Summary
The functional foods market is a highly complex one. Success with a new product or ingredient in this harsh and demanding market is very rare. In fact, failure is far more common than success and most products sell on a niche basis with very, very select few ever graduating into the mass market.
In this one-of-a-kind report, the demise of brands such as Novartis' Aviva; Unilever's blood pressure-lowering drink; Delamere Dairy's Top Life Prime Time: Danone's Activ; Pfizer's Body Smarts; and Marks & Spencer's & More become the bases for five valuable lessons about branding, marketing, health claims and product differentiation. The stories behind the languishing US sterols market, lactoferrin and lutein provide five lessons about the dos and don'ts of nutrition science commercialisation.
Each of the brands and ingredients covered in this case study are based on interviews with executives at the companies concerned. They speak with considerable frankness as they describe the challenges they have encountered and overcome. We have set their opinions in the context of our own analysis - which means that we do not always agree with some companies' self-analysis - to create a template that is intended to be of use to anyone trying to develop a new product with health benefits or devise a strategy in health.
The categories that we cover in this report are:
- Breakfast cereals and cereal bars
- Dairy drinks
- Confectionery
- Water
- Juice drinks
- Ready meals
This 63-page report is authored by Julian Mellentin - an acknowledged international expert on the business of food, nutrition and health - the insights have been derived from over ten years of dedicated research in the area. Much of the research originates from work on our journal, New Nutrition Business - one of a very few industry publications dedicated to this important area - other examples have been gained from work with clients around the world.
|
