Mondelez and Nestlé were the most diverse, with their portfolios containing products from six categories.

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Fig 3. Sales-weighted nutrient profiling score by company and category, 2018.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254833.g003

Of the five top-selling brands of each company, there were increases in the sales-weighted nutrient profiling score over time for Fanta (Coca-Cola), Volvic (Danone), San Pellegrino (Nestlé), Coco-Pops (Kellogg), Maltesers (Mars) and Angel Delight (Premier Foods) (Fig 4). Only Special K (Kellogg) saw its score cross the Ofcom threshold, up from 58 in 2015 to 62 in 2018 (+7%, p = 0.10). The largest increases were seen in soft drink brands San Pellegrino (+88%, p<0.01), Fanta (+28%, p<0.01) and Volvic (+26%, p<0.01) due to reductions in sugar and energy content. Tropicana (PepsiCo) saw a significant decrease in its score (-14%, p<0.01) due to a reduction in the proportion of sales of reduced sugar products, where the number of different products decreased over time. Coco-Pops (Kellogg) improved its score with an increase of 27% (p<0.01) due to a reduction in sugar, energy and salt. There was no strong evidence for changes in the scores of the top 5 brands for Kraft Heinz, Mondelez, PepsiCo and Unilever.

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Fig 4. Sales-weighted nutrient profiling score for top 5 brands by company 2015–2018.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254833.g004

Discussion

Between 2015 and 2018, there was no evidence of change in the overall mean sales weighted nutrient profiling score of products sold by the top 10 food and drink companies in the UK. This mean score remained well below the Ofcom threshold for broadcast advertising. There was only one company (Kellogg’s) where there was weak evidence for improvement in its overall company score due to reductions in sugar and salt in two of its leading brands (Coco-Pops and Special K). There was a very small increase in the number of products classified as healthy (46% in 2015 to 47% in 2018) but a greater increase in the proportion of sales that were classified as healthy (44% in 2015 to 51% in 2018). This was largely attributable to a reduction in the sugar content of some soft drink products and an increase in the volume sales of healthy beverages (bottled water, low/no calorie drinks and fruit juices), changes likely driven by the introduction of the Soft Drink Industry Levy in 2018 [10,11]. Once soft drinks were removed, the proportion of healthy sales fell to 6% in 2018, down from 7% in 2015. This suggests that despite PHE’s reformulation targets for calories, sugar and salt, there has been no improvement in the nutritional quality of foods that people are buying.

Strengths and limitations

By pairing composition data with sales data and applying a nutrient profile model, both the relative healthiness of individual foods and drinks available, and the relative healthiness of what is sold have been assessed, and how this has changed over time. This gives an idea of how companies are responding to voluntary reformulation targets to improve the nutritional quality of their products overall, rather than in relation to a single nutrient.

Only 10 companies, based on global company name, were included in the analysis, which represented 24% of total value sales in the UK in 2018 [5]. These companies were selected based on their value sales, although they are also the top 10 companies in terms of volume sales. By selecting companies based on their global, rather than national, names, UK retailers were excluded from the analysis. This is a major limitation given that own-label brands from the top 3 UK retailers (Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda) represented a total market share of 21% in 2018 [5]. While this study sets out a useful and important method for ranking companies in terms of healthiness of product portfolios, future studies should include retailers and a wider range of companies. This would give a more comprehensive picture of how food and drink companies and retailers in the UK are changing their products to meet public health targets. There are a number of data-driven limitations. The first is in relation to missing and imputed data. The values for seven nutrients (energy, saturated fat, total sugars, sodium, fibre, protein and FNV content) are needed to calculate the FSA/Ofcom nutrient profile score of a product. 32% of the 13,371 products included in this study had missing values for fibre, and 67% products had insufficient ingredients information and composition detail to be able to calculate %FNV accurately. There was no difference in the proportion of missing values over time. Missing values were imputed with either a category and/or brand average. The high proportion of missing/imputed fibre and FNV was to be expected as the labelling of fibre on foods is not mandatory (unlike other macronutrients) [12] and the percentages for individual ingredients (i.e. FNV ingredients) only have to be stated when the product title includes an ingredient name, or when a claim about the amount of an ingredient has been made on the label [13].

