SternLife unveils vegan functional bar ingredient concepts

10 Nov 2020 --- SternLife is presenting two vegan concepts suitable for functional bars NPD. The Vegan Deluxe blends offer a palatable taste with a high-quality nutrient profile to capitalize on the vegan megatrend, the company supports.

A prototype bar created by the company delivers a 25 percent content of plant proteins from pea, soy and rice. Moreover, it offers a 13 percent content of saturated dietary fibers and less than one percent of sugar. The bar combines an indulgent cookie base with caramel creme.

“Our special focus is on those segments that still offer good positioning opportunities. There is definitely space for improvement when it comes to the existing range of vegan protein bars,” says Lüder Holsten, product manager at SternLife.

“This inspired us to develop the Vegan Deluxe concept. Of course, saturated markets are more challenging in terms of successful product launches but are by no means unmanageable. To stand out from the crowd, innovation is a must,” Holsten adds.

Closely related to the vegan trend is plant-based, which has reached global phenomenon status. Innova Market Insights has hailed “Plant-Forward” as its second Top Trend for F&B product development in 2021. 

Deliciously functional
Indulgence is also the focus of SternLife’s second concept, coined Grand Deluxe – an innovation that allows for 22 percent of the bar to consist of filling. The company says this is a novelty within the conventional protein bar segment. 

“Our Grand Deluxe concept is the best example of a new generation of protein bars. Never before has there been so much filling in an industrially produced functional bar,” Holsten claims. 

With its broad portfolio of ingredients, SternLife says it is able to customize the sensory, nutritional and functional properties of the bars, according to the positioning and target groups their customers aim for.

In addition, customers benefit from the company’s application-specific competence. Vegan bars are particularly challenging from a sensory perspective, as their texture and taste differ substantially from milk- and whey-based counterparts. 

SternLife says there is space for improvement within the vegan protein bars segment.

For the Vegan Deluxe prototype, the functional foods company combined the raw materials in a specific way to create a good taste profile without the off-flavors often found in purely plant-based recipes. A crunchy peanut topping also ensures a harmonious texture.

Health foods proliferate
Functional bars and snacks have been rising in popularity in recent years. Premium products, high-quality nutrient profiles and vegan recipes, in particular, are all driving demand. As a result, the European bar market is fairly well saturated, the company says.

In 2019, Innova Market Insights indicated that 56 percent of consumers aged between 26 and 55 years said that they had increased their consumption of functional F&B over the previous year.

According to data from the market researcher, food and beverage launches with active health claims are seeing a growth of 11 percent (Global, 2018 versus 2019). There is a particular focus on healthy aging, both for seniors and for younger demographics already engaging with preventative care. 

SternLife provides proteins, dietary fibers and functional ingredients, as well as fillings, toppings, inclusions and chocolate coatings. This allows for the development of creative, customized and innovative functional bar solutions for all target groups and markets.

Whether in the field of sports, weight management, health or healthy aging, high-quality ingredients, state-of-the-art technologies and comprehensive application expertise make the perfect combination for successful market launches, the company supports.

Earlier this year, SternLife developed three fiber-rich prebiotic powder supplements for product concepts targeting the gut health trend and its link to heart health and weight management. The “Heart,” “Slimming” and “fiber Plus” supplement concepts deliver ingredients for a healthy gut by combining soluble and insoluble dietary fibers.

By Kristiana Lalou