Over-processed even in our minds
Published under Health, Innovation, KIND Snacks, New Product Development, Science and Technology, United States Jul 03, 2008Today we received some samples of interesting products from Turkey: fruits stuffed with nuts. I thought they were great possible additions to our healthy snacks family – minimally processed, all natural, flavorful, just sun dried. But it was funny (and sad) that in informal focus groups, most consumers were turned off by the look of the dried figs and encrusted walnuts. Ok, dried figs and walnuts may well look like coarse mummy brains as some of my team members were saying.
But it seems like some people are getting too used to over-processed artificially created surfaces that are smooth, brightly bleached and homogenous. It is interesting that, while there is a huge backlash against these overly-processed products, some consumers have almost gotten hypnotized into expecting factory-bland looks, without recognizing the health implications. It is almost as if we are being conditioned to expect the factory look, rather than the natural.
