Synergy milk flavours plug Asia’s flourishing reduced-fat RTD sector

17-Jun-2012 - Last updated on 18-Jun-2012 at 15:54 GMT

Asian milk flavours set to cash in on reduced-fat trend in RTD sector, says Synergy

Related tags Milk

Flavours and ingredients firm Synergy has launched a milk flavours line in response to the surging fat reduction demands across Asia’s ready-to-drink (RTD) category.

The milk flavours are especially focused on tea and coffee applications and have been developed to replace regular milk powders.

Wayne Gower, marketing manager AT Synergy, said that health and wellness represents a strong sub-segment in Asia’s food and beverage market, with fat reduction a particularly prevalent trend.

“As consumer demand continues to grow, so does the number of products with a low-fat positioning and manufacturers need to continue to innovate to stand out from the crowd,” Gower told FoodNavigator-Asia.

“One significant area for development is low and reduced-fat versions of popular RTD teas and coffees,” he said, and the new range takes aim at this gap in the market.

By reducing fats in RTDs “manufacturers can open up their products to consumers keen to manage their weight or simply lead a more health-focused lifestyle,” he added.

Datamonitor research shows that Asia’s RTD market is surging with Thailand alone expected to see a 14% increase in value by 2015.

The milk flavours range was jointly developed by Synergy and its parent company Carbery – a whey protein specialist.

“Synergy marries Carbery’s dairy expertise with its extensive flavour capabilities and consumer and market insights to create flavour profiles that meet both manufacturers’ needs and consumers’ expectations,” Gower said.

Tailored to tastes of Asia

“When it comes to dairy, sweet notes tend to be more prevalent in the Asian market than savoury,” he said, and milky and creamy dairy notes tend to perform well in sweet applications such as RTDs.

The milk flavours range has been especially tailored to these Asian taste profiles, he said, and modified to cater to regional taste preferences.

The range includes four unique ingredients aligned with key dairy profiles – fresh, skimmed, condensed milk and a dairy enhancer. The ingredients are spray dried and available in powder format and remain heat stable up to 200°C

Each ingredient is developed using Carbery’s proprietary whey technology which is stable in price and supply, he said, offering a number of cost advantages over dairy fats.