Nutrition & Health

The following focus points have been formulated as part of this key theme:

• Health
• Nutritional and functional value
• Food safety

Health
VION develops products that contribute to a healthy diet. This product development is based on detailed insights into developments in consumer behaviour. For the majority of consumers, meat is an indispensable element of their balanced diets, but at the same time, consumers are more aware of the importance of a healthy diet. VION has responded to this trend by developing convenience products that contain less fat and less salt. In these reconstituted products, animal fat and protein are substituted by plant protein without making concessions to flavour. Some examples of VION’s innovations:

• In the Netherlands: Hackplus®, a mince product that consists of a combination of meat and vegetable proteins and fibres. Hackplus® contains 30% less fat and 30% less salt than standard mince.
• In the Netherlands: Clean label hamburger, 100% beef and without additives.
• In Germany: hackplus®, a mince product to which vegetable protein has been added and which contains less fat and less cholesterol.
• In Germany: hackfix, an extension of the hackplus brand. Hacfix is a mixture of herbs and complementary sauce to accompany hackplus products.
• In the UK: the introduction of a Scottish Steak Burger under the McIntosh Donald brand. Made from specially selected steak cuts from PGI status accredited Scotch beef (PGI = Protected Geographical Indication).
• In the UK: ‘I love Bacon’ brand, with 30% lower salt content than standard bacon.

Nutritional and functional value
VION’s R&D policy is aimed at development and growth in food and ingredients with high nutritional and functional values. At product level, some targeted ingredients have been developed such as Peptan. Rousselot is making use of the optimum possibilities offered by gelatine to develop healthy products. The Carla Brownie is an example of this. This product has the same flavour as the traditional product, but has 34% less calories, less sugar, and less fat.

Food safety
VION continuously invests in promoting quality and food safety knowledge, underlining the prominent place that food safety takes in the company’s operations. VION clearly distinguishes itself in the market in the areas of quality and food safety, aspects for which the company is renowned internationally. In the further development of chain quality systems, VION specifically aims to anticipate advances in quality systems for the primary sector. In addition, VION makes a contribution to linking these systems to those of the processing sector, such as the International Food Standard (IFS).