"If products are developed logically, and positively to address specific nutritional needs, and consumers are intelligent in their choice, enrichment may play an important role in eradicating nutritional deficiencies."

Extract from this report

The overwhelming consumer and media interest in health and nutrition, along with nutritionists' support for enriched foodstuffs, has stimulated the availability and diversity of vitamin and mineral enriched products. The last two years have seen a rapid increase in new products and variants of existing goods launched into the food market labelled as 'fortified' or 'vitamin enriched.' The growth in the lunch box market is not expected to diminish over the next few years. As such, the demand for renewed variety and the push for healthy products, will continue to act as a stimulant to innovation in the snack market, including the enriched food sector.

· Unlike functional foods, enriched brands are much more generalist and need only mention vitamin or mineral inclusion to be perceived as healthy.

· If enrichment is used to disguise junk food, it is likely to alienate nutritionists and impact upon the industry as a whole.

· New labelling guidelines predominantly aimed at functional foods could well have an impact on fortified foods included in this report.

What are the future trends in the enriched food market, and what role will functional foods play in its development? Vitamin and Mineral Enrichment provides an up-to-date overview of the sector, looking at changing trends in an increasingly sophisticated market. Although demand is increasing rapidly, there are a variety of competitors that threaten its future. This report examines the role they play and their impact on fortified foods.