Frutarom pinpoints the latest trends in the flavours market

The global flavours and fragrances house officially launched Citrus Competence, which currently consists of 27 flavours, in May last year. As a result of its favourable reception by alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks makers, Frutarom, which has its headquarters in Haifa, Israel, is now poised for the next stage.

"Phase one [of Citrus Competence] is complete," said Jim Moore, global category manager for beverages. "It was designed to show our competence skills base in the creation of citrus flavours.

"In phase two, we'll review these and add others and look at freshness, refreshment and combinations of flavours and in January, we'll introduce orchard fruits and red fruits."

Raw materials and trends emerging from South America also held considerable potential for the European market in the next few years, said Moore. "The Latin American theme is set to be prevalent in the market in the next two years."

Brazil was emerging from the credit crunch relatively unscathed and was set to be a good source of flavour ideas, he said. "As Brazil comes out of the downturn it's going to be a trend-setter in the next three to four years."

One ingredient with potential from the region was yerba mate, a leaf from the South American rainforests chewed by tribesmen for stamina and energy.

Blending sweet and savoury herbs and spices, particularly to complement food, would be a future focus, said Matthew Stokes, creation and application manager in Frutarom's Flavour and Fragrance Ingredients Division. "There's increasing demand for merging spices into beverages to fit certain meal times."

Moore added: "The Caribbean is another area starting to generate a lot of interest from fruit and herbs and spices that have been used in cooking.

"The idea of trying something with pineapple and chilli in it, for example, would not have been on the agenda of the northern European palate until recently. But people are travelling and more open to trying new flavours."