A new juice claim trend sets products apart

It used to be that the inherent vitamins and minerals in juice were enough for consumers. Now, a morning serving of orange juice needs to be premium, a glass of apple juice better be organic, and the smoothie grabbed on the run has to have added functional ingredients. Juice companies are stepping up the ingredients in their products to have the most beneficial and trendiest product claims.

Orange juice remains the category’s most popular offering, but once again this year, orange crops fell short of expectations, which led to price increases. Yet, consumers weren’t much affected by increased costs as the refrigerated orange juice category was up 4.1 percent, according to Information Resources Inc., Chicago, for the year ending Nov. 4, 2007. This year, three of the top brands in IRI’s top 10 are formulated for specific demographics, such as Tropicana Pure Premium Healthy Kids and Minute Maid Premium for Kids, and the more mature Tropicana Pure Premium Healthy Heart orange juice brands.

In 2007, many juice products touted their 100 percent juice content. This represents the consumer trend toward better-for-you beverages, which means undiluted products. A Euromonitor report on the juice category published in July forecasted strong growth for 100 percent juice brands through 2011, while fruit-flavored drinks, which contain no juice, are slated for a continued slip in the future. 

Many brands touted their all-juice properties. Ocean Spray, Lakeville-Middleboro, Mass., continued to ride the antioxidant wave, releasing 100 percent Cranberry & Pomegranate juices in April. Concord, Mass.-based Welch’s also extended its 100 percent fruit juice line with new White Grape Cherry, Tropical Passionfruit, Kiwi Strawberry, White Grape Pomegranate and Raspberry Lime juices.

Premium is a buzzword that has swept the beverage and food industries in the past few years. The tagged products range from “premium” to “organic.” Last year was no exception. Products carrying “premium” and “organic” tags ranked highly in the top claims on Mintel’s Global New Products Database for new juices in 2007.

Juice producers continued to roll out organic options. A division of PepsiCo, Tropicana Products Inc., Chicago, offers Organic Orchard Medley 100 percent juice blend in addition to Organic Orange Juice. In April, Uncle Matt’s Organic released Orange, Pineapple, Banana and Orange, Peach and Mango 100 percent juice blends to the market. The company also added Homestyle Lemonade to its lineup in the spring.

The latest super-premium offering is not relegating itself to the produce section. In late October, Snapple introduced a line of Super Premium Juice Drinks in “Good for You Flavors,” including Goji Punch, Peach Mangosteen, Noni Berry and Kiwi Pear. The full-calorie Goji Punch and Peach Mangosteen varieties are formulated for immune-boosting benefits, while low-calorie Noni Berry and Kiwi Pear feature metabolism boosts from caffeine and EGCG.

“Our new Super Premium Juice Drinks will contribute to a healthy immune system and provide the metabolism-boosting benefits consumers look for, complete with plenty of the great taste that they expect from Snapple,” said Bryan Mazur, vice president and general manager of Snapple for Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages, Plano, Texas, in a statement.

The vitamin boost naturally occurring in fruits and vegetables is not enough for some consumers. Companies are responding by fortifying juice with additional ingredients to make it even healthier. In 2007, juice drinks were launched with added fiber, plant sterols and probiotics.

According to Brian Morgan, senior analyst with Euromonitor, Chicago, fortified juices are a way for juice companies to add targeted demographic appeal to their product. Juices with added joint, brain and digestive health ingredients target the adult population, while juice energy blends skew to younger consumers.

Cholesterol-lowering plant sterols are featured in Minute Maid Heart Wise orange juice, which received a packaging facelift in 2007. The Heart Wise variety, which offers 1 gram of plant sterols per 8-ounce serving, is now packaged in a 59-ounce PET bottle with easy-pour side grip.

The packaging also was used for two new additions to the Minute Maid Enhanced line, Minute Maid Multi-Vitamin and Minute Maid Active. The Multi-Vitamin Variety features 16 essential vitamins and minerals, while Minute Maid Active is fortified with Glucosamine HCl to support healthy joints. The latest addition to the Minute Maid Enhanced line came in November with the debut of Pomegranate Blueberry. The juice boasts 50-mg. of omega-3/DHA in an 8-ounce serving as well as four additional nutrients for brain function.

In addition to Tropicana’s orange juice with fiber, Welch’s debuted a 100 percent grape juice with fiber in March. An 8-ounce serving of the grape juice boasts 3 grams of soluble fiber, or 10 percent of the daily value. It also offers antioxidants that are naturally included in grape juice, the company says. Welch’s 100 percent grape juice with fiber is available in a 64-ounce bottle.

The digestive benefits of probiotics made their debut in the juice category with Naked Juice’s introduction of Tropical Mango Probiotic 100 percent juice smoothie. The Azusa, Calif.-based company features bifidobacterium for added digestive and immunity benefits. In contrast to the majority of Naked Juice’s lineup, Tropical Mango Probiotic is packaged in a single-serve 10-ounce bottle that boasts two servings of fruit.

Last month, Nestlé USA and Jamba Juice announced their partnership for ready-to-drink versions of Jamba Juice’s beverage menu. As is done in Jamba Juice’s retail outlets, the RTD smoothies and juices will feature an added functional “boost.”

“We are seeing trends towards healthier and single-serve drinks,” says Steven Presley, vice president and general manager for RTD beverages for Nestlé USA, Glendale, Calif. “This is largely driven by more health-conscious consumers who are looking for new ways to enhance their overall wellness and give their energy level a boost without compromising on taste. The new Jamba RTD product utilizes the power of fruit and Jamba’s signature line of boosts to provide consumers with a more natural and healthful source of energy, with the same delicious taste so many consumers love from Jamba’s made-to-order stores.”

