Page 26 - FoodFocusThailand No.168 March 2020

SPECIAL FOCUS
SPECIAL FOCUS

Clean label is big business. Euromonitor
International estimates that global sales of
clean-label food products will reach $180
billion by 2020.

Clean-label Trend Expands

Beyond Ingredients

Transparency and Consumer

Education are Musts

Clean label used to mean a food or beverage was free from artificial finalized in December 2018. They define GMO foods, but do not define
flavors, colors and preservatives. But the category has evolved. Now non-GMO. The new rule exempts milk that comes from animals fed
consumers want to know the origin of the ingredients in their food and with bioengineered ingredients, as well as foods certified under the
beverages, and how those food and beverages were processed. Clean- National Organic Program. Dairy companies that produce cheese or
eating consumers scrutinize not only the ingredients, but also the yogurt made with bioengineered yeasts or rennet should review the
sustainability, traceability and animal welfare practices of the brands new law closely. New regulations state that those substances may
they purchase. Clean label has also been defined as simple and be exempted if they qualify as an incidental additive or if they do not
transparent. contain detectable modified genetic material.
With so many potential lanes of the clean-label movement to explore, Grade A. One year ago, Unilever started putting “Partnering with
dairy companies should be able to find one or more clean-label niches American Farmers — 100% Grade A Milk and Cream” on packages
that fit specific company brands. of Breyer’s ice cream. The new label exemplifies the company’s
ongoing pledge to source only the highest-quality ingredients and
Clean-label Opportunities support the livelihood of American farmers.
Here are some opportunities and updates for dairy in the clean/ethical Local. Shatto Milk Co. is a small family-owned and family-operated
label space: dairy farm near Kansas City, Mo. It promotes its local products through
Simple. Despite the growth of plant-based dairy alternatives, milk tours of the farm and processing facility. Shatto also packages its milk
remains a clean, simple ingredient. Plain fluid milk has three ingredients in environmentally friendly glass bottles.
— milk, vitamin A and vitamin D. Popular brands of soy or almond milk Grassfed. According to Euromonitor International, consumers
contain 10 or more ingredients. are increasingly sensitive to animal welfare. The market research
Organic. A Cargill white paper shows that 68% of consumers firm’s most recent “Lifestyle and Beauty Survey” showed that 29.1%
associate “organic” with clean label. Attributes not associated with clean of consumers’ purchasing decisions were influenced by “free-range”
label include “made with ingredients that sound like a chemical” (55%) features versus 18.8% that were influenced by “grass-fed/pasture-
and “contains GMOs” (44%). According to Nielsen Homescan data, raised” features.
millennial households spent 8% more on organic products in the 52- Plant-based alternatives. It’s interesting to note that some dairy-
week period ending Feb. 23, 2019, than in the previous 52-week period. alternative proteins are produced in a fermentation tank with a
Hispanics spent 12% more than in the previous period. genetically engineered microbe. But certain consumers are willing to
No GMOs. The new USDA GMO/bioengineered regulations were accept GMOs and a long list of ingredients in these products because
they feel that they are helping the planet.
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