Latin America:
For a number of years, we have collaborated with one of the largest food brands in Mexico, working with them to make many of their most loved food staples – from mayonnaise to pasta to sauces and soups.
Demonstrating that we are a solutions-focused business partner that brings to the table not only our scientific and technical know-how, but also the ability to identify commercial opportunities for their brand, supported by strong consumer insights, we invited them to a virtual session with a chef.
During the session, a chef worked with our ingredients to demonstrate, live, the incredible application range our latest, unique and cost-effective texturant blend has in recipes that consumers could make at home. The team and chef presented to 45 intrigued guests – each of whom had been sent a sample kit with 3 sauces to try for themselves at home after the event. These included, a mushroom sauce for pasta or chicken, a salad dressing and a habanero spicy sauce.
“The goal was to help our customer see the magic of this base blend. Not just the final flavour, but how easy it was to cook with and transform basic store-cupboard items into something appetising, without having to use ingredients consumers perceive as unhealthy,” explained Enrique Estrada, Vice President, Head of Category Development and Planning.
This pilot project included five rapid-prototyping innovation projects, which resulted in three briefs for ingredient blends from our customer.
The Middle East and Africa:
In November 2021 our team in the Middle East and Africa headed to the Gulfood Manufacturing Exhibition in Dubai where they met a prospective customer at the Tate & Lyle booth. This customer was on the lookout for a partner who could help them solve a recipe challenge.
The challenge? They needed help creating a cost-efficient mayonnaise recipe, which is a popular product in the region, and used as a spread on bread. The client, based in West Africa, was keen to become the first local manufacturer of mayonnaise in their country.
To kick of the process, we hosted the customer at our Customer Innovation and Collaboration Centres in Dubai, UAE and Lübeck, Germany to pilot recipe ideas, showcase our capabilities, high-end equipment and expertise in this type of recipe creation.
By the summer of 2022, Tate & Lyle was able produce and ship the first batch of tailor-made stabiliser solution so the customer could begin commercial production.
Alexander Nordhorn, Application and Technical Services Specialist explained: “We have taken a consultancy approach with this customer, offering them advice and support on everything from their customised solution, the machinery needed, and which production partners to work with.
“We’re now very much looking forward to discussing new opportunities with the customer for condensed milk, mustard and ketchup!”
Europe, Middle East, Africa:
Over the last year, the economies of Europe have been under pressure as recent global events have created supply chain disruption and hardships. Convenience food manufacturers, in particular, have been impacted by ingredient unavailability or raw material price increases.
Our customer, Europe, Middle East, Africa focused food manufacturer, that primarily produces soups, sauces, and dressings, came to us last year with a challenge.
They sought to quickly develop a recipe that used a replacement for the soybean oil in their mayonnaises to reduce costs, while maintaining the product properties.
We have a long-standing relationship with the customer, based on trust and a deep understanding of how to support them. We leveraged this, our technical expertise and strong Stabilisation and Functional Systems (SFS) portfolio to come up with a creative solution for their mayonnaise, working out of our Customer Innovation & Collaboration Centre in Lübeck, Germany.
Tate & Lyle were able to create a solution that reduced production costs for the customer, as well as lowering the fat content of the product, while keeping its great taste and texture.
Kerstin Werner, Category Development Manager, Soups, Sauces and Dressings, said: “We are incredibly proud of the success of this project, which confirmed us as the go-to partner for our customer for their emulsified sauces. We’re looking forward to working with him on other projects going forward.”
“I am proud of our achievements with this customer and looking forward to future collaboration, as the go-to partner for their sauces.”