To test what impact the imputed fibre data had on the results, a sensitivity analysis was conducted. 31% (n = 4186) of all products in the original dataset had imputed fibre values, and these were evenly distributed across the four years. For our sensitivity analysis, we adjusted the fibre content for these products to 0.0g/100g, with the FSA/Ofcom points awarded for fibre also then given 0, the lowest score possible. The number of products that were classified as healthy fell from 47% to 46% in 2018, and there were negligible changes in the total sales-weighted nutrient profiling score for 2018, which fell from 51 to 50.

For fruit, nut and vegetable (FNV) content, 8896 (67%) of included products had imputed values, although three-quarters of these (n = 6624) fell into categories that you would not expect to contain enough FNV to score one point: baked goods, confectionery, dairy, ice cream, savoury snacks, soft drinks, spreads and staples. To test what impact the imputed FNV data may have had on the results, the remaining 2272 products (baby food, breakfast cereals, ready meals, and sauces, dressings and condiments) had their %FNV adjusted to 0%. After this adjustment, 25% (n = 564) of the 2272 products saw a change in their final Ofcom score. The overall proportion of products classified as healthy in 2018 fell from 47% to 46%. The results were the same as those found with the fibre sensitivity analysis, with a similar group of products being affected by the lack of fibre and FNV values. These results suggest that while the missing fibre and FNV values is a weakness in the dataset, the interpretation of the data was unchanged, and it has not affected the overall results.

Data restrictions meant that time period covered changes between 2015 and 2018. Previous reformulation efforts made before 2015, for example as part of the salt reduction programme that began in 2006, will have been excluded. Using a wider historic time period may show that some companies who started reformulation efforts promptly have made more signficant changes than recorded here. Applying this method to datasets in multiple countries may offer insight into how companies are responding in countries with varying public health nutrition policies, for example voluntary reformulation targets in the UK compared to taxes on energy dense foods in Mexico [14] and mandatory warning labels in Chile [15].

The FSA/Ofcom nutrient profile model was used because it is designed for and used in the UK market and has been widely validated in terms of how its use may impact on dietary choices [16]. However, its original purpose was for the assessment of whether or not a product should be advertised to children, rather than to assess the nutritonal quality of a company’s product portfolio and classifying products as healthy and unhealthy, as it was used here. It would be possible to conduct similar analyses using other nutrient profiling models such as Health Star Rating [17] and Nutri Score [18], though since all rely on changes in the underlying nutrient composition differences between scoring systems are likley to be modest.

We combined the distributions of food and drink products by using a linear transformation that matched the distributions at two points–the 33rd and 66th percentile. The selection of the two matching points was arbitrary. Matching at different points (e.g. the 25th and 75th percentiles) would have produced a different linear transformation and hence different scores for drinks. This is an inevitable limitation associated with combining scores for companies with both food and drink profiles.

Comparisons with other studies.

There are a number of studies that have examined the nutrient content of foods sold in the UK over time. Previous studies have shown that voluntary salt reduction targets in the UK led to gradual and important changes in the salt content of foods between 2008–2011 [19,20], although a more recent report from Public Health England (PHE) suggests that only 28 of 52 of the 2017 salt reduction targets had been met in 2018 [4]. Two studies have shown that there were significant changes in the sugar content of soft drinks in the UK in context of the introduction of the Soft Drink Industry Levy [10,11]. The changes in the sugar content of soft drinks presented in these studies is in line with the results presented here, where the majority of the change in the volume sales of foods classified as healthy was driven by changes in the sugar content of soft drinks. Another study has also looked at the sugar content of foods between 2015 and 2018 and also presented findings by category and company [21].This study showed that 24 out of the top 50 companies (including retailers) in the UK had met Public Health England’s 5% sugar reduction targets, and that companies have made limited progress towards meeting this voluntary policy. Public Health England have themselves published a series of reports that monitor progress being made towards their 20% sugar reduction targets using both sales and composition data [3]. For example, they have shown that there was a -2.9% reduction in the sugar content of foods between 2015 and 2018 [3]. A strength of our study is that it applies a nutrient profiling model, whereas these analyses are based on single nutrients and are therefore not directly comparable. However, they generally show that there has been mixed progress by the food industry towards public health goals.

INFORMAS (International Network on Food and Obesity/NCD Research, Monitoring and Action Support) have produced a series of company scorecards that rank the world’s top 25 food companies, including supermarkets and quick-service restaurants, in a number of different areas, including product formulation [22]. While the scores are not based on quantitative analysis of the nutritional quality of companies’ products, they are based on business practices and companies’ commitments to nutrition-related policies, which is also important for monitoring food industry progress towards public health goals.

