Erlanger, KY—Today's food and beverage consumers are well versed in practically every aspect involved in the production of their favorite products. From large-scale manufacturing methods, to an understanding of the ingredients used to deliver results and the science behind claims, consumers are challenging brands to revisit the formulas behind their solutions and ask themselves: How can we reformulate this product using cleaner, more preferred ingredients, while still delivering on the taste and satisfaction customers have come to expect? ADM is poised to help brands meet the challenge.
The multinational food processing and commodities company offers a complete portfolio of ingredients and solutions to meet the taste needs of the food, beverage, health and wellness industry. In tune with the growing needs of their clients, ADM invested $26M in their Erlanger, Kentucky facility to strengthen their sensorial and nutritional reformulation capabilities. Along with a team of leading innovators and industry experts, the company has developed several key solutions to address the latest needs in human and nutrition products. To increase understanding of their reformulation capabilities, ADM invited a select group of members of the media out to its Erlanger facility for an immersive tasting experience featuring its flagship flavors.
On the menu
After a short tour of the brand new state-of-the-art facility, attendees sat in on presentations from several key departments. Team leaders discussed the challenges they face in today's dynamic landscape, from the rapid increase in demand for alternatives that can fit seamlessly into existing recipes to finding the right organic source to create the perfect red hue. Each sample they provided essentially brought to life a different formulation difficulty the company had succeeded in overcoming. Examples of the dishes provided included red frosting cupcakes made from using radishes to create its bright notes, a response to the recent ban on red dye 3 in foods. Another offering, a reduced sodium BBQ potato chip, served as an example of how a better-for-you ingredient can be adopted without sacrificing flavor or diminishing functionality. With every plate it became clearer how there is a need for diverse solutions to today's evolving food and beverage challenges.
Ultimately, the gathering served as an opportunity for guests to:
- EXPLORE: Taste and compare concepts across key reformulation pillars, and learn how high-quality ingredients paired with technical expertise help meet consumer expectations.
- TASTE: Enjoy a chef-prepared, multi-course lunch that brings these ingredients and capabilities together in a culinary-forward menu.
- DISCOVER: Tour the Erlanger Customer Creation and Innovation Center and learn more about ADM’s ongoing investment in innovation, both at this site and across the company’s global network of capabilities and centers.
Lunch is served
The event concluded with a multi-course lunch, prepared in the facility's open kitchen, creating an intimate and immersive experience. As the team of chefs served their perfectly plated culinary creations, they explained the thought process behind the dish and the intention behind every ingredient's choice. The variety of food served was the perfect showcasing of the company's ability to formulate across several flavor profiles.
The functions entire tasting menu served as a display of ADM's unique ability to capture the essence of some of the most common colors (and not so common ones as well) and flavors and provide alternatives that allow brand's to market their products as having "less sugar, less sodium, and more protein" in an honest way. For all of the dishes served, we were challenged to identify the changes in flavor and in every example the cleaner label options tasted as good if not better than their original recipe, showing that the company has not only invested its resources into but into getting things right.
