Published May/June 2012 by Candy & Snack TODAY
Resonating with nostalgic Boomers and consumers looking for cherry varietals, cherry flavored candies are on trend and a valuable option for both everyday and seasonal sets. Associate Editor Kelli Fontenot reports.
CHERRY FLAVOR IS A REAL FORCE in the candy category, and a number of suppliers are capitalizing on consumer interest in sourcing cherries from particular regions. They are also offering variations on cherry by blending it with other classic flavors.
Trends expert Kara Nielsen, of CCD Innovation, tells Candy & Snack TODAY consumers are becoming more aware of the array of fruits available to them.
“More people are learning about Rainier and Montmorency cherries and all the different options, which means candymakers can tap into some of those varieties in the future to develop more distinguished confectionery products,” she explains.
According to food trend researcher The Hartman Group, Inc., tart cherries are appealing to consumers who are hesitant to buy products containing exotic fruits with high antioxidant claims. Hartman says cherries provide the same benefits of reduced inflammation, speeding recovery and overall health without the hype. In fact, the “all-American” cherry is now a favorite among athletes and health-focused consumers, according to the researcher, which adds the industry should expect to see more varietals, including Bing cherries, in the snack food category.
CHERRY FLAVOR IS A REAL FORCE in the candy category, and a number of suppliers are capitalizing on consumer interest in sourcing cherries from particular regions. They are also offering variations on cherry by blending it with other classic flavors.
Trends expert Kara Nielsen, of CCD Innovation, tells Candy & Snack TODAY consumers are becoming more aware of the array of fruits available to them.
“More people are learning about Rainier and Montmorency cherries and all the different options, which means candymakers can tap into some of those varieties in the future to develop more distinguished confectionery products,” she explains.
According to food trend researcher The Hartman Group, Inc., tart cherries are appealing to consumers who are hesitant to buy products containing exotic fruits with high antioxidant claims. Hartman says cherries provide the same benefits of reduced inflammation, speeding recovery and overall health without the hype. In fact, the “all-American” cherry is now a favorite among athletes and health-focused consumers, according to the researcher, which adds the industry should expect to see more varietals, including Bing cherries, in the snack food category.
Meanwhile, flavor supplier Synergy Flavors, Inc. has seen growing demand for more natural, true-to-fruit flavors, according to Paulette Lanzoff, technical director. Interestingly, many of the cherry flavors used in confections in the U.S. have very little resemblance to the actual flavor of cherries, she reveals.
“The cherry flavor used in popular redcolored lollipops, gummies and jelly beans, is based on a single characterizing molecule, benzaldehyde, filled out with a limited number of modifying flavor components,” she explains. “That single molecule has been used to flavor confection products since the early 1800s when it was first extracted from bitter almond oil.”
She adds that in addition to moving toward more natural tastes, the industry is looking to include more specific options.
Varietals, Pairing Trends Take Hold
“We have been working with flavors to match the different varietals of cherry,” Synergy’s Lanzoff reports, giving Montmorency and Queen Ann as examples. She adds that cherry is a low-acid fruit and, as such, the flavor also pairs well with non-fruit flavors such as vanilla and chocolate.
Cherry flavor profiles that offer a mix of tastes do well, confirms Jeff Beckman, director, corporate communications for The Hershey Co.
“Our research has found that flavors that combine sweet, tart and aromatic are consumer favorites,” he explains, adding: “Cherry, among other flavors such as strawberry and grape, combines these three components, making them very popular.”
Contrasting flavors pair well with cherries, Beckman says. He points to orange, which is more acidic, and notes this is one flavor combination in Hershey’s Jolly Rancher Awesome Twosome Chews line.
Another example is Cherry Lovers from Gimbal’s Fine Candies. The heart-shaped chews assortment comprises nine cherry combinations including kiwi, vanilla and cheesecake. The product, which won the 2009 NCSA New Product Award in the premium/gourmet category, was developed because cherry has always been a major flavor for the company’s jelly beans, according to Karin Vollrath, director of sales and marketing.
“We had R&D and consumer suggestions, and met with chefs to come up with all the fun ways that people eat cherries,” she says.
