The ready-to-drink (RTD) tea market is already a vast industry, and their future looks even brighter. In fact, the global tea market is expected to reach $21.33 billion by 2024. North America is projected to remain the largest player, accounting for 37.7% of that revenue.

What’s driving this trend? The main force behind this movement is consumers’ overall increased interest in healthier food and drink options. People are becoming more aware of the high amounts of sugar in drinks like sodas, and the negative impact they can have on their health. More consumers are turning to RTD teas as they start to search for healthier drink options. Then there’s the health benefits of the tea itself. Tea contains a significant number of polyphenolic flavonoids which studies have shown may be helpful in reducing the risk of various illnesses, including cancer and coronary heart disease. Both green and black teas have shown to have these potential health benefits. This, combined with the convenience, portability, and accessibility of RTD teas, makes them a much-desired product.

So why should you be paying attention to this trend? Because in order to remain competitive against flavorful beverages like soft drinks, tea producers need their RTD teas to taste great in addition to being good for you. The overall taste of these teas is decided by the added flavor essences. While tea extracts are what gives the tea it’s bitterness and health benefits, it’s the essences that add the unique flavor profiles to each beverage. The type and quantity of the essence used can cause great variations in taste. Currently, lemon and peach are the most popular flavor choices followed by pomegranate, mint, chocolate, mango, orange, and berry. Looking ahead, we see new flavors such as ginger, super fruits, and coconut gaining popularity.

No matter what flavor ingredient you’re looking for, Aurochemicals has you covered with a 24-hour turnaround time on 95% of our over 500 natural ingredients. We’re also continuously adding new products to our catalog, so you’ll always be able to keep up with all the flavor trends.

Some surprising trends are currently happening in the flavor world. Read on to ensure you stay up to date with what your customers want.

McDonald’s Jumping on The Natural Bandwagon:

Not a sentence you were expecting to read. But despite their unhealthy reputation, McDonald’s has been making strides to improving some of their ingredients, such as removing high fructose corn syrup from their strawberry and chocolate shakes. Their latest move is going to be using natural vanilla flavor in their soft serve. With McDonald’s jump on the natural bandwagon, you know it’s a trend that consumers are really pushing for now.

Natural vanilla flavors are continually increasing in popularity. Aurochemicals has all your Vanillin needs covered with their Natural Vanillin, Ethyl Vanillin Natural and Vanilla Bourbon WONF.

Meeting All Snacking Needs:

While consumers snacking habits can quite vary, we can find some common ground when looking at taste trends. Meet your three consumer snacking groups; core consumers, gatekeepers and roamers. Core consumers want the good stuff; complex flavors and textures, blending taste profiles, salty and sweet, classic and edgy. They are also the ones bringing spicy foods back to the foreground. The gatekeepers are the family buyers who want to feed their family healthy, but delicious foods. They will tend to lean towards vegetable and fruity flavors, even in their sweets. Roamers are the general snack and sweet lovers. They go for anything new and unique, while still clinging to their favorites. These varied tastes leaves room for lots on innovation in flavor.

No matter what your product’s taste profile, Aurochemicals has the flavor ingredients you need to make the most out of your products.

Mapping the World’s Flavors:

We all know that taste preferences vary across the globe. But what do the current global trends look like? In the U.S., coriander and chili powder are big winners, with people adding them to everything from chilis and stews to eggs. Africa is leaning towards the nutty and mild sesame flavors. Japan is feeling the green with the sweet and bitter matcha. And Vietnam is craving the sweet and earthy cinnamon.

Taste trends are ever-changing. Stay ahead of the curve with Aurochemicals, providing you great natural flavor ingredients, when you need them most.

As the year progresses, we are seeing some current consumer taste trends holding fast and some new ones gaining ground. Are you prepared to keep up with these trends?

Florals Moving In:

Think jasmine, rose, hibiscus, lavender and chamomile. For many years, floral flavors have consistently been popular in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Now, we’re seeing this trend moving steadily into North America. Once limited to just teas, these floral flavors are expanding their range into areas like flavored waters, candy, ice cream and yogurts. As consumers’ taste for floral increases, expect to see these flavors flow into even more food categories.

At Aurochemicals, we pride ourselves on staying ahead of the curve. We are continuously adding new flavor ingredients to our catalog, so you’ll always be ahead of the game.

Natural is Still King:

Natural flavors and ingredients still rank high on consumers’ wish lists. Non-GMO labels are gaining in popularity this year. Consumers are even looking for fruit and vegetable ingredients in unique places like baked goods and snacks. Sugar reduction is also a popular trend this year, leading people to look for sweetness and flavor alternatives.

Making natural flavor ingredients is always a top priority at Aurochemicals. Not only are they better for you, they are what consumers want.

