Page 42 - AMEFT Journal 2021-4

INGREDIENTS
(Source: Image by PIVISO from Pixabay)
Versatile almonds top the chart for 6th consecutive year
According to new data from Innova Market Insights’ Global New Prod- uct Introductions Report, almonds have retained their top spot as the most popular nut in new product intro- ductions across Europe in 2020 with nearly 6,000 introductions – a 7.5% increase from 2019. Europe also leads the way globally with a 47.8% share of global almond introductions.
As consumers continue to seek healthy and nutritious food to fit their lifestyle needs for all occasions, the findings demonstrate that almonds’ versatility has played a large part in their popularity in Europe, with al- monds being the number one nut in multiple categories including snacks, bars, cereal and dairy.
Dairy is a category of note, having appeared in the top five categories for new product introductions with al- monds for the first time in last year’s report; almond introductions in the category continued to grow in 2020, with an increase of 7% vs. YAG. And it’s not just in Europe, with the report finding that almonds are the most pop-
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ular nut in dairy globally. The report also shows that Europe is leading the globe with the largest regional share of almond introductions across confectionery, snacks, bakery, bars, dairy and cereals categories. Six European countries make up the top ten countries for almond in- troductions with Germany, France and the UK leading the European markets.
“We experienced an unprecedented year in 2020 due to the global disrup- tions caused by COVID-19 to the food industry. However, food developers should be encouraged by almonds’ versatility to speak to consumers’ in- creasing expectations for their food to address their health and lifestyle needs. Their ability to be formulated into various forms such as, almond flour and almond butter that can be utilized across product categories con- tributes to their strong use in Europe, the region responsible for nearly 50% of global almond introductions,” said Lu Ann Williams, Director of Innova- tion at Innova Market Insights.
Sought after health claims are an- other driver for new product innova-
tion with almonds, especially in the UK. Nine of the top ten health claims on almond introductions, including gluten free and vegetarian, were used more in the UK than the global aver- age, demonstrating manufacturers’ continued response to rising consum- er demands for healthy foods.
The growing popularity of plant- based products is also reflected in the data with vegan being the second most prevalent claim across almond introductions in the UK (38.5%) and Germany (22.6%). “Gluten-free” was also prominent with it being the num- ber one health claim on almond intro- ductions in Italy (42.1%) and one of the top three health claims for France, Germany and the UK.
“We’re delighted to see that al- monds continue to be a popular ingre- dient thanks to their versatility and nu- trition, even in unprecedented times.” says Dariela Roffe-Rackind, Director, Europe and Global Public Relations at the Almond Board of California.
References: Innova Market Insights, Global New Product Introductions Report, 2020. May 2021.
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