In 2019, the Access to Nutrition Initiative (ATNI) published its UK Product Profile [23]. It analysed the nutritional quality of 3069 products from the top five food categories of the world’s top 18 manufacturers in 2016. The ATNI study also applied the HSR nutrient profiling model. Nine companies (excluding Premier Foods, a UK-only company) included here were also included in the ATNI index. ATNI found that 31% of products were classified as healthy enough to advertise to children, compared to 45% in 2016 here. 22% of sales were classified as healthy, as opposed to 55% in this study. These differences are likely to be accounted for by the fact that ATNI had a lower coverage (this study included 3438 products for 10 companies in 2016, compared to 3069 products for 18 companies for ATNI). The main advantage of this study over ATNI’s UK Product Profile is that it includes four years’ worth of data and therefore examines trends over time, whereas ATNI’s study is a snapshot of a single year. The two studies are not directly comparable as the ATNI companies were defined at the global level, rather than UK level, and therefore the brands included under each company vary. However, the general ranking of the companies were similar between the two studies; Kraft Heinz and Danone were the two top scoring companies, and Nestlé, Mars and Mondelez were ranked at the bottom.

Another study similar to this one, conducted in India by Jones et al. 2017, used Euromonitor sales data and nutrition composition data for 943 products, collected from either the packet or company websites [24]. It applied the Health Star Rating (HSR) to analyse the nutritional quality of the top 11 packaged food manufacturers in India. The study found that the overall healthiness of products was low and that only 17% of products were considered healthy [24]. This is lower than the 45% of products classified as healthy in this study in 2016. These differences are to be expected as the Indian study excluded products like staples (bread, pasta, rice), and used a different nutrient profiling model (HSR). Despite covering a very different market, it demonstrates that a high proportion of products sold by leading companies in other countries are also unhealthy, and that this problem is not isolated to the UK.

Implications of research

This study shines a spotlight on the very small changes over time in the nutritional quality of food and drink products from the UKs largest food and beverage companies. While the proportion of volume sales increased from 44% to 53% over time, this change was entirely down to increased volume sales of bottled water, low/no calorie drinks and high-scoring fruit juices. The brands that saw the biggest changes to their scores over time were soft drinks. Once soft drinks were removed, the total volume sales of foods classified as healthy dropped to just 6% in 2018, down from 7% in 2015. This strongly suggests that PHE’s reformulation targets for sugar, salt and calories have not had a substantive impact on the nutritional quality of foods.

This method of ranking food and drink companies based on the nutritional quality of their product portfolios could be used to benchmark companies as a tool for ‘healthier’ impact investment. There is an increasing interest by investment banks and other financial organisations to assess what impact food companies are having on public health and how responsible their business practices are (known as impact investment) [25]. This has already been done in part by ATNI in collaboration with Shared Action [26] and INFORMAS [22].

Transparent monitoring of this kind also allows for greater consumer understanding of the work that is, or is not, being undertaken by companies. There is some evidence that pressure from the social environment is a factor influencing corporate behaviour [27], and public benchmarking exercises may increase pressure on companies to make meaningful change.

Conclusion

This study has demonstrated that it is feasible to monitor overall healthiness of company product portfolios over time. It shows that companies have made little change to the nutritional quality of their product portfolios, despite a few individual brand success stories, a factor which needs to be considered by policy makers when reviewing the current focus on single-nutrient reformulation programmes. Implementing a transparent monitoring and evaluation system such as this, would allow for targeted work with the companies to drive improvements in public health nutrition.

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  10. 10.Bandy LK, Scarborough P, Harrington RA, Rayner M, Jebb SA. Reductions in sugar sales from soft drinks in the UK from 2015 to 2018. BMC Med. 2020. pmid:31931800
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The Truth About Mac and Cheese

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Mac and cheese is a rich creamy dish that consists of macaroni pasta mixed with a cheese sauce. It is mainly consumed in the United States and Canada. It’s high in calories because it’s made from cheese, pasta, butter, and cream. While calorie content varies depending on the ingredients, brands, and serving size, mac and cheese is a delicious meal that many people around the world enjoy. Individuals who want to promote their health and wellbeing can make a few swaps to reduce the calories of this dish. In this article, we are going to share a few facts about mac and cheese and how you can create a healthier recipe. Let’s get started!

