8-6 |
Developing and marketing of food products to meet individual needs of population segments |
I. B. MEHROTRA, Bell Institute of Health & Nutrition, General Mills, Inc., James Ford Bell Technical Ctr., 9000 Plymouth Ave. N., MS 7-2046, Minneapolis, MN 55427-3870 The food industry has a history of responding to the nutritional needs of consumers. As strong scientific support for the role of nutrients or components of foods emerges, the food industry incorporates these components into processed food products. Examples include Vitamin D-fortified milk, calcium-fortified orange juice, increased fiber cereals, and folate-fortified flour. The emerging sciences of genomics, proteomics, metabolomics and bioinformatics will open up new opportunities for the food industry in the area of individualized nutrition. As consumers’ awareness increases of the positive impact of conventional nutrients, phytochemicals, and bioactive components on prevention of chronic diseases and enhancement of health, they will look to the food industry to provide convenient and good tasting “functional foods” that have been nutritionally enhanced to meet their individual needs. Several companies have attempted to take advantage of consumers’ increasing knowledge about the impact of nutrition on health, as witnessed by the greater than $30 billion functional food market that exists today. Many of the products in the marketplace are in the form of nutritionally dense bars and beverages that have been fortified with proteins from specific sources, fiber, vitamins, minerals, and/or antioxidants. But in the future, consumers will expect these nutritional improvements to be present in a wide variety of food products. This presentation will focus on the opportunities and challenges facing the food industry as they develop and market products geared to the individual nutritional requirements of their consumers. Challenges include technical hurdles in product development, the impact of segmentation on size of the market opportunity, consumer awareness and acceptance, effective marketing messages, avenues for delivery of products beyond the conventional supermarket, and issues related to pricing and profitability. These factors will influence the food industry’s interest in pursuing individualized nutrition as a marketable opportunity.
Session 8, Tailoring food choices to improve health: What role will the food industry play?
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