Blueprint for a Changing Marketplace

As the old Bob Dylan song succinctly puts it, "The times they are a-changin'." The convergence of a number of economic as well as social trends is reshaping our business and how we approach food product design. Hank Cardello, author of “Stuffed: An Insider’s Look at Who’s (Really) Making America Fat,” returns to advise us on how product developers can meet the need for healthier foods and shore up profitability at the same time.
   -Lynn A. Kuntz

Designing Foods for Health and Profits

In an earlier column, I highlighted that it was time for the food industry to shed its “more is better” model and transform to a “less is best” approach. The high calorie iconic brands of the past were not designed for today’s market and companies must proactively address the fact that two-thirds of adult Americans are either overweight or obese.
So what is the new “minimum ante” for new product design? Here are 5 ways to improve the health of your customers and your bottom line:

1. Dump the calories.
America’s obesity and overweight dilemma is a NOW problem. Food manufacturers must immediately introduce new products and/or retrofit existing ones to deliver smaller caloric loads. Continuing to present consumers with overstuffed portions of high-calorie foods does them a disservice.
We can take a lesson from how beverage companies are slimming down their portfolios. Coke and Pepsi, for example, are formulating with Truvia and PureVia, natural no-calorie sweeteners based on the stevia plant. Initial products include Sprite Green and Trop50, both delivering approximately ½ the calories of their original versions. There’s even a zero-calorie sports drink, All Sport Naturally Zero. With stevia, or stevia combinations, formulators can break out of the perceptual conundrum that surrounds artificial sweeteners and deliver more natural and low calorie food and beverage products that also taste good.

2. Fill-em-up fast.
I am particularly keen on satiety ingredients because feeling fuller faster means we will still be able to enjoy our favorite foods without pounding down as many calories. “Quick satiety” represents the ultimate win-win solution. One benefit is that restaurateurs and packaged goods marketers will be able to use less ingredients, since the portion sizes can now be smaller, without sacrificing value. Profit margins could actually increase…without super-sizing.
One of the early entries into this arena is an ingredient called Fabuless, a novel combination of palm and oat oils. Studies have substantiated the product’s ability to reduce caloric intake by 12 to 29% at subsequent meals. Another ingredient called PhosphoLean is touted to “ramp up satiety” and fight “diet dropout.” Similar compounds in the pipeline should also be looked at seriously because depravity hasn’t worked; we simply need to consume less of our favorite foods.

3. Be environmentally friendly.
The “green” revolution is in full swing. Even the restaurant and grocery industries are adopting tactics to promote environmental sustainability. New products that ignore this trend will perish, especially among Millennials, the largest group of soft drink, salty snack and fast food consumers. These Millennials are wired for environmental consciousness and are demanding brands (and their parent corporations) to deliver products and packaging that are environmentally friendly. That means the ingredients you source, how they are transported, the way they are processed, etc. must all be taken into consideration.
Unlikely companies like Coca-Cola are getting into the act. Their FoodService division recently introduced a new “green” beverage cup made from 50% recycled material with a lid design that also prevents spills. Environmental consciousness plus innovation will equal big profits.

4. Don’t ignore the kids.
Unfortunately, poor nutrition and obesity have extended to our children. Some in the medical profession are declaring that they might not live as long as today’s adults. This is a legacy we cannot subscribe to.
It is time to acknowledge, for instance, that a high calorie juice product, even with its natural store of vitamins and minerals, is no longer the answer. Some new products hold promise. Juicy Juice Brain Development not only offers omega-3’s but registers a reasonable 40 calories per serving. And KIDStrong has just come out with a 30-calorie fruit flavored kid’s sport beverage that boasts a low glycemic index. Automatically build in what our kids need: taste, nutrition and low calories.

5. Shhhhh. Work in some Stealth Health.
Some products can never wear the mantle of health well. For these tasty, indulgent offerings, the solution is…don’t tell consumers it’s better for them. It’s time to deploy Stealth Health. Just like all the invisible cost cutting moves taken over the decades, developers have a myriad of opportunities to slip in wellness and lower calories without saying a word.
It’s no longer acceptable to blow off developing a healthier hamburger or French fry because it failed in the past. The reason it failed was because we touted that a yummy food was going healthy…and that signaled it wouldn’t taste good. The technology exists to improve the nutritional profiles of even the most indulgent foods. Heart-healthy Omega Macs, lower calorie French fries and fried chicken without the added cholesterol are all possible today. (Just keep it to yourselves).

It’s time to move product design to the next level. The capabilities are boundless and, most importantly, the market is finally ready for real innovation.
   -Hank Cardello


Hank Cardello is the CEO of 27ºNorth, an advisory firm that identifies profit and market opportunities tied to healthier eating, and the author of “Stuffed: An Insider’s Look at Who’s (Really) Making America Fat.” He has served as an executive with Coca-Cola, General Mills and Cadbury-Schweppes, and today acts as Chairman of the Global Obesity Business Forum sponsored by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.