Nutrition info about mac and cheese

As we said earlier, the calorie content of this delicious dish varies depending on the ingredients, brand, and consumed quantity. Mac and cheese contain a huge amount of refined carbs and fat which contribute to the high count of calories. Consuming more calories than you burn naturally leads to weight gain regardless of the type of food you consume.

Further, mac and cheese contain high sodium content. Research studies have shown that the recommended amount of sodium that people should take should not exceed 2300 mg per day. Excessive intake of sodium can lead to high blood pressure.

Homemade mac and cheese – both gluten-free and regular – have the highest number of calories since these versions usually contain huge amounts of milk, cheese butter, or cheese and cream. Preparing this dish at home allows you to omit sodium.

Since this dish is usually high in calories, you should consume it in moderation or occasionally to maintain your health and manage weight.

Reducing calorie count of mac and cheese

Mac and cheese usually contain high-calorie ingredients such as cheese, pasta, milk, and cream. Some versions which contain additional fat include cream cheese and butter. These ingredients make mac and cheese a delicious dish to consume in moderation. Fortunately, there are simple ways that you can use to reduce calories and make your dish healthier. To have time to prepare a nutritious dish, you should consider delegating your writing and editing tasks to assignment help website. Some of the swaps that you should consider include:

  • Using high fiber pasta and protein from chickpeas and beans instead of plain macaroni to increase fiber and protein
  • Using broccoli or cauliflower instead of plain macaroni to reduce calories and carbs
  • Following the directions on packaged mac and cheese products since they require less milk and butter.
  • Adding vegetables to your dish to increase nutrients and fiber while decreasing calories in each serving
  • Reducing the amount of cheese that you normally use by half and adding spices and herbs to add flavor to the dish
  • Swapping milk and cream for unsweetened nut milk to reduce calories
  • Going for Neufchatel cheese instead of the creamy one to enjoy the tangy flavor, and creamy texture with fewer calories
  • Adding lean proteins like beans, tuna, and chicken breast to increase protein levels and make the dish more satisfying

Keep in mind that mac and cheese are loaded with calories. Therefore, however you prepare it, it’s important to consume it in moderation to avoid serious health conditions in the future. now, let’s discuss these swaps that you need to make in detail.

Swaps to make mac and cheese healthier

There’s nothing as delicious and comforting as consuming a bowl of mac and cheese after a long day at work. Most people would love consuming this dish several times a week. However, it’s loaded with milk, butter, cream, macaroni, and cheese. And these ingredients are loaded with calories. However, by making a few swaps, you can add minerals, and essential vitamins while eliminating heavier elements for a nutritious dish that will nourish your soul.

1. Always go for homemade

The packets of boxed mac and cheese in some organizations have been found by CDC to contain chemicals known as phthalates which disrupt hormones in the body. Anyway, preparing your mac and cheese at home is usually a tastier and healthier alternative.

Add leafy greens for more nutrients

Leafy greens contain a lot of beneficial nutrients which the body needs. Greens like spinach and kale are rich in vitamin A, C, E, and K as well as calcium, magnesium, iron, and fiber. Plus, leafy greens will protect you from a wide range of deadly diseases by strengthening your immune system.

2. Whole wheat is better than pasta

Whole wheat pasta or whole grain offers a wider range of minerals and vitamins than white pasta. According to nutritional experts, a cup of wheat pasta contains 23 percent of fiber while white pasta only has nine percent. Whole wheat pasta contains 16 percent of fiber.

3. Legume-based pasta

If you’ve never added legume-based pasta to your mac and cheese, now is the time to do so. You should consider adding them to your ingredients because they have more flavor than the traditional pasta and you’ll find gluten-free options. Legume pasta offers more fiber compared to regular pasta. Plus, it has fewer carbs by 33 percent. Some varieties offer close to 50 percent of the recommended protein amount.

4. Throw in some chopped veggies

Mac and cheese is one of the best dishes to add vegetables. You can throw in carrots, broccoli, peas, onions, and mushrooms to name a few. You can add one or different types of vegetables to spice up your dish whilst managing your weight.

5. Include lean protein

Since macaroni and cheese complements different types of vegetables, it is also delicious when you add different types of proteins. From roasted turkey to grilled tofu, most protein varieties will be delicious on top of your mac and cheese. Protein is essential in the body for repairing and building tissues.

