HFT News
Cargill HF&T Leader Talks About Consumer Impact of Functional Foods at Council for Responsible Nutrition
MINNEAPOLIS - October 9, 2002 - Taste and convenience of healthy ingredients and foods are driving growth in the $56 billion functional food industry, according to Ted Ziemann, president of Cargill Health & Food Technologies, Inc. Ziemann made his statements during a Functional Foods presentation at the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN)'s Annual Conference on Dietary Supplements, Oct. 6-9, in Savannah, Georgia.
Ziemann explained that as more Americans reach middle age and beyond, they are turning to nutrition in larger numbers as a means to try to manage health conditions. Better tasting functional foods, now becoming available in a wider variety of products, are good news for people looking for simpler ways to incorporate nutritional changes into their lifestyle, he said.
Functional food sales now exceed supplement sales - a trend Ziemann attributes to the public's increasingly positive attitude towards good nutrition. "Through self-education, people are focusing more on prevention and less on treatment," he said.
He stressed the industry's role is to continue to provide consumers with new applications including safe, active, nutritional ingredients that are supported by high quality science; and to continue to focus on consumer education programs. "The future of functional foods is the development of good-tasting, efficacious products. These products must be supported by credible, well-communicated benefits in order to achieve greater acceptance by mainstream consumers."
The Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), founded in 1973, is one of the dietary supplement industry's leading trade associations representing ingredient supplies and manufacturers. CRN members adhere to a strong code of ethics, comply with dosage limits and manufacture dietary supplements to high quality standards under good manufacturing practices.
Cargill Health & Food Technologies, based in Minneapolis, is a leading developer, processor and marketer of science-based, healthy ingredients for food and dietary supplements worldwide. It is a business unit of Cargill, Incorporated, an international marketer, processor and distributor of agricultural, food, financial and industrial products and services with 97,000 employees in 59 countries. Cargill provides distinctive customer solutions in supply chain management, food applications, and health and nutrition.