Healthy snacking

If you have been counting calories while eating your favourite snack, then stop, ’cause the food industry is making your snacking experience deliciously healthy!!

By Debarati Das

Let’s begin with a quiz. What tops the list of being lip-smackingly delicious but finds itself at the bottom of health parameters?

A snack !!

A food entity which is equally loved by all age categories but is finding itself at the fringes of discretion by health-conscious buyers.

Health and snacks do not usually fit in a same sentence and the increased awareness on health and healthy living is further driving snack items off the bucket list of many buyers as people are looking for natural, healthy, authentic, no-fried, no added sugar, no fat snacking options to fill their palate.

However, does snack always have to be synonymous to unhealthy? One of the biggest segment in the food category is under immense pressure from consumers’ shift in buying parameters. And the food industry is taking this as an opportunity to change buyers’ perception about snacks and savouries by changing the composition of these lip-smacking food items.

According to studies, snacks (of various kinds) account for almost half of a person’s daily calories, which makes this food segment very hard to dismiss.

Changing perception

Healthy living is no longer a choice but has become an existential reality of today. With this, the food that is consumed is being scrutinized for its nutritional value, labels are being assessed and calories are being counted before a snack food packet finds its place in the food cart. Major food companies are now investing in making snacking experience healthier while building brand loyalty and repeat business. Some of the unique trends in the industry which is trying to establish a healthy perception and rejuvenated addiction for snack items.

Authenticity in every bite: Clearly, the first and the foremost customer demand today is to have natural and healthy ingredients, flavours and fragrances; eliminating the ‘artificial’ from the food system. More and more companies are coming up with products with the goodness of nature to make snacks a healthy.

Health in comfort food: Nothing can beat a ready to fix food packet which is also your comfort food for a stressful, busy day. Most food companies are counting your calories for you while you open a simple packet of noodles or soups. Loaded with fresh vegetables and spices, companies are focusing on healthy alternatives to bring in the same creaminess and crunchiness in your comfort food without upsetting the calorie meter.

The Kraft Heinz Company recently launched a new line of refrigerated soups and savoury- O, That’s Good!, with a nutritious twist on comfort foods. The refrigerated brand uses real ingredients and no artificial flavours or dyes while replacing calorie-laden ingredients with healthier options, for example, mashed potatoes replaced with mashed cauliflower and cheese replaced with butternut squash.

“Refrigerated products are on the rise and we saw an opportunity to drive excitement in this section of the store with convenient soups and sides made with real ingredients and easy preparation,” said Nina Barton, SVP of marketing, innovation and research & development for the US business, Kraft Heinz.

Similarly, McCormick extended its product line with 40 new products with simple and flavourful seasonings, flavoured broths, noodles etc. “People continue to look for simple ways to eat wholesome meals at home that taste amazing,” said Jill Pratt, vice president and general manager of US Core and Specialty McCormick Brands. “Our new products offer many options to make a flavourful breakfast, dinner or snack in minutes – whether it’s heating up a mug of rich turmeric and ginger bone broth for an afternoon pick-me-up, or combining Simply Asia soba noodles with your favourite veggies and broth to make an easy noodle bowl.”

Deep fried, but not fried: The delight of deep-fried delicacies cannot be substituted by anything else, but these snacks break all the parameters of healthy eating. However, food companies are trying to set the needle right. Sensient Flavors offers a deep-fried flavour that comes without the frying. This deep-fried flavour has been used in various products as beverages, dairy items and sweet products.

“Our deep-fried flavour is versatile in its application reach as the flavour adds a bready, fatty and crisp profile of products mimicking the flavours associated with eating a lightly fried food,” said Joshua Jackson, beverage applications technologist at Sensient Flavors.

“An example of its usage is, we blended our spice flavour and the deep-fried flavour to create a churro flavour, which resulted in mimicking the perfect flavour profile of a churro. This was used in a cake product, creating a true-to-taste churro cake, with no actual frying involved.”

Healthy indulgence: On a day to day basis, we are all trying to cut out on junk and incorporate a healthy indulgence like munching on nuts or fruits etc. Food companies have picked up this indulgence by pairing snack items with healthy ingredients such as a nutrition bar loaded with dry fruits, incorporating more dark chocolate, oats, flax seeds etc to cut down on the junk factor in snack items.

“Items with a healthy indulgence angle appeal to consumers who are overly stressed, which certainly isn’t relegated to any specific age or socioeconomic profile,” said Lauren Williams, global director of marketing at Sensient Flavors and based in Hoffman Estates.

Drinking to wellness: There was a time when canned fruit juices were considered healthier than soft drinks. But today these cans are equally under scrutiny for the amount of sugar, artificial colouring, flavouring agents, preservatives and other ingredients added to them. Beverage manufacturers are under pressure to pour in health in every drop with real fruits, vegetables and herbs instead of selling sugar-laden juices. McCormick & Co this year launched a “Morning Jumpstart” drink which has green apples, cucumbers, clementine and a hint of cayenne and an evening refreshment mocktail with pineapple, ginger, turmeric and dandelion greens.

On the other hand, flavours and fragrance giant, Firmenich, introduced its Protein Shield Flavours, which is a line of beverage products with high protein content. While high-protein beverages provide essential nutrients, the bitter and astringent taste of protein is rarely appealing to consumers. Firmenich’s Protein Shield Flavors combine key tonalities with the company’s TasteGEM® technology, which mask the impact that protein can have on taste buds. They have been specifically developed to address the intrinsic bitterness, astringency and dry mouthfeel of a number of proteins, while also enhancing the overall flavour profile.

“These natural solutions confirm Firmenich’s deep commitment to advancing health and wellness. By making healthy taste delicious we aim to make the healthy choice easier for consumers,” said Chris Millington, president of flavours, Firmenich.

The flavours and fragrance industry understands the dire need for healthier alternatives in one of the biggest food segment making healthy snack a definite reality.

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