Supply Side briefs: Kraft, Flowers Foods remove ingredients

Mac & Cheese giant Kraft Foods plans to remove artificial preservatives and synthetic colors from its “Original Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Dinner” product by January 2016.

Instead of Yellow 5 and Yellow 6, the company said it will use colors sourced from spices such as paprika, annatto and turmeric. The changes are the latest steps Kraft is taking to appeal to consumer demand for simple ingredients and improved nutrition.

In 2014, the company relaunched its “Boxed Shapes Macaroni & Cheese” products with lower sodium, reduced saturated fat, more whole grains and no synthetic colors, and has since removed artificial preservatives. The company said all of its macaroni and cheese products will debut nationally later in 2016 without artificial colors, preservatives and synthetic colors.

A Kraft marketing vice president said this move comes as a result of their listening to what consumers want as well as learnings from their own research and efforts to improve their products.

Kraft Foods is a major supplier to Wal-Mart Stores and maintains a sales office in Northwest Arkansas.

• Flowers Foods to reduce ingredients in Nature’s Own bread
Flowers Foods is in the process of cutting the number of ingredients in Nature’s Own bread to 14 from 26, according to Bradley Alexander, executive vice-president and chief operating officer of the food company. Alexander described the change as fitting within the evolution of Nature’s Own dating back decades; as well as part of a clean label initiative underway at the company.

“To grow our sales beyond the core white bread segment, we introduced the Nature’s Own brand in 1977,” he said. “It offered consumers a soft wheat bread with no artificial preservatives, colors or flavors. Over the years, we’ve continued to introduce varieties under the brand with better-for-you attributes, including sugar free, low carbs, high fiber and whole grains.”

Flowers is a supplier to Wal-Mart Stores with a local sale team located in Northwest Arkansas.