Year-Round Seasonal:

Some people never want pumpkin spice season to end. Well-known seasonal flavors are usually limited to the season they are associated with. But now, more and more people want these seasonal flavors available year-round. Not only that, but they want these flavors in a larger variety of products. It’s no longer just teas and coffees, but also cookies, salads and even cereal. Seasonal flavors make people feel nostalgic, special and warm. They are also perceived to be fresher because they are “in season”.

Vanillin is an essential component of many seasonal vanilla and vanilla-like flavors. Aurochemicals has all your Vanillin needs covered with their Natural Vanillin, which has a minimum purity of 99 percent. Aurochemicals’ Vanillin offers a high-quality ingredient that never sacrifices taste.

Certification recognizes Aurochemicals’ excellence in processes and product safety

WASHINGTONVILLE, N.Y. (April 19, 2017) – For the third straight year, Aurochemicals, the internationally recognized manufacturer of natural aroma ingredients for the flavor and fragrance industry, has received Safe Quality Food (SQF) Level 2 certification from the Safe Quality Food Institute (SQFI).

Aurochemicals received an E — Excellent rating —with a near-perfect score of 99 percent as part of its annual certification two weeks ago. The Level 2 certification is a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) based food safety plan, benchmarked by GFSI.Aurochemicals’ SQF certification is a testament to the system and processes that the company use in developing its products and the excellent safety and quality of the completed products.

“Aurochemicals is known for exceptional quality and food safety, and to receive this high score for the third consecutive year is – testament to our attention to detail for our system, processes and production,” said Sagar Lachmansing, vice president of food safety and quality assurance and Aurochemicals’ SQF practitioner. “We’re honored to be recognized by the Safe Quality Food Institute with consistent exceptional ratings and we appreciate their acknowledgment of our food safety efforts.”

Companies wishing to become SQF certified must go through a list of steps, including: Registering the company with the SQF assessment database; designating an employee as an SQF practitioner; choosing a level of certification; and eventually passing an audit, performed by a licensed SQF certification body, which includes reviews of documents and an assessment of the company’s facility.

Additionally, undergoing an audit helps companies to improve their process and food safety management systems because it helps to identify and manage potential risks that the applying company faces.

Companies achieving certification have fulfilled the rigorous standards of food safety (Level 2) and quality (Level 3) upheld by the Institute. The certification is held in high regard by food processors, retailers and food service providers across the world.

“Our third in a series of excellent performances at SQF certification again stands as proof of our team’s dedication to producing the highest quality flavor and fragrance ingredients,” said Aurochemicals’ Vice President and CEO Deo Persaud.

This achievement could only be accomplished by a team of people passionate about their craft. Through continuous improvement initiatives, ongoing training, and exceptional teamwork, Aurochemicals has been able to stay at the top of their class in food safety and processes. And of course, none of this could be possible without a fully committed management team that provides resources, facilitates and supports the group’s efforts and sets advancements, and continual growth as top priorities.

To learn more about SQF certification, visit www.sqfi.com.

About Aurochemicals
Aurochemicals, established in 1994, is a manufacturer of natural aroma chemicals for the flavor and fragrance industry worldwide. With a focus on research, development, product availability, turnaround time and quality control it is Safe Quality Food (SQF) certified. The company, which began in Brooklyn, currently occupies a 29 000 sq. ft. modern facility in Washingtonville, N.Y., with extensive production and storage capabilities. For more information or a current list of available products visit aurochemicals.com.

The new year is bringing new innovations in the industry. Which will be the most important? Take a look at what I think are some of the top trends underway and see if you agree:

Changing Dairy:

Dairy products are a hot topic with consumers. While some consumers are trying to increase their dairy and calcium intake, there’s an even greater number that are looking to cut dairy from their diets for various health and moral reasons. You can now get almost any typical dairy product in a non-dairy version featuring soy, nuts, rice, coconut and even oat ingredients. But who wants to eat yogurt that tastes like oats? Simultaneously, there is a push for foods to go back to basics with more natural components. With that, our commitment at Aurochemicals is to create ingredients that make these products have the taste consumers desire, without sacrificing quality.

We are dedicated to providing the highest quality ingredients, naturally. When you start with the finest base components, the final product will have exceptional taste.

Sustainability:

Sustainability seems to be a buzzword we hear all the time recently, applied to everything from our energy options to the clothes we buy; but, no more so than with food. We are all worried about where our food comes from, what’s in it and if the ingredients will always be available. This has made the word ‘sustainability’ the “most important” trend to watch in 2017.

At Aurochemicals, you never need to worry about the quality of your ingredients or about running out of your supply. All our products are Safe Quality Food (SQF) Level 2 certified, and we are able to offer a 24-hour turnaround on 95 percent of our products. When corporate sustainability and investment in production is aligned with customer needs, that’s what creates success.

By: Sagar Lachmansing, Vice President, Food Safety & Quality Assurance