Page 6 - Food & Drink - June 2018

NEWS
Expo names food trends
PLANT-BASED burgers, CBD hemp oil, and fermented foods will drive business growth in the future, according to panellists at the Naturally Good Expo held
in Sydney.
Buying director of UK retailer
Planet Organic, Al Overton, a panellist at the expo’s Food & Beverage Exporters Forum, said plant-based foods would continue to rise, with classic, ethics-driven vegans and ‘new vegans’ – or flexitarians – now being catered for. Natural products consulting director Bob Burke, one of the speakers in the expo’s educational program, said plant-based burgers
which tasted almost exactly like meat- based burgers were hot property
globally.
For example,
LA-based company Beyond Meat makes vegan burgers high in protein and iron using pea, and beetroot to give the effect of ‘bleeding’.
Another rocketing global
trend expected to reach Australia
following new hemp laws is CBD hemp oil. Overton is seeing interest exploding in his Planet Organic stores, while Burke can verify that the trend shows no signs of abating. CBD oil is made by extracting cannabidiol (or CBD) from the cannabis plant, then diluting it with a carrier oil like coconut or hemp seed oil.
It’s gaining momentum in the health and wellness world, with some scientific studies confirming it may help treat a variety of ailments like chronic pain and anxiety.
Overton says the growing interest in gut health has driven sales for fermented foods and drinks upwards in his business.
Kombucha brands line his shelves, and sauerkraut, kimchi, and sourdough bread are gaining ground due to the rich amount
of probiotics they are believed tocontain. ✷
Archie Rose builds second distillery
ARCHIE Rose Distilling Co. has started building a new distillery and bond store in Botany NSW which is scheduled for completion mid-2019.
The site, the second in
its portfolio, will give the spirits company additional capacity for R&D projects, limited-release products, and a greater focus on sustainable distilling practices.
The Botany site, four kilometres south of Archie Rose’s current Rosebery distillery, will be designed and constructed with energy efficient brewing and distilling technology, some of which is the first of its kind in Australia, according to the company.
It will be specifically engineered and custom-built to accommodate its six-malt single malt mash bill, use of specialty roasted malts, malted rye, and individually distilled gin botanicals.
Once completed, the Botany site will also enable Archie Rose to bring its existing whisky stock into a centralised bond store to better monitor maturation and provide additional capacity for gin, vodka and whisky production. It will see the Rosebery distillery then dedicated to R&D projects and limited- release trials.
“This new site is a massive step for us,” Archie Rose founder Will Edwards said.
“Not only will it allow us to bring all our casks, packaging, raw materials and team back under one roof, but it provides us with the opportunity to re-conceive and design every aspect of the distillery specifically to suit our unique productionmethods.” ✷
Alibaba’s ‘Smart Milk Station’ spruiks Aussie dairy
CHINESE internet giant Alibaba recently tested an experimental retail model
– a Smart Milk Station modelled on a roadside
petrol station – to promote milk to millennials.
The Smart Milk Station was designed to
heighten interest inmilkasa product that could be a part of a daily diet, and the retail experiment took
place at a university in
Hangzhou, China. Alibaba says
theproject,
hosted by its Tmall Juhuasuan business unit and its B2C e-commerce platform Tmall International, was part of an ongoing mission to innovate in new retail technologies.
Students attending the 300-square-meter Smart Milk Station were given recommendations on the type of milk that would meet their requirements after taking a quick quiz. Milk brands from Nestle, Freedom, Fonterra through to Tmall International’s direct-sale brands Maxigenes and Devondale, were included.
After this, students could have a go at winning at a hammer game, like those found at fun fairs, and receive an officiallycertified“milkpower
value”. Those with the higher milk power value could upload their photo onto the screen, and become the spokesperson for the milk station.
Alibaba said the retail concept was developed after a big data analysis revealed that millennials, especially those of college age, liked to consume milk powder as a dietary supplement to boost energy.
“Catering to the preferences of today’s youth, Juhuasuan and Tmall International shorten the distance between brands and these new consumers through the unprecedented yet, as early results indicate, popular approach based on a conventional gas station,” Alibabasaid. ✷
6 | Food&Drink business | June 2018 | www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au