Food Processing - February 2008 - (Page 15)

Probiotics For years, researchers have been working on ways to expand the health benefits of cheese by infusing it with probiotics, beneficial bacteria that aid digestion. Kraft’s LiveActive cheese sticks and cubes debuted in the U.S. in September 2007, making them the first probiotic cheeses in North America with national distribution. That followed the spring 2007 release of Kraft’s LiveActive cottage cheese under the Breakstone and Knudsen labels, as well as Dean Foods’ probiotic cottage cheese under the Dean’s, Country Fresh and Land O’Lakes labels. (But we also note the first lawsuit challenging the benefits of probiotics on p.12.) Increased snacking As people get a larger share of their daily calories from snacking, they’re looking for alternatives to chips and cookies. According to Mintel, two-thirds of consumers like the convenience of natural cheese snacks in single-serving packages. Many people who are trying to eat more healthful snacks see cheese as a sensible, protein- and calcium-rich option. Dieters eat more cheese on average than non-dieters. Cheese shopper profile Per capita cheese consumption reached 32.3 lbs. in 2007 and is likely to continue climbing over the next decade. Some ambitious projections put 2013 per capita cheese consumption at 42 lbs., while more conservative estimates predict only a minor increase to 33 lbs. The highest rates of cheese consumption occur among suburban families and couples and larger, well-to-do urban families. People with household incomes of $100,000 or more have a much greater interest than others in specialty cheese, as do people who frequently visit supermarket delis, specialty grocers or full-service restaurants. Cheese consumption drops among the 65and-older set. Cheese enjoys a high householdpenetration rate across ethnic and racial groups, with Asian Americans being the only group with penetration substantially lower than the average – but still high at 83 percent. “What’s In Store 2008” details consumer and industry trends affecting the dairy case, cheese case, bakery and deli/foodservice departments. But its 149 tables also are of interest to all food processors using cheese. The full report is available for $99 for IDDBA members and $399 for nonmembers. See www.iddba.org or call 608-310-5000. www.foodprocessing.com http://www.wsus.com http://www.iddba.org http://www.wsus.com http://www.foodprocessing.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Food Processing - February 2008

Food Processing - February 2008 Contents Editor’s Plate NewsBites Regulatory Issues The Trends Rollout Food Biz Kids Product Spotlight Ingredients From Where? Product Development RCA Show Review Plant Operations Packaging New Supplier Products Toops Scoops

Food Processing - February 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.