Sales of fruit juice are booming with exotic flavour ours leading the way.
Smoothies which include pulped fruit to make a thicker drink, are also soaring in popularity as shoppers become more adventurous, the latest figures shows.
During the past year, mango-based juices have seen the biggest rise up almost by 43 per cent.
Sales of pineapple flavours were up 23 per cent as the market as a whole grew 7.6 per cent in 2005. It means the position of orange juice as the nation’s favourite could soon be under threat, although its sales are still increasing.
The figures, compiled by research analysts TNS, show that while orange juice still accounts for half the market, its sales grew only 6.8 per cent.
Demand for another traditional favourite, apple juice, was up 9.6 per cent.
“There has been a lot more choice in the juice market in the past couple of years. It used to be fairly restricted to orange, apple or pineapple juice in most shops,”
Matthew Ward, the consumer insight director at TNS, said.
“But there is lots more to choose from now, including blueberry and pomegranate. The success of smoothies, which use a variety of unusual juices has helped to drive sales as well,” Matthew Ward said.
The drinks, made from fresh juice instead of concentrate and kept in the chiller cabinet, will be available in three flavours, golden pineapple, golden pineapple and orange and golden pineapple and mango.
Additional blends are likely to be added to the range. Leigh Edwards, Del Monte’s commercial director, said the company’s new drinks would fill the gap between orange juice and smoothies to counter “orange fatigue” among shoppers.
He told trade magazine The grocer, “Pineapple is one of the fastest growing juice varieties thanks to increased consumer awareness of the fruit’s high vitamin and fibre content.”
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