Del Monte, the premium food brand, has forayed into the health and wellness space with the launch of India’s first cholesterol reducing fruit juice with Reducol.

Heart Smart, a 100 percent mixed fruit juice with Reducol, is a natural plant-based ingredient that is clinically proven to reduce cholesterol in 8 weeks (when taken as a part of a balanced diet).

The company also announced the launch of its ACE, a 100 per cent mixed fruit juice fortified with Vitamins A-C-E and rich in antioxidants that help in boosting immunity.

Heart Smart and ACE will be available in 240 ml packaging and priced at Rs 70. Initially, the juices will be available online on Amazon exclusively. Subsequently, they will be available across all leading supermarkets on e-commerce portals across top cities including Delhi-NCR, Mumbai and Bengaluru. Both the products have a shelf life of 12 months.

Yogesh Bellani, CEO, FieldFresh Foods Private Limited (that manages the Del Monte brand in India), said, “We have always given the highest priority to quality and healthy options while bringing new products to the market. We hope to create new benchmarks in this segment as our beverage with Reducol will be India’s first Juice that helps lower cholesterol.”

“India has a sizeable number of people suffering from cholesterol and heart ailments. We are focussed on helping consumers improve their health through our products,” he added.

Reducol, the trademark ingredient of Heart Smart is a unique plant-based sterol blend, derived from coniferous trees that blocks the absorption of bad cholesterol into the digestive system and naturally flushes it out from the body without affecting the good cholesterol level.

ACE is loaded with the goodness of antioxidants. While Vitamin A enables normal functioning of the immune system, Vitamin C boost immunity and protects the body from infections and Vitamin E helps white blood cells to function effectively.

Both the products have no added sugar and preservatives which makes it an apt fit for today’s health-conscious consumers.

“Del Monte ACE, which has been in under development for a while, is another relevant offering for consumers today given the heightened concerns around immunity stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic. Our endeavour will be to expand this range of 100% fruit juice offerings keeping evolving consumer needs in mind,” said Bellani.

The new products are the result of the company’s detailed research and aim to bring healthy and quality products to the Indian market. Indian consumers are becoming more health conscious.

The company’s research showed that 48 percent of consumers aspire to lead a healthy lifestyle while 51 percent feel there should be healthier snack options available to consumers.

According to the study, 46 percent of consumers look for ‘added nutrition’ while choosing a snack, and 51 percent of buyers look for ‘made with natural ingredients’.

India’s packaged fruit juices category is valued at Rs 5,000 plus crores and is growing steadily, especially the cold-pressed segment, as consumers are ready to pay a premium for quality products.