Slated for launch in the second quarter of 2008, the lineup includes Strawberries Wild with Energy Boost, Orange Dream Machine with Immunity Boost and Banana Berry with Heart Health Boost. In addition to the boosts, both the smoothie and juice offerings are made with fruit and a splash of low-fat or non-fat milk.

The RTD Jamba Juice product with energy boost joins a larger trend of juice-based energy drinks, such as Naked Juice’s energy smoothie line, Del Monte’s Bloom energy drink and Monster Energy’s Khaos. The juices with added energy are reinvigorating the category for one demographic.

“The younger teens to young adults have a different interest in juice and are drawn to the 100 percent juice energy drinks with added caffeine,” Morgan says.

Apple & Eve, Roslyn, N.Y., extends the demographic limit to 35-year-olds for its Awake morning energy drink. The 100 percent juice drink is available in Orange Tangerine flavor and targeted toward 25- to 35-year-olds who do not like to drink coffee in the morning. Awake and Awake Light have caffeine equivalent of a 12-ounce cup of coffee as well as Essentra, a patented “restorative and rejuvenating extract.”

Just as pomegranate and acai have forged new ground in the juice category, the latest fruit juices are introducing new exotic flavors to the market. Grape juice may not be new, but First Blush introduced 100 percent varietal grape juice made from fruits more familiar in their fermented state. The juices, made by the Santa Barbara, Calif.-based company, are available in Cabernet, Merlot and Chardonnay.

Another new entry from a familiar fruit, NBI Juiceworks, Orlando, Fla., introduced nectarine juices to the market. Under the brand Sun Shower, the company offers eight varieties of nectarine juice and blends.

“The one thing we are learning from our research is that consumers are reading the product labels very carefully and looking for healthy items, and Sun Shower 100 percent nectarine juices definitely fit in this category,” says Chris New, founder, chairman and chief executive officer of NBI Juiceworks. “We recognize that consumers want a combination of the absence of negatives and the presence of positives in the juices they drink and Sun Shower provides that with an exceptional taste experience.”

Sun Shower nectarine juices are high in potassium, vitamin C, beta carotene, antioxidants and phytonutrients, New says. An 8-ounce serving of the nectarine juice is 90 calories and provides one serving of fruit.

The lineup is available in Nectarine, Nectarine Pomegranate, Nectarine Mango, Nectarine Cranberry, Nectarine Acai, Nectarine Grape Orange and Nectarine Berry varieties. Also part of the Sun Shower portfolio is Turbo G Superfood, which is a fruit juice blend featuring juice from nectarines, grapes, apples, kiwis, bananas and many functional ingredients.

Unlike goji and acai berries, one subtropical fruit’s name does not hint at its exotic source. This fall, yumberry juice was introduced to the market by Frutzzo LLC, Alpine, Utah. The subtropical fruit is high in vitamins, minerals, fiber and antioxidants, the company says. Frutzzo, which began in the business with its pomegranate juices, released the product in 100 percent Yumberry, Yumberry Pomegranate, Yumberry Blueberry and Yumberry Cherry all-natural varieties as well as Organic Yumberry, Yumberry Pomegranate and Yumberry Blueberry.

On the fringes of the juice category, Euromonitor’s Morgan mentions coconut water as a possible growing trend. Coconut water is classified as a juice in Europe and is popular in the Asia and Pacific region as an all-natural, rejuvenating beverage for post-exercise, he says. In those areas of the world, coconut water is offered in gyms, spas and yoga studios as an electrolyte rich product similar to Gatorade, Morgan explains.

In the United States, Amy and Brian Naturals offers 100 percent Coconut Juice, Coconut Juice with Pulp and Coconut Juice with Lime. The lineup, available through Market Connections Group, Monrovia, Calif., is all natural and is made from young coconuts. Also highlighting the properties of coconut water is Los Angeles-based O.N.E. World Enterprises. The brand markets 100 percent coconut water in 11-ounce Tetra Paks to athletes, children, nursing moms and those battling dehydration.

The rise in functional juice blends have brought more adults to a category that used to be more popular with the playground set. Yet, parents and school officials are increasingly concerned about what children are consuming and juice boxes that are high in sugar or have artificial sweeteners and ingredients are not making the cut.

This year, 100 percent juice boxes were introduced by Minute Maid, Capri Sun and Back to Nature. But more than 100 percent juice, some moms are concerned about the source of the fruit and choose to go organic for their children. Apple & Eve, Roslyn, N.Y., offers organic juices in single-serve plastic bottles and juice boxes.

“Kids’ juices and waters are filling the void left by carbonated soft drink manufacturers in schools,” says Brian Morgan, senior analyst for Euromonitor International, Chicago. “There is a big market to fill in schools that has become more and more important. New offerings also need to take vending machine opportunities in mind.”

Sparkling juices are sweeping into the space vacated by carbonated soft drinks. PepsiCo’s Izze brand has made inroads in school lunchrooms. And this year, Apple & Eve introduced Fizz Ed. The product is an 8.5-ounce can of 70 percent fruit juice and 30 percent sparkling water. The line is available in Red Raspberry, Pomegranate Cherry, Orange Mango and Green Apple.

“Fizz Ed is a new ‘un-soda’ that is nutritionally packed and pure and natural, with no added sugars,” explains Jeff Damiano, director of marketing for Apple & Eve, Roslyn, N.Y. “It is under 100 calories in an 8.5-ounce serving. It addresses obesity issues because it has only natural sugars and no high fructose corn syrup. It has been well-received by school foodservice.”