6. Use other milk alternatives

Macaroni and cheese are usually accompanied with a cheesy sauce that usually calls for cream or milk for a smooth tasty finish. You should try replacing cream or milk with other nutritious alternatives such as coconut, rice, soy, almond, and flax milk. These alternatives are low in protein and calories. And they are rich in calcium.

Conclusion

These are the truths about mac and cheese. If you love this tasty dish, there are a few changes that you can do to make it tastier and nutritious. What changes are you going to try out today?

Author Bio:

Sherri Carrier is a professional writer at Essaymama and a member of several writing clubs in New York. She has been writing her own poems since she was a child. The young author gets inspiration from her favorite writers and people whom she loves.

 

About NutriFusion® 

Just 1 in 10 adults meet the federal fruit or vegetable recommendations, according to a study published in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). This report highlights that very few Americans eat the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables every day, putting them at risk for chronic diseases.

Studies have shown that supplementation with extracts from fruits and vegetables may improve age-related changes.

NutriFusion develops all‐natural fruit and/or vegetable powders that are nutrient dense for use in foods, beverages, supplements, and pet foods.

NutriFusion can help! Visit us at www.nutrifusion.com.

Sugar – It’s a Sticky Situation

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Sugar.

Parents don’t want to give it to their kids. Adults don’t’ like it because it turns, quite quickly, to fat. But clever packaging and the misconceptions natural sugar and no added sugar tend to only raise more questions. Is all sugar created the same? Can you learn to navigate the sticky sweet sugar labels? What’s the difference in added, natural, modified, and fake?

According to a recently published article on cnet.com, “The US Office of Disease Prevention and the World Health Organization say you should get no more than 10% of your daily calories from added sugar each day — and even better is limiting added sugar to 25 grams (or six teaspoons) in total.” So if the first step includes knowing we should limit our sugar intake, the next step moves us into the tricky task of decoding, you guessed it, sugar itself.

Added sugar.

Just like it sounds, added sugar is, as you’d assume, added…by either you or a manufacturer. The various added sugars can be derived from several sources including coconut sugar, can sugar, maple syrup, honey, or agave nectar.

Natural sugar.

Certain foods like, for example, fruit, is a whole food and the sugar included is in its natural form. An apple doesn’t have added sugar and, again, as you’d assume, offers the added benefits of vitamins, minerals, and fiber. While a fruit’s natural sugar, fructose, does affect your body and can raise both blood sugar and insulin hormones, it’s bound to fiber…something that aids your body in slowing down how fast you’re absorbing the naturally occurring sugar.

“Natural sugar, like the sugar found in whole food like fruits, is definitely part of a healthy diet for most people,” explains Jayne Williams, a certified nutritional consultant and clinical nutrition graduate student. “While fruits do contain low levels of fructose, which is a sugar, the overall nutritional value of a piece of whole fruit with all the vitamins, fiber and nutrients is well worth including in a healthy diet.”

Fructose should not, however, be confused with the often-added ingredient high fructose corn syrup. This chemical-made sugar is often a used as a sweetener in many processed foods.

Modified natural sugar.

The honey you add to your oatmeal and the agave you put in your smoothies are natural, but they’re sugar all the same. “Modified natural sugars are those that start from a natural source but need slight ‘modern intervention’ to make it to your table. Coconut sugar, raw honey and organic pure maple syrup all have some additional minerals and vitamins,” says Williams, “but are still sugar and can affect your blood sugar levels more than natural-occurring sugars in whole foods.”

Processed sugar.

Often called fake sugar, processed sugar has been stripped of any nutrition or health benefits. The modification process renders fake sugar difficult for your liver to process as it contains high levels of fructose. White sugar, cane sugar, and agave nectar, even if it’s labeled as low-glycemic, fall into the processed sugar category.

The take-away.

Stick to whole, unprocessed foods and stay away from processed foods and high fructose corn syrup. Watch for tricky food labels and packaging…just because you’re indulging in a smoothie or seemingly healthy prepared food doesn’t mean added sugar isn’t hiding inside. If you do add sugar, like honey, try to keep it at 6 teaspoons (or under) a day.

When you may not have access to quality whole foods, you can still achieve the necessary nutrition via NutriFusion’s quality supplements. Our ingredients are plant based and never include added sugar, just real food from nature to you. We use first-grade, fresh and high-quality fruits and vegetables to create nutrient dense powder full of natural vitamins and minerals.

