Danisco taps Eastern Europe's probiotic dairy trend

Eastern Europe has reinforced its reputation for dynamic dairy innovation as Poland’s Bakoma launches a new range of probiotic yoghurts using Danisco’s HOWARU cultures.

Bakoma, one of Poland's leading dairy firms, will make the probiotic Bifido yoghurts available in plain and strawberry flavours.

“We wanted a premium well-documented probiotic strain to clearly position our new range of health-related yoghurt drinks as a benchmark,” said Krystyna Kotecka of Bakoma.

“Danisco brought us not only a strain with many clinical surveys to support our health claim but also the HOWARU brand which is appealing to young people, one of our key target groups.”

The move signals further development of the branded ingredients trend with the Bakoma range set to be co-branded as BACTIV – HOWARU.

The launch from Bakoma also enhances Eastern Europe's burgeoning reputation as a centre for cutting edge dairy products and innovation.

The Russian dairy sector is considered to be the most innovative within the country's food industry, and recent research showed that dairy was the main sector in which the majority of Russians understood the idea of functional foods and value added foods.

A number of firms have already tapped into this trend. For example, the Lebedeanskii dairy company has begun producing bio-ice cream with orange punch under its Belaya Corova trademark.

Two probiotic products, BioMax and Dr Bifi, have also received large popularity in Russia since being launched by leading domestic dairy firm Wimm-Bill-Dann.

Ingredients firms too are increasing their focus on Eastern European dairy markets. Danisco is currently undertaking a global cultures expansion programme that is expected to include investment for its cultures plant in Olsztyn, Poland.

And recent promotional tour across the region by Danisco's rival, natural ingredients firm Chr Hansen, revealed an array of new product ideas.

Maike Lisberg, Chr Hansen's development manager, offered a kefir product that was specially adapted for the Russian market; using lactate products and yeast instead of traditional funguses. It tastes like usual kefir but also contains fruit aromatisers.

The firm also displayed a variety of value-added product prototypes, such as sintered cheese with cheddar flavor, a liquid drink yoghurt based on 30 per cent whey, a yoghurt desert with chocolate bits and mint flavour as well as a soft cheese with Roquefort cheese flavour and Italian herbs.

(Source: Decision News Media SAS)

Business reports form Poland