Development of meat based retail-ready chilled food for toddlers
| Project start date: | 15 April 2015 |
| Project end date: | 26 December 2016 |
| Publication date: | 26 December 2016 |
| Project status: | Completed |
| Livestock species: | Sheep, Goat, Lamb, Grassfed cattle, Grainfed cattle |
Summary
In 2009, when the global economy was declining, the baby food category grew by 7% in value. Currently estimates of the market are over US$50 billion and forecast to be the fastest growing packaged food category over the next 5 years, achieving growth in excess of 7% a year. This strong growth has been bolstered by emerging markets, where the global financial crisis was less severe and where birth rates are still relatively high, such as East Asia.
FIP have developed a new to the world innovative fresh baby food range with extended chilled shelf-life. The product range is made from all fresh Australian meat, vegetable and fruit ingredients, with no added thickeners, preservatives, flavours colors, salt or sugar. The project has reached a stage where it is ready to commercialise the product range. The project team has met with one of the major food retail chains in Australian who have stated that they will support the coomercialisation and ranging of the product on shelf. The avaiability of this innovation toddler food range with its health attributes, will lead to increased demand for Australian meat and vegetable, and will also assist to reduce childhood obesity by fostering good eating habits in children.
FIP have developed a preliminary range of 'fresh' minimally processed retail-ready chilled toddler foods with beef and lamb as a core ingredient, for the age groupings 4 months +, 9 months + and 12 months +. The range has been developed to ensure compliance with the relevant Food Acts and FSANZ codes and international Food Standards to be safe for consumption by infants at the specific age groups identified.
The project has developed processing protocols for the application of HPP technology to extend the products shelf life while ensuring flavour, colour, nutritional value and texture were maintained. The use of HPP provides an extended chilled shelf life enabling product to be supplied to retailers nationally and to also export to South East Asia.
FIP has established a company, Freshly & Co to commercialise the baby food range. This will be the commercial vehicle to contract manufacture, toll HPP process and supply into retailers in Australia and South East Asia.
The Final report will be published at a later date.
