Retailers can maximise profits by stocking key products from the Caribbean food and drink sector, one of the rising stars of the UK’s world foods market.
Enco Products Ltd, a subsidiary of Grace Foods UK which accounts for almost one third of all Caribbean food and drink sold in the UK*, advises retailers to take advantage of rapidly growing demand for exciting new flavours.
“These are exciting times for Caribbean food and drink,” says Nyree Chambers, Head of Marketing for Enco Products Ltd, the Grace Foods UK subsidiary. “Category loyalists are buying more than ever before as they become more adventurous with their cooking, while new consumers are expanding their taste horizons across a growing range of food and drink products.”
This year Enco Products Limited is fuelling excitement for the category with the largest NPD programme the £72 million* Caribbean food and drink category has ever seen.
Amongst the new products launched are two new variants of refreshing Grace Aloe, which is now available in Strawberry and Mango.
“Grace Aloe, a refreshing drink full of the natural benefits of the aloe vera plant, meets the growing demand for functional beverages,” says Chambers. “The aloe vera plant is known for its health properties, which are thought to encourage healthy digestion and help to support the immune system. Grace Aloe, which harnesses these properties as well as tasting deliciously refreshing, has real appeal for consumers.”
Retailers can also meet the demand for functional beverages by stocking Nurishment, the UK’s best-selling nutritionally enriched milk drink**.
Nurishment supplies consumers with much of the day-to-day goodness they need, including vitamins, minerals, calcium and as much as 20g of protein per pack.
“As consumers’ lives become ever more hectic, they’re looking for more than just great taste from their food and drink – they’re also looking for products that will help take care of their bodies,” says Chambers. “Nurishment meets this demand by helping to replenish lost energy through its exclusive mix of vitamins and minerals.
“Nurishment adds an exciting new dimension to the category and offers a range of seven different flavours to cater for all tastes – strawberry, vanilla, chocolate, raspberry, banana, mango and peanut.”
Retailers should also stock up on BBQ essentials, tying into the growing consumer interest in world foods.
Encona Sauces, the UK’s number one hot pepper sauce brand***, is experiencing strong growth of 20.1%*** and provides retailers with the perfect solution to drive incremental BBQ sales.
“The broad variety of uses around the BBQ occasion highlights the profit potential that spicy sauces provide. Whether for dipping, marinating or as a hot condiment, the Encona range has a product for every usage occasion,” says Chambers.
Encona recently expanded its market-leading sauces range with the addition of two variants: Encona African Peri Peri Sauce and Encona West Indian Extra Hot Pepper Sauce, the brand’s hottest ever SKU.
The versatility of the Encona Sauces range makes it a real must-stock for convenience retailers. Chambers adds: “Some consumers may not be aware that Encona Sauces can be used for a wide range of cooking occasions. Whether it is as an ingredient for cooking, a marinade before grilling or barbequing, as a table sauce or simply as a dressing or a dip and the range offers maximum profit potential.”
Such is the consumer interest in Caribbean food and drink that in 2012 Grace Foods organised the UK’s first ever Caribbean Food Week. The celebration of Caribbean food and drink will be repeated in 2013 in the run-up to Notting Hill Carnival, Europe’s biggest street festival, 19-25 August 2013.
“We’ll be supplying an extensive range of POS for retailers, enabling them to benefit from the UK’s biggest celebration of Caribbean food and drink,” adds Chambers.
* IRI Afro-Caribbean Food and Drink Category, MAT 52 w/e January 5 2013.
** IRI Nutritionally Enriched Milk Drink Category – Unit Sales, MAT 52 w/e October 27, 2012.
*** IRI Grocery Outlets 52 w/e 5 January 2013
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