Milling & Baking News - December 28, 2010 - 24

Food Ingredient Solutions 
®

while people from Caribbean countries may crave coconut and more
tropical flavors.
"If you see something that has
plantain or has mango, you tend to
kind of steer to those things," Ms.
Melendez-Klinger said of Hispanics
in general.
Tortilla manufacturers are starting
to add more whole grains into their
product, she said. Quinoa, a whole
grain, is popular in South America
and Mexico. ConAgra Mills, Inc.,
Omaha, offers quinoa in its Ancient
Grains line. The small, light-colored
round grain has a nutty, earthy flavor, according to ConAgra Mills.
Quinoa is gluten-free, has a superior protein quality compared to
other grains and is a source of minerals such as calcium, magnesium,
potassium and iron.
"When working with grain products, flavor masking is an important part to development," said Sean
Craig, senior executive chef of Spicetec Flavors & Seasonings, Omaha.
"Bitterness is commonly associated
with traditional whole grains. So it is
important to work with flavors that
can hide that undesirable note."
Hispanic women may benefit by
eating more white bread with folic
acid in it. Daily consumption of folic
acid, a B vitamin, beginning before
pregnancy may prevent neural tube
defects, according to the Food and
Drug Administration, which mandates fortification of enriched flour
with folic acid. Hispanic women
are 1.5 times to 3 times more likely



Two groups to target with Hispanic foods
Two broad groups of consumers are purchasing Hispanic foods and beverages, according to "Hispanic Food and Beverages in the U.S.: Market and Consumer Trends in Latino
Cuisine," a report released in July by Packaged Facts, Rockville, Md.
The first group consists of Hispanic consumers in search of authentic products and
tastes.
Packaged Facts said, "Within this group the desire for authentic products varies in
intensity between new immigrants who depend on familiar brands from their various
homelands in Latin America; long-term immigrants who have accepted some U.S.-made
alternatives to the products of their native land and who have modified their diets to
include mainstream foods; and first-, second- and third- or more generation HispanicAmericans who may be less interested in authenticity than convenience and whose
diets incorporate mainstream foods to a much greater degree than the immigrant portion of the demographic."
Mexicans constitute 66% of the Hispanic population in the United States. Puerto
Ricans constitute 9%, and the Spanish-speaking countries of Central America and South
America account for a combined 13% of Hispanics living in the United States. Eightythree per cent of Hispanic households consume Mexican food and ingredients at a rate
of 22% above the average for all U.S. households.
The second group of consumers consists of non-Hispanic consumers who have an
appetite for flavors of various ethnic cuisines.
"Within this group are the serious 'foodies,' inspired by the many cooking shows on
TV and the plethora of web sites on the Internet dedicated to the subject of food who
seek out new and authentic dining experiences from the world's cuisines," Packaged
Facts said. "This group is important for setting trends that impact the wide mainstream
consumer market. But even without their leadership, the mainstream has taken to Hispanic foods over the years, starting with a taste for salsa and chips, Mexican beers, chili,
and nachos, and expanding to include burritos, enchiladas, tacos and quesadillas."
Of the U.S. households who use Mexican foods, beverages and ingredients, 14% are
identified as Hispanic while 86% are non-Hispanic. Among Hispanic food and beverage
categories in the United States, tortillas/taco shells, including kits, ranked first with sales
of $2,175 million in 2009, which was up from $2,075 million in 2008, according to Packaged Facts. Bakery items were fifth at $248 million, up from $219 million in 2008. MBN
to have children with neural tube
defects, Ms. Melendez-Klinger said
Sept. 27 at a panel presentation sponsored by the Grain Foods Foundation
at the International Baking Industry
Exposition in Las Vegas.
Sugar reduction would seem to
be a way to take on the problems of
obesity and diabetes in Hispanics.
According to the 2007 National Diabetes Fact Sheet, 10.4% of Hispanics
were diabetic, which compared with
6.6% of non-Hispanic whites, 7.5% of
Asian Americans and 11.8% of nonHispanic blacks. Among Hispanics,
the percentages were 8.2% for Cubans, 11.9% for Mexican Americans
and 12.6% for Puerto Ricans.
Ms.
Melendez-Klinger,
however, said Hispanics generally do
Tortilla manufacturers are starting to
add more whole grains into their products.

24 / December 28, 2010 Milling & Baking News

not like the flavor of low-calorie,
high-intensity sweeteners, and synthetic sweeteners are in opposition
with Hispanics who prefer natural
ingredients.
"Simple, clean labels will be very
appealing to Hispanics," she said.
"They really like to see the word
natural displayed in their products."
Food formulators will need to
educate Hispanics on high-intensity
sweeteners, she said. High-fructose
corn syrup is another sweetener not
well understood by Hispanics.
"It's just a more inexpensive
sugar," Ms. Melendez-Klinger said.
"That is all it is."
Hispanics love agave, she said,
adding some even believe incorrectly that agave is calorie-free.
"Nutrition is so misunderstood by
Hispanics," Ms. Melendez-Klinger
said. MBN
- Jeff Gelski
bakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com

http://www.bakingbusiness.com http://www.world-grain.com

Milling & Baking News - December 28, 2010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Milling & Baking News - December 28, 2010