Functional Bars: Gearing Products to Specific Target Groups

Only a few years ago, functional bars were still directed chiefly towards athletes. But in the meantime they have become a segment in their own right and serve a diversity of target groups. However, the focus is still on active sports.

14 Dec 2012 --- Functional chocolate bars are one of the booming segments of the rapidly expanding functional food market. They combine the continuing health and fitness trend with convenience and pleasure. Variants directed towards specific target groups offer considerable value-added potential.

Only a few years ago, functional bars were still directed chiefly towards athletes. But in the meantime they have become a segment in their own right and serve a diversity of target groups. However, the focus is still on active sports. “There are now special bars that meet the specific nutritional demands of different forms of sport”, says Marc van Essen, Key Account Manager at HERZA Schokolade. “Cyclists need different nutrients from body-builders, so there is a correspondingly high level of diversification.” That is also true of the approach to other target groups. Through the specific use of amino acids, dietary fibres, secondary plant metabolites, vitamins or fatty acids, for example, it is possible to create special bars that meet the needs of individual consumer groups. Protein bars, for instance, serve as meal replacers in the context of a calorie-reduced diet. An interesting substance in this connection is L-carnitine, which has become known chiefly as a “fat burner”.

Another of the growing categories is lifestyle products. HERZA’s product developer Kim Herrmann: “Besides bars containing guarana, variants that promote concentration and performance are conceivable. This effect can be achieved with omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and lecithin powder. And even a beauty bar could be developed with the use of coenzyme Q10. In principle there is no end to the possibilities.” As a contract manufacturer, HERZA offers functional bars to suppliers of branded products for athletes, health products and dietetic foods. These are based on formulations specified by the customer or on HERZA’s own standard recipes. In addition, the company develops tailor-made products which enable customers to stand out from their competitors. “Many firms come to us with an idea for a product, which we then realize and prepare for the market together,” Kim Herrmann explains. “Our advantage is that we have been using functional ingredients in the production of our chocolate pieces for a number of years, so we have the necessary experience. This experience helps us with the development of functional bars. We already use pro- and prebiotic products, guarana, antioxidants and dietary fibres which satisfy the appetite and cause only a gradual rise in the blood glucose level.” Of course the optimum composition of the nutrients and their exact dosage can be adjusted individually. And with the aid of the latest production technology we can ensure that the specified amounts of the nutrients are maintained precisely in each and every bar.

At the recently enlarged Technology Centre of the Stern-Wywiol Gruppe, the company’s experts have a total of 3,000 square metres of sophisticated plant and equipment at their disposal for testing combinations of nutrients and any interactions between them. Besides this, HERZA has a laboratory of its own specializing in applications for chocolate. In addition to the supply of nutrients, the enjoyment value of functional bars plays an important role. Flavour, consistency and mouth feel must be taken into account too. In the production of bars, HERZA benefits by it years of experience in the manufacture of chocolates. This know-how enables the company not only to work different ingredients like crispies or nuts into the paste forming the core of the bar but also to scatter them on the bars before the latter are coated with chocolate.

As a member of the Stern-Wywiol Gruppe the company also draws on the knowledge and resources of its sister firms – SternVitamin as a nutrient specialist and SternMaid for the production of the base mixture. Because of this network of cooperation within the group, the contract manufacturer is able to supply the whole package: from product development through production of the base mixture to completion and packaging of the bars