Specific cherry flavors and varietals can catch the attention of consumers, confirms John Pola, vice-president of specialty sales for Jelly Belly Candy Co., who adds Very Cherry ranks as Jelly Belly’s most popular flavor.
Cherry is part of many of the company’s assortments, including Barbados Cherry in its Superfruit Mix and Cherry Passion Fruit in the Jelly Belly Smoothie Blend mix, he says, adding the company is launching Sakura cherry for the Asian market.
Cindy Brooks, of Adams & Brooks, Inc., says whole maraschino cherries from Oregon are featured in the center of its Big Cherry bars.
“This is definitely a unique feature,” she notes, explaining many other bars use chopped cherries. Pairings such as dark chocolate work well with the flavor, Brooks says, pointing to new Big Cherry Dark bars.
Offering variety attracts consumers, according to Tricia Bowles, manager, Nestlé Confections & Snacks division & brand affairs, referencing Nerds wild cherry and watermelon, as well as a berry-flavored punch combination as part of the Wonka Kazoozles licorice brand.
World’s Finest Chocolate, Inc. is introducing Queen Anne French Vanilla Cordial Cherries for Christmas 2012, and will continue to offer its peppermint variety for Christmas, according to Jan Klawans, marketing manager. The company uses whole cherries in its cordials, she adds.
Consumers Perceive Health Benefits
There is a slight health halo surrounding cherry, Nielsen says, which she attributes to endorsement from TV personality Dr. Oz regarding the fruit’s high nutrient and antioxidant content.
“It energized a number of the cherry juice beverages to come out and enter the market a little more aggressively,” she says, noting that also influenced an uptick in the use of dried cherries in snack blends, cookies and cereal bars.
“The superfruit trend has affected cherry candies in a big way,” Vollrath agrees. “People look for these claims and these benefits when they’re eating candy, and it gives them a reason to buy it and a reason to try it.”
She tells Candy & Snack TODAY: “People are looking for a very real-tasting flavor when they eat candy, so it’s something that tastes almost like you’re eating a real cherry.”
She notes there are other benefits as well. “Candy is a treat, it’s available year-round and it doesn’t have to be refrigerated like real cherries,” she smiles.
On-pack callouts such as “Made with real cherry juice” and “Vitamin C” help to attract consumers, she adds.
Packs Communicate Juice, Flavor
Packaging for cherry-flavored candy should clearly reference the fruit, using red color with pictures, illustrations of cherries with stems and even juice drops, according to Hershey’s Beckman. “The more clearly the cherry flavor is evoked, the more appealing the packaging will be to consumers and the more likely they will be to buy the product,” he says.
Nestle’s Bowles agrees: “Nothing screams cherry like including fun graphic images of cherries on-pack,” Bowles said. “Consumers immediately recognize the flavor from the picture. The image feeds the need and gets the consumer excited about the great taste, even before he or she buys the product.”
Featuring cherry photos on its packs, Gimbal’s added 2.75-ounce peg bags of the products to give consumers the option to buy at a lower price point, and is offering 12-ct displays for its 13-ounce laydown bags.
Jelly Belly is debuting ceramic containers shaped to resemble a cherry pie to draw attention to the flavor, Pola says.
“At some candy stores, they’ll do a cherry section,” Pola says, noting mainstream retailers don’t usually take that approach. However, the number of cherry SKUs is impressive, he says: “If you were to walk up to a candy set in a grocery chain, you will not believe the number of cherry items you see.”
Cherry: A Strong Seller
Options such as sour cherry and cherry passion fruit Jelly Belly beans, as well as cherry sours and milk-chocolate-covered cherry pectin drops are strong sellers in the Jelly Belly portfolio, according to Pola.
Several Wonka brands from Nestlé USA Inc. also feature cherry flavors, including Laffy Taffy, Nerds, Kazoozles, SweeTarts, Mini Chewy SweeTarts, Giant Chewy SweeTarts and SweeTarts Gummies, Everlasting Gobstoppers, Spree, Fun Dip and Pixy Stix.
