From being a lifestyle choice for a small consumer segment, organic foodstuffs and functional products are growing in market share. This is according to Avril group subsidiary and French lecithin producer Novastell, highlighting that while Millennials are credited for driving growth in this sector, the perception that organic products are better-for-you still resonates with consumers.

Novastell offers several grades of organic ingredients, specifications coupled with complete traceability of sunflower, rapeseed and soy lecithin.

Organic highs
Sales of food and beverage organic products in the US reached US$52.5 billion in 2018, up 6.3% from the previous year, according to the 2019 Organic Industry Survey by US-based organic watchdog OTA. 

Novastell offers organic lecithin, from soybean and sunflower, both in fluid and powder forms, as a functional food additive for organic food producers.Organic food sales also increased 5.9% to US$47.9 billion, outpacing total food sales at 2.3%.

The UK has also seen a continuation of a decade of growth, with 4.5% recorded in 2019. 

Growth in the organic market depends on strong and enforceable standards that underpin organic certification, Novastell asserts. 

This, coupled with the belief that organic agricultural practices can play a role in mitigating climate change, will continue to drive growth and NPD.

Pandemic pressures 
COVID-19 disruptions in 2020 and 2021 have resulted in many new opportunities in all food channels, especially organic products. 

“The pandemic fundamentally changed the way many people view food, beverages and supplements. This fact was echoed in market acceleration during 2020 with growth of 6.1% – almost double that of non-organic food and drink products (3.2%) for the week ending May 2020,” Novastell outlines. 

The foodservice sector was one of the hardest-hit sectors of the economy during the global lockdown. 

As such, there was a marked increase in food purchases for home use. Economically, this allowed shoppers to indulge in higher quality and premium item lines – including chilled convenience food and milk alternatives. 

Protecting the organic brand 
A massive challenge facing organic ingredients and products manufacturers is managing global supply chains, especially when raw ingredients are sourced overseas. Maintaining the integrity of a product’s origin is closely linked to transparency and chain of custody. 

This is a critical step in the supply chain and impacts brands’ credibility and reputation. In this sense, traceability is a key issue to ensure the correct provenance of ingredients and final products.

Increasing transparency to meet evolving ethical, environmental and clean label consumer demands is crucial to product development. This is evidenced by Innova Market Insights’ Top Trend for 2021, “Transparency Triumphs.”

Notably, the consumer lifestyle trend toward cleaner living is broadening and heightening expectations around what constitutes a clean label.

Next level organic ingredients  Traceability is a vital issue to ensure the correct provenance of ingredients and final products, says Novastell.
The scope for organic ingredient innovation for use in the processed food and beverage market is massive and functional ingredients such as Novastell’s Puredia Tibetan Sea Buckthorn are in high demand, the company notes. 

Harvested from small orange berries rich in oil, vitamins and antioxidants, the health properties of sea buckthorn have been highlighted in traditional Asian medicine for centuries.

Puredia’s SeaBerry range is produced from sea buckthorn grown and harvested in Tibet at an altitude of more than 4,800 meters. 

The preserved environment of Tibetan mountains and the harsh climatic conditions associated with high altitude contribute to the production of unique sea buckthorn products, devoid of contaminants with high levels of nutrients and active components.

Tibetan SeaBerry is organic, halal and kosher certified, and suitable for vegan and vegetarian diets. Available in a standardized format, its omega 7 fatty acids, vitamin E and vitamin C, suitable for drink formulations, water dispersible powder blends and dry food supplement forms.

“These products are all organically certified according to the European organic agriculture regulations. This range is composed of different oils and powders which can be formulated in beauty-from-within food supplements,” says Carla Felgueiras, global product manager ingredients at Novastell.

“We can also provide natural tocopherols as antioxidants and natural vitamin E that are suitable to be incorporated in organic products.”

“Our nutritional and functional bioactive ingredients, specialty oils, active plant-based molecules, natural vitamin E and mixed tocopherols are healthy and efficient molecules for use during product development,” she concludes.