A very bright future for colouring food with food [Interview]

“The focus on flavour is of course as valid as it has ever been,” says Collins. “But in the age of ‘Instagramification’ and online shopping, the appearance of food has become ever more critical.”

“This in essence is what we are all about. All colourings are made from fruits, vegetables, and edible plants. There is nothing unexpected. In fact, as per the principle, EXBERRY^® colours are foods in their own right, which can be consumed at any point during our manufacturing process."

“We can help customers in their transition to natural colours,” explains Collins. “We have dedicated teams that can support different aspects, from application support, shelf life assessment and even through to calculating the carbon footprint of any colour.”

“There are also other compliance issues that need to be addressed not to mention the important point of appropriate label declaration. We also have expertise in these areas.”

“There is a new generation that wants to know exactly where their food comes from,” says Collins. “The only way of achieving this is to be directly involved all the way down to the farm. Having strong supply chain capabilities - and having invested in stock - also ensured that we were able to continue servicing the market during this time of crisis.”

“Colours can also be associated with specific cuisines - Thai and Mexican for example – and so we can advise customers on how they can make their products really resonate with consumers.”

“In any case, it is clear that plant-based, which might once have been considered niche, is now a mainstream trend. For consumers, this is increasingly a question of balance and common sense, of varying their diets and cutting down on meat-based products.”

“This year, our Shades of Aqua campaign demonstrates our ability to connect colour with consumer mood” says Collins. “We were excited to see lots of blue and green products coming onto market embracing this colour trend.”

“This has become a powerful word, and it will be interesting to see how this plays out. We are increasingly mindful of the fact that young emerging consumers are bringing with them different expectations and values in this respect.”

“Manufacturers should bear in mind that controlling the supply chain is the only way to transparently take care of the ethical and environmental issues related to sustainability. We are confident that we are in the right place to meet this need.”

“We aim to identify unmet needs with our customers. Innovation will play an even bigger role in how we position ourselves in the market.”

“Because our EXBERRY^® brand name is difficult to pronounce in the important Chinese market, we translated the word into phonetic Chinese characters. I think this is a good example of market adaptation.”

“In this ever-changing world we are very focused on dealing with all challenges, for example the changing regulatory environment and keeping manufacturers well informed. We pioneered this colouring food with food concept, so we take great pride and responsibility in ensuring that the concept is supported for the future.”