Coconut Water – the Solution for Mindful Consumers

The iTi Tropicals Team recently attended the 2018 Juice Summit in Antwerp, Belgium, and are eager to share a few of the current industry trends discussed at this leading annual conference for fruit juices. With 43 speakers, 300 companies and 553 attendees from over 40 countries participating, the Juice Summit serves as a forum for all industry players.

#Trending: Lowering Sugar Content in Juices and Nectars

High sugar content in juices continues to be an area of close scrutiny. In response to “the war on sugar”, beverage companies are launching lower sugar products such as juice-water blends and fruit and vegetable juice blends. Stevia is being utilized more and more to adjust and enhance sweetness levels naturally, while reducing the sugar and caloric content in juices.

Coconut water is an ingredient that continues to grow in popularity and offers a solution to the demand for low sugar, low calorie, 100% juice products. Take a look at the table below to see how coconut water reduces calorie content in the following juice blends with 50% coconut water.

*Calorie content derived from iTi Tropicals Nutritional Profiles

**Calorie content derived from USDA Food Composition Database

#Trending: Corporate Social Responsibility and Reduction of Environmental Impact

Another key area discussed at the 2018 Juice Summit was Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). CSR has gained importance in a short period of time because consumers respond positively to what they perceive as sustainable efforts from corporations. Industry research shows that consumers are willing to pay more for socially responsible products and appreciate transparency throughout the supply chain. Lessening environmental impact is receiving more attention as well, and we are starting to see a stronger focus on minimal packaging, recycling demands, and reducing the carbon footprint of a product.

Consumers are looking for healthier beverage options that they can feel good about purchasing. Coconut water can provide fulfillment to consumers in both of these areas. The above table describes the impact of coconut water on reducing sugar and caloric content, but we should also mention that the utilization of coconut water concentrate in your beverage applications will reduce its carbon footprint. The use of coconut water concentrate vs. single strength coconut water is a more eco-friendly choice. It takes 18x more ocean containers to ship single-strength coconut water compared to 1 container to transport the concentrated equivalent.

#Trending: Mindful Consumers

A third trend that was discussed at the 2018 Juice Summit was about how consumers are paying attention now more than ever to a wider variety of factors when it comes their food and beverage choices. Consumers are drawn towards unique experiences and products that evoke a memory or stimulate their senses. For the industry, this means thinking creatively about new product innovation and marketing strategies, while remaining close to traditional recipes and items.

The bottom line is that consumers want to feel connected to the products they choose, and also feel good about their decision to purchase and consume a product. Here at iTi Tropicals, we feel that coconut water can play a major supporting role in the way your products can satisfy the new “mindful consumer”.

iTi Tropicals offers a wide variety of coconut water products. To learn more about what iTi Tropicals’ coconut water can do for your product line, check out our coconut water product page and our coconut water FAQs.