With tighter restrictions on manufacturers and retailers around products high in fat, salt and sugar, as well as increasing demand from consumers for products that are ‘clean label’– there is a huge focus on how to reduce and remove the amount of ingredients that are going into a product. However, consumers also recognise that choosing healthier foods is not just about avoiding certain ingredients, but about positive nutrition – opting for products that are nutritious or offer ingredients with health-promoting benefits. So how can manufacturers meet the increasing demand for foods that are both clean label and provide benefits for consumers physical and mental wellbeing?
What is positive nutrition?
Positive nutrition refers to foods which provide a meaningful amount of beneficial ingredients for health such as fruits and vegetables, or essential micronutrients such as iodine [1]. It focusses on what good ingredients are being provided, rather than what is being excluded.
In order to function optimally, our bodies need to take in a wide range of essential nutrients every day from various food sources. However, with government strategies to tackle obesity aimed at reducing less beneficial nutrients such as fat and sugar – the focus on health has been shifted to what needs to be minimised in our diets, rather than what needs to be included. While initiatives to eat less can of course be advantageous for tackling public health issues such as obesity, the problem with eating less food means that there is less opportunity to take in nutrients.
With the events of recent years causing people to be more aware of their health than ever before, and 75% of global consumers attempting to eat more healthily [2], manufacturers will need to turn to positive nutrition in order to please the increasingly health-aware consumer.
Adding value, not statements
‘Free from’ and ‘no added’ statements on packaging are now widespread on foods aimed at children and adults alike, with some food items containing up to 17 promotional claims on one pack alone. The extensive use of such claims has reduced the value that they add, with attributes such as ‘no added sugar’ becoming more of an expected, rather than an additional benefit.
What’s more, with almost two thirds of consumers now looking for functional benefits from their food choices [3], it has never been more important for manufacturers to look at how they can add nutritional value to their offerings, rather than statements on what the product does not contain.
What are consumers looking for?
Progressively health-aware consumers are now looking for how products can improve their wellbeing, especially in terms of the specific health benefits that they can provide. While immunity has unsurprisingly been at the forefront of people’s minds recently, it is not the only thing that consumers are looking for.
In fact, 65% of consumers now recognise the link between good cognitive health and overall wellness [4], and over half of consumers are now looking for products which can help to improve their metabolic health [5]. Approved health claims relating to both cognitive and metabolic function, among others, are able to be used by manufacturers – providing the product contains a sufficient amount of the nutrient relating to the claim. Despite this, the use of approved health claims on pack remains relatively underutilised, with one study finding that only 6% of products carried them [6].
How to add positive nutrition
In order to make an approved health claim on pack, the product must contain a source of the nutrient relating to the claim. For example, if a product contains a source of iodine, then ‘contributes to the normal cognitive function’ can be used on pack. A natural and cost effective way of adding iodine to food products is through the use of PureSea® seaweed ingredients, with only 100mg needed per serving to provide a good source of iodine and make health claims. Inclusion of PureSea® ingredients within a product allows for the use of six EU approved health claims, surrounding supporting normal:
Cognitive function
Energy-yielding metabolism
Growth of children
Thyroid function
Skin health
Functioning of the nervous system
Seaweed for health
When it comes to adding a source of iodine to products in order to make approved health claims around cognition, metabolism and more, the only natural and plant-based source is seaweed. PureSea® seaweed ingredients are measured every batch for iodine levels and have evidenced safe and consistent levels over many years of production. What’s more, incorporating PureSea® ingredients into food products can provide additional advantages including salt reduction through flavour enhancement, and health perception, with the addition of seaweed within a product shown to increase the purchase intention of customers [7]. PureSea® is available in a range of formats, allowing ease of use in a wide variety of applications.
Click here to view the full range, or contact us.
[1] https://www.unilever.com/planet-and-society/positive-nutrition/positive-nutrition-and-fortification/
[2] https://fmcggurus.com/blog/fmcg-gurus-understanding-positive-nutrition-in-2021/
[3] https://www.fooddive.com/news/functional-foods-attract-health-conscious-consumers/550429/
[4] https://www.naturalproductsinsider.com/cognitive-health/cognitive-health-growing-priority-consumers
[5] https://www.fooddive.com/news/consumer-trends-shifting-toward-health-and-wellness-adm-finds/584388/
[6] Garcia, A.L., Menon, R. and Parrett, A. (2022) Extensive use of on-pack promotional claims on commercial baby foods in the UK. Archives of Disease in Childhood.
[7] Wageningen University & Research (2018) Innovative consumers more willing to buy foodstuffs containing seaweed.