Inspired by Good sugar vs. bad sugar, what’s the difference? by Mercey Livingston

The New Decade of Food Trends

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The CDC Says Only 1 in 10 Adults Eat Enough Fruits or Vegetables whole30 high fiber foods

Global market research firm Mintel recently released a forecast for food trends in this new decade. This seems to be a crucial decade in which they see consumer tastes for food quickly evolving.

The Trend for More Single-Serve Portions

Single-serve meals are going to have more demand based on statistics from research firms which say that single-person households are on the rise. The US will have more than 36 million single-person households in 2019, a rise of around 80% compared to 2000 statistics. In 2060, the number of elder Americans (65 and above) will be 95 million, almost double that of the 52 million seniors today.

The Battle to Conserve Food

Consumers are becoming more aware of sustainability and waste when it comes to foodstuffs. In fact, this is an important item that many believe will be important for consumers starting this year. Consumers, for instance, are buying irregularly shaped food packages, aware that such items mean that much less food waste.

Retailers are thus studying and applying more flexible packaging systems. “Wonky” veggies and fruits will, therefore, be consumed and not thrown away during processing and packaging. Plastic is also being replaced in packaging by materials that decompose.

New Product Development Means Holistic Health

For manufacturers involved in NPD or new product development, holistic health is coming to the forefront. Consumers want products with lower fat, salt and sugar content, and also want more options on flavors. Meat alternatives are now more popular than ever. More than 30% of Americans think of themselves as flexitarians today. The future is bright when it comes to new product development over the next decade.

Inspired by www.powderbulksolids.com

Chobani Betting on Plant-Based Dairy Products as Its Next Flagship Product

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Chobani, a food manufacturer famous for its Greek yogurt, is set to expand from the yogurt aisle to the plant-based dairy alternatives by betting on oat milk as its next flagship product.  The company is set to launch an oat-based dairy product that includes not only oat milk but also oat-based yogurt on separate dates. The company will unroll its oat-based yogurts in December of 2019, while the oat milk and creamers will be launched in January 2020. However, this was not the first time that the company has pushed into making plant-based dairy alternatives as it has already started with coconut-based yogurt during the start of 2019.

Plant-Based Dairy Products are Future Growth for Chobani

Chobani is dubbed as the second-largest yogurt maker in the United States. With the new offering of plant-based dairy products, the company is cementing its goal of not becoming your usual yogurt company. Peter McGuinness, Chobani’s president, noted that the company has been making yogurt for 11 years. Still, this new endeavor transcends from yogurt to a bigger market – vegetarians, vegans, and plant-based eaters – that is a captured market that is exponentially growing in the United States.

McGuinness also mentioned that the company is embracing a transparent approach in its products, citing that its new creamers are made with real cream and contains fewer but more relevant and functional ingredients that the consumers can easily understand. Moreover, he also cited big companies such as Nestle and Danone, whose brands include Coffee-Mate and International Delight, respectively, are made with oil and do not contain any dairy at all.

There couldn’t be a better time to introduce the oat-based yogurt. Aside from the yogurt business getting stronger with sales increasing to 9% annually, according to Nielsen, many consumers are now looking for products that are healthier as well as better for the planet. Oatmilk yogurt is the perfect product to launch. Plant-based dairy products such as oat milk and oat yogurt provide an alternative to dairy, especially for people who have a restrictive diet. McGuinness pointed out that the number of plant-based dieters is increasing. Moreover, he also noted that the market for oat milk is set to increase to $50 million in the following year.

Why Oat Milk?

But with so many products that can be turned into plant-based dairy alternatives, Chobani opted for oats because of its better nutritional value, particularly its low-fat value. Growing oats is also more environmentally sustainable than nut trees such as almonds and walnuts. Lastly, it also has a good taste option than plant-based dairy alternatives made from either soy or almond.

But while launching off the non-dairy alternative can be an exciting venture of Chobani, tension may arise, especially when a dairy company expands into a plant-based offering. As such, Chobani released a press release that developing to the non-dairy alternative products will not replace its other conventional products – much to the relief of their long-time customers. What the company wanted is to expand its consumers from flexitarians to vegetarians and vegans.  For ethical marketing, Chobani will be calling its products oat drinks and oat blends instead of “milk” and “yogurt” to avoid deceiving the rest of the consumer population.

