Tommango flavor fusion meets sweet/savory trend
Tommango, a blend of fresh tomato and mango, could also be used in sauces, marinades and dips and follows a trend in the industry to blend sweet and savory ingredients into one.
A GSB spokeswoman told FoodNavigator-USA.com: “We introduced Tommango because GSB is interested in pairing the most unusual flavors together for a dynamite taste. There are many flavor fusion trends in the market now, and GSB has many more fused flavors available.
“These flavors work well together because the fresh, subtle notes of a tomato blend perfectly with the ripe, sweet notes of a mango. You get a little bit of tangy and a little bit of sweet.
“This flavor debuted in a finished beverage, and we currently have received sample requests for the flavor.”
Combining tomato and mango is not new. A search of Mintel’s Global New Products Database (GNPD) indicated that there were 30 launches of this type of flavor across North America in the last two years.
However, they tended to be sauces, chutneys or dips, such as President's Choice Mango Lime Salsa, which came on to the market this year. There was just one beverage, V8 V-Fusion Light Peach Mango Juice, which is mixed with vegetables. This was launched by Campbell Soup last year.
Following the trend
Bell Flavors & Fragrances is also following in the flavor fusion trend with its sweet and spicy combination suggestions.
The company said that traditional vanilla ice cream can be enhanced with basil and sweetened with papaya. The Moroccan spice ras el hanout can be paired with apricot on toasted pine nuts and the Aisan citrus fruit yuzu can be combined with spicy African ginger for use in a sorbet.
Such fusions are particularly emerging in the diary and chocolate markets, according to Bell, which said the driving force behind this was consumers who had become more adventurous, with a bolder and more educated palette.
In December, Datamonitor predicted that consumers would begin to demand hotter, spicier and bolder flavors, to counteract diminishing taste and smell that comes with age.
The market analyst used its Productscan database to identify the top trends in packaged foods for 2008. It stated that bold flavors would "pop up in brand new areas", such as Adagio Moments Yogurt Drink which was launched last year in Portugal in a spicy flavor "with a blend of chocolate chips, strawberries and chili peppers".
GSB Flavor Creators
GSB’s research and manufacturing facilities are located in Atlanta, Georgia. The company says it specializes in creating custom flavor systems designed to “transform” clients’ base formulations.
The GSB spokeswoman added: “We offer flavors that are natural, artificial, natural and artificial, water-soluble, oil-soluble and powdered. We have very fast turn-around time for sample requests and we value our customers.”
Natural Tommango Flavor WONF #7941 has a usage of 0.4 percent in finished beverages.
