Culinology - September 2019 - 35

the SWEET SPOT
in new product development

M

ichael Shoretz made a lot of bad ice
cream before fine-tuning his formulation
for a high-protein, low-sugar version that
would eventually become the fastest-growing
brand in the segment.
In 2011, Mr. Shoretz, then a New York-based
personal trainer with a bachelor's degree
in health policy, sought to solve a common
dilemma among his clients at the gym. They
wanted to be fit but also enjoyed eating ice
cream. At the time, the better-for-you ice
cream category consisted of low-fat options
loaded with sugar, Mr. Shoretz said.
A self-professed "supermarket nerd" with
no food industry experience, Mr. Shoretz
purchased an ice cream maker and began
experimenting with healthier ingredients in
his home kitchen. Countless prototypes and
iterations led to the launch of Enlightened
ice cream in 2013. Today, the product line
includes dozens of pints and bars that are sold
in more than 12,000 retail outlets, including
Whole Foods Market, Kroger and Target.
Enlightened is marketed not as a better-foryou ice cream but a "feel-good" ice cream and
has gained a following in health and fitness
communities. Sweetened with monk fruit
extract and erythritol, the products contain
60 to 100 calories per serving with 6 to 8
grams of protein, 5 grams of fiber and 3 grams
of sugar.

"For us, those flavors are ways to get people
interested in our brand because at the end
of the day there's a lot of vanillas, and there's
even a lot of vanilla better-for-you products,"
said Mr. Shoretz, chief executive officer of
Englightened's parent company, Beyond
Better Foods, LLC. "How can we differentiate
ourselves? We can differentiate ourselves by
delivering fun new eating experiences."
Another flavor addition, Movie Night,
combines popcorn ice cream with chocolate
bits and a caramel swirl. The flavor quickly
became a surprise hit, Mr. Shoretz said.
"Once people try Movie Night," he said,
"they're more likely than any other flavor to
come back and buy our brand again. That was
kind of a data point that for us made us feel
like we made the right choice to launch this offthe-wall flavor."
Sugar reduction is a focus of product
development at Beyond Better Foods. Mr.
Shoretz's interest in health and nutrition began
in high school when his father was diagnosed
with type 2 diabetes.
"We're increasingly focused on sugar,
looking for ways to address our consumers'
concerns around sugar," he said. "I think
there's a lot of things that are fads and will
come and go, but I think sugar reduction will
never go away. People are always going to
want less sugar."

Flavor rules

On growing the brand

Flavors range from the classics - including
mint chocolate chip, chocolate chip cookie
dough and cookies and cream - to the
unexpected, such as glazed donut, French
toast, and marshmallow peanut butter. The
latest limited-edition variety, All That and a Bag
of Chips, features potato chip ice cream with
chocolate chips and a salted fudge swirl.  

As demand for plant-based foods and
beverages has intensified, the company
recently added non-dairy frozen desserts to
the Enlightened line. The products contain
almond milk and fava bean protein.
"When I first tried the fava beans, what I
noticed was compared to a lot of other beans,
they tasted less beany," Mr. Shoretz said.

by Monica Watrous
mwatrous@sosland.com

Michael Shoretz,
chief executive officer
of Beyond Better
Foods, LLC
Photo courtesy of:
Beyond Better Foods

SEPTEMBER 2019 | Culinology |

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Culinology - September 2019

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