Irish Consumers are Real 'Smooth Operators'
25 October 2006
Irish consumers have demonstrated that they are real smooth operators as the smoothie market growth in Ireland is reported to be twice that in the chilled juice category for the period of September 2005 to March 2006.*( AC Nielsen).
The sector of smoothies has grown over 18% since 2005 *( AC Nielsen) with new product launches being credited for driving this growth* (Shelf Life Magazine June 2006), but as Sqeez Smoothies are launched in 1 liter Pure-Pak® cartons, it is the consumer demand for healthy alternatives that manufacturer Batchelors are aiming to satisfy.
Research reports that over the last few years the soft drink market in Ireland has noted a marked change in consumer behaviour as Irish shoppers have become increasingly attentive to product ingredients and which has changed their purchase behaviour accordingly. Specifically, functional drinks, bottled water and fruit/vegetable juice have all increased in popularity at the expense of carbonates and concentrates.* (Soft Drinks in Ireland Report 2005, Euromonitor). One of the new rising stars that is forging its own market sector is smoothies which with the launch of Innocent brand in Ireland in 2005 has seen dramatic growth and an increase in the demand for quality branded natural products.
Shaken, not squeezed
Sqeez Smoothies were launched in May/June 2006 by Batchelors in two varieties - Strawberry and Banana and Peach, Pineapple and Passion Fruit. These products are clearly positioned at the "good for you" market, and as a boost to the daily intake of fruit and vegetables.
Sqeez Senior Brand Manager Linda Sheehan explains, "This was the right time to launch our smoothie products and is the logical direction for the Sqeez brand. With the continued success of smoothie bars this is certainly the trend for juice at the moment and continues to be fuelled by the health and wellbeing conscious consumer."
The results since the launch just a few months ago is extremely successful and is expected to continue into the autumn with heavy marketing support which includes a national radio advertising and tasting campaign.
As Linda Sheehan continues, "Our products are 100% natural pure fruit smoothies and are an easy way to boost your daily fruit intake. After market assessment and trials we chose two delicious smoothie flavours with wide appeal. They will certainly save consumers the effort of making them at home - a real convenience product for everyone to enjoy at any time."