Inspired by https://www.chobani.com/oat/

Food Premix Market Update & Key Findings

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Worldwide, we are witnessing a surge in the popularity of the food premix market. The global market is foreseen to have a 5.6% growth increase during 2017-2026. The market is expected to exceed $2 billion in revenue. The surge of nutrient premix consumption, for example, amino acid-based formulas in baby food show the growing preference of consumers for nutritional fortification. The demand for nutritional fortification has had a constant growth.

The growth is driven by the high rates of micronutrient deficiency diseases found in all populations worldwide. These diseases are great factors for cases of malnutrition. Maize, sugar, wheat, vegetable oils, and flour are the types of food products that are fortified with vitamins and minerals that help ensure better health.

Fact.MR is a market research firm that offers customized market research reports. 5 things to take away from the FactMR’s food premix market update report:

1.    Premix that will help manage weight

Customers will continue to prefer food premix that can offer energy and weight management. Consumers are very concerned with ailments such as obesity. Fruits and vegetables have been proven time and time again to help with energy and weight management. GrandFusion vitamins and minerals are essential to creating products that can achieve these results for consumers.

2.    Premix has a small cut in the revenue pie

During the forecast period, food premix accounts for the least in the food market revenue share. Food and beverages will most probably remain dominant applications to food premix. Although, in nutritional improvement programs sales of food premix will have a similar CAGR in beverage and food.

3.    The amino acid, a precursor to protein, is the top premix preferred ingredient

The top preferred ingredient in food premix will remain to be Amino acids. The market revenue share for vitamins and minerals will remain significant, the share will be over 33% from 2017 to 2026. Nucleotide sales will be the fastest expansion of sales in terms of value in the market through 2026.

4.    North America and Europe are the top in the premix market

Food premix’s largest market will continue to be North America followed by Europe in terms of volume and value. Western economies that have an aging population, for example, Germany, the U.K., U.S., and Italy, will have an ongoing demand for food premix. These nations focus most on being healthy by regularly exercising, maintaining good diets, and leading active lifestyles. Because of these priorities, these nations will always have a strong demand for premix.

5.    North America and Europe account for more than half of premix revenue

In Europe and North America, sales of food premix revenues will together account for over three-fifths of the market’s share. The market in APEJ, in addition, is set to have a somewhat faster expansion compared to Europe. Although it will not account for as much in comparison to market revenue share.

6.    Powdered food premix is most in-demand worldwide

Worldwide it is expected that powdered form of food premix will be the most looked for among consumers. The sales of powder food premix will always have a larger revenue compared to revenues from liquid food premix. Powdered premixes are much easier to work with and it’s one of the key reasons we developed GrandFusion fruit and vegetable powders the way we did. With such a small concentrated amount of powder, you can add up to 21 vitamins and minerals all from plants. Consumers benefit and processors are able to create products that are better for you.

Inspired by www.globenewswire.com

creating functional foods and beverages product development food science testing

Why Leafy Greens Protect Liver Health

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In a study published in the journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), researchers found out that leafy greens contain compounds that can help prevent non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in mice. Non-fatty liver disease, also called steatosis, is a disease wherein the fat builds up in the liver. Several studies suggest that NAFLD occurs in up to 40% of adults in the United States. NAFLD is one of the most common causes of chronic liver disease especially in many developed nations where obesity rates are high. Experts linked NAFLD with other conditions including metabolic risk factors and obesity.

Leafy Greens Can Help Reduce The Risk For NAFLD

To date, there are no known approved therapies for NAFLD. Thus, if left unaddressed, it can lead to severe conditions including liver cirrhosis, steatohepatitis, and fibrosis. While there are no approved drug treatments for NAFLD, it can still be managed by losing weight, doing more physical exercise, and reducing fat intake. But aside from these strategies, it is also important to eat the right food.

A study conducted by researchers from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden discovered that the presence of inorganic nitrate in leafy greens could help reduce the incidence of fat buildup in the liver. Senior researcher Mattias Calstrom from the same university noted that inorganic nitrate is essential in reducing the prevalence of NAFLD in mice.

Benefits Of Nitrates On Mice Model Experiments

To conduct the study, mice models were used. The mice were divided into three groups and were fed with different diets. The control group was given a regular diet, the second group was given only a high-fat diet, and the last group was given a high-fat diet with nitrate supplementation.

