Innovating with Organic Standards in Mind
Appealing to Clean Ingredient Shoppers
While the U.S. retail market remains a tough environment, there are still pockets of growth and opportunity for food manufacturers. One way for brands to innovate around today’s increasingly ingredient-conscious consumer is through organic certification. Adopting a certified organic label will strongly resonate with shoppers’ perception of quality and naturalness. Since nearly 50% of U.S. shoppers purchase organic products because of their positive health connotations, the presence of the USDA organic seal could be a key purchase driver (Mintel).
Additionally, as the media continues to shed brighter light on the various classifications of organic, consumers will become more informed shoppers. While some consumers buy organic products solely for health benefits, 39% purchase them to avoid unnecessary chemicals (Mintel). The “100% Organic” claim will highly appeal to shoppers seeking the purest ingredients.
In terms of food coloring, here are your options for the various front-of-pack organic claims:
Brand managers and product developers should have a clear pre-determined organic label objective from the start. Additionally, both must be fully aware of the National List, since it’s always evolving. This is important since the USDA clearly states brands must replace “non-organic” or “organic compliant” ingredients with certified versions as they become commercially available. For this reason alone, “100% Organic” food products require long-term planning to secure supply of certified organic ingredients. To support food manufacturers’ innovation of “100% Organic” products, growing our Certified Organic food color portfolio is a top priority at Sensient to ensure supply availability and cost certainty. The availability of more Certified Organic food color also helps to alleviate any concern over the need to reformulate in the future.
Formulating with Certified Organic Food Color
In order for a food color to be “Certified Organic,” the farming of the botanical source must maintain the same level of purity as the color extraction process and must meet all organic certification requirements. This level of transparency and quality oversight is a key pillar for Sensient’s organic strategy. Our portfolio of Certified Organic food color ranges in strength from EV 4 to EV 30 and provides a variety of shades in liquid and powder forms. The number one tip for formulating with Certified Organic food color is mindfulness of processing parameters’ impact on color performance.
Let’s take a look at some application examples:
Are you looking for Certified Organic food colors to bring your flavors to life? Click here to request samples from our portfolio.
My team and I are also available to talk through Certified Organic Food Color in other applications too. Please feel free to reach out to us here.