In addition, the company recently made its SweeTarts Gummies line available year-round. Bowles says: “Cherry consistently ranks number two among adults, teens and children, after strawberry. Truly a classic flavor, cherry candies are continuing to debut in a variety of forms.”
Sales of Laffy Taffy Cherry bars grew nearly 10 percent in 2011, Bowles reports.
She adds the company’s Laffy Taffy Cherry single bars are a top 10 item in the Wonka brand portfolio and come in a number of different pack formats including 10 inch-long ropes.
Other suppliers are coming out with products with a cherry cordial flavor, as well as chocolate-covered dried cherries and snack bars that incorporate the flavor, Klawans says.
Looking at World’s Finest’s Queen Anne Cordial Cherries, Klawans notes the items consistently rank above other flavors in the boxed chocolates segment.
Further, she notes many consumers buy the products to give as gifts, and they have become part of family traditions.
Nostalgia Aspect Attracts Consumers
Some shoppers are drawn to cherry partly because of nostalgia, according to Beckman. “U.S. consumers grow up eating cherries and cherry-flavored candy, so it’s a familiar flavor from childhood,” he explains.
“Cherry is an old-time favorite,” agrees Brooks, which offers Big Cherry and cherry-flavored Luv Pop heart-shaped lollipops. She notes some retailers will merchandise Big Cherry bars as part of a nostalgic set to highlight that aspect of its appeal.
The flavor interests kids, teenagers, and men and women of all ages, Vollrath says.
“A lot of women, especially moms, buy this candy with the intent to give it to their children and their family, but then they end up consuming it themselves,” she explains.
From the quintessential chocolate-covered cherry and chocolate-covered-cherry mixtures, to trail mixes with cherries and mainstream brands that incorporate the flavor, there is no question as to its popularity, according to Steven Styles, spokesperson for Pop Rocks Inc.
Pop Rocks Cherry is offered in packs with retro graphics. Cherry was reintroduced a few years ago as a limited edition, but because of its success, the company kept the flavor around in the retro packs, Styles notes.
“Cherry has a definite soft spot in people’s hearts and is reminiscent of a number of different things related to Americana,” Styles says. “Cherry reminds people of everything from George Washington chopping down the cherry tree to a good old-fashioned cherry pie.”
This rings true particularly for shoppers 35 and older, CCD’s Nielsen says. “You have the cherry on top of the sundae, and the association of the ‘cherry on top’ as being an extra treat,” she says, referencing cherry syrup, Chapstick and Life Savers as other items these consumers remember.
She says these shoppers are looking for products that are not only sweet, such as caramels, but also offer juicy, tangy notes that aren’t as stringent as citrus, she says. “As we’ve seen with the salted caramel, more nuanced flavors are very popular today with all kinds of audiences,” she says.
Companies that offer cherry versions of popular items, Nielsen says, entice Boomers who might have some nostalgia for that flavor, and also draw fruit lovers into a chocolate segment. “It’s a way of attracting the tart fruit flavor lovers to a different part of the candy aisle,” she says.
Mars Chocolate North America, for example, will offer its M&M’s Cherry candies for Valentine’s Day 2013. Tim Quinn, vice-president of trade development, explains: “Red fruit flavors are popular for Valentine’s Day.”
Seasonal Appeal Adds Options
Cherry-flavored candies are a natural fit for Valentine’s sets, considering their color and versatile pack options, sources agree. Pop Rocks’ Styles notes the red cherry packs of popping candy do well during Valentine’s Day, and the company capitalizes on the color connection with promotions on its website.
“We offer free Valentine’s e-cards with messages like ‘You make my heart go pop’ to promote the entire line, but it’s really helped sales for the cherry variety,” Styles explains.
Cherry is significant, and retailers should stock products with the flavor in their sets for the season, Quinn tells Candy & Snack TODAY, adding: “Consumers will be looking for it in-store.”
He says the cherry version of M&M’s, while a limited edition, is a favorite of consumers: “It adds excitement and variety to the category.”
The heart-shaped nature of Cherry Lovers from Gimbal’s makes the product popular at Valentine’s, Vollrath says.
While some consumers buy cherry because they love the flavor, others are more focused on appearance, sources agree.
