Top Editors ... Dairy Innovation Awards

Title: Dairy Innovation Awards
Date: 22/08/2008
Autor: FBI

The best innovations in the dairy sector were acknowledged for their creativity and contribution to the industry at this year’s dairy innovation awards in Athens, organised by Zenith International Publishing through its dairy innovation magazine.
From over 90 entries coming from 21 countries, winners were selected in 10 categories including dairy drinks, desserts, cheese and children’s products, health, packaging, school milk and marketing initiatives.
The overall winner who took the Judge’s Cream Award, selected from all of the categories, was Tara Dairies of Israel in partnership with LycoRed for their innovative YOU line of fortified dairy products targeting women aged 30 to 40. Containing milk with 2% fat, the soft cheese and yoghurt drink in the range contain a special vitamin and mineral formulation that helps protect women’s health by addressing concerns including bone, brain, skin, heart health and digestive health. The active ingredients include calcium, iron, vitamin D, E and B, which are combined to optimise their impact on women’s health.
“We are very proud to receive the top dairy award for our new product line YOU. It reflects our mission to become the most innovative dairy company in Israel,” said Nir Kanias, deputy marketing manager at Tara Dairy.
Scooping the top award for the Best New Dairy Drink this year was Naturally Drinks’ Naturally Gorgeous brand of dairy and fruit beverages containing the appetite suppressant PinnoThin from Lipid Nutrition (see more information Vitafoods Preview p29) blended with calcium rich skimmed milk and different fruits. Marketed as the
‘next generation, healthy, sophisticated and divine tasting drinks for those looking for a little more than just a juice or a smoothie’, the range is packed in one litre cartons and is available in two varieties: Ruby Orange & Strawberry and Coconut & Pineapple and is said to ‘keep you fuller for longer’.
In the Best Dairy Dessert category, the Canadian based dairy company Saputo was awarded the top prize for its Le Coeur du Nectar, a soft, unripe cow and goat milk cheese with a fruit blend topping. The dessert, which is available in pomegranate & black cherry, pomegranate & raspberry, and most recently blueberry flavours is designed to be eaten for dessert or for breakfast or on a cheese platter. It is served by flipping the container over onto a surface to allow the sweet tasting, fruity topping to drizzle over it in vibrant colour contrasts.
Fayrefield Foods of the UK was the winner in the Best New Cheese category with its animal welfare inspired Spoilt Cow Mature Cheddar Cheese featuring the logo of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals’ Freedom Food Scheme. A speciality, handmade Cheddar cheese made in traditional cheese vats, it uses milk taken from cows reared on a Freedom Foodapproved farm and is designed to provide consumers with the opportunity to make a ‘more ethically minded purchase, without compromising on taste’.
The Best New Children’s product was awarded to Little Dish Custard Desserts for its fresh custard desserts made without added sugar and containing no artificial sweeteners. WheyUP’s inventor and co-founder, Erik Rothchild, won the Best Newcomer, Brand or Business for his sugar-free, non carbonated energy beverage containing whey protein isolate; and the Best Packaging Innovation was awarded to Dipileg – the pot with an incorporated spoon. Made from white polypropylene or transparent polypropylene, the pot can feature customer colours and dimensions and can be covered with polypropylene, film or aluminium.
Arla Foods won the Best Marketing Campaign with its communnications company Weiden & Kennedy for its latest campaign for Lurpak Butter featuring the slogan: ‘Good Food Deserves Lurpak’.