Studies show that the mice that were given high-fat diet and supplementation had better insulin sensitivity and lower blood pressure compared to those that were never given nitrate supplementation. Nitrate, commonly found in green leafy vegetables such as spinach, is an essential compound in the body. Previous studies suggest that nitrates can increase the efficiency of the mitochondria – the powerhouse of the cell – thus improving energy. But more than boosting the energy, studies also show that nitrate can help protect the body against metabolic diseases such as Type 2 diabetes and obesity.

Aside from benefiting from the lowered risk for NAFLD, studies also show that there are many other health benefits from taking in foods rich in nitrate. One of the benefits is that it can have positive effects on cardiovascular health.

The Future Of Nitrate Supplementation

Calstrom noted that diseases such as Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease follow the same mechanism wherein oxidative stress affects the nitric oxide signaling thus resulting in many metabolic disorders. As such, intake of nitrates has a lot of benefits to the body as it can help fight off the effects of oxidative stress. However, it is important to take note that researchers are yet to find out what other compounds make leafy greens very helpful to the body, but nitrates can pave the way to more discoveries.  For now, supplementation with nitrates can lead to new approaches to liver health.

Inspired by www.medicalnewstoday.com

Add GrandFusion to Your Products to Get The Benefits of Leafy Greens

Our fruit and vegetable powders are helping food and beverage manufacturers easily had plant-based, natural vitamins from fruits and vegetables to their products. Interested in learning more about how companies are using our concentrated powders to create the future of functional foods and beverages? Download our guide!

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Gen Z Eating Habits are Healthier and More Convenient

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Generation Z refers to a group of people who are born from 1995 to 2010. Although they are one of the youngest demographics, they are moving the food culture in the United States. A report released by Packaged Facts noted that Gen Z eating habits are more likely to include a snack between meals compared with millennials. Moreover, they are also keen on preparing their own meals than millennials who currently live more fast-paced lives.

Gen Z eating habits have influenced the food industry by encouraging manufacturers to produce snacks that are appealing to this particular demographic.  What makes food appealing to this generation is its natural origin. In fact, many of this generation prefer food that is made from organic and natural ingredients. They also prefer food that does not contain additives such as preservatives, sugar, and many others. They are also most likely to prefer vegetarianism over other types of diets.

Health And Convenience Are Defining Factors in Gen Z Eating Habits

Because many Gen Zs are opting for healthy eating habits, more food manufacturers are producing healthy food products to meet the demands of this generation. It is also important to take note that although this generation is relatively young, their eating, as well as shopping habits, will probably not change as they age. This means that they will continue to seek products that are made from clean ingredients and come with transparent labels.

Why this generation is so obsessed with healthy living comes from the influence of their millennial and gen x parents. In a recent report in 2018 released by SPINS, they noted that this generation still prefers products that are easy, accessible, and convenient. Gen Z is in perpetual motion and surrounded by gadgets. As a generation that is adept in performing multiple tasks at one time, this has influenced their eating habits such that they prefer foods that they can easily eat but do not require too much prep time. They also prefer products that are microwavable, but they are looking for those that are organic, natural, and free from synthetic ingredients.

The Direction Of Many Food Manufacturers

The demand for healthier food products by Gen Z eating habits has led to many food companies producing healthy products. One such company is Barilla that recently introduced healthy microwavable pasta that people can take as snacks or dinner. Research Director of Packaged Facts, David Sprinkle, noted that many from this generation know the value of healthy foods but they want the convenience of easy-to-prepare foods. There are huge present opportunities for many foods and beverage manufacturers to create different preparations of packaged foods from canned soups, chips, and desserts to name a few.

The bottom line here is that many food and beverage manufacturing companies can gain a lot from developing food products that will appeal to the larger population of Gen Z eating habits. In fact, they account for at the most $143 billion in terms of direct spending.  And since they make up about 26% of the population in the United States, they are a force to be reckoned with.

Inspired by www.fooddive.com

GrandFusion fruit and vegetable powders are a food processor’s new best friend. Our highly concentrated blends deliver dense nutrient levels from fruits and vegetables without impacting the end product’s flavor or texture. Gen Z consumers love NutriFusion because of the simple ingredient statement and the added benefit of real vitamins and minerals from fruits and vegetables. Interested in how to build the next great functional food and beverage product? Download our guide today!creating functional foods and beverages product development food science testing