MANY parents are now said to be looking for healthy options when they buy food, drink and treats for their children. And many family shoppers have developed a keen eye for value since the tough economic times hit household budgets hard.
Soft drinks firm AG Barr reckons a number of its products respond to those modern demands and pressures. It says it’s currently enabling retailers to offer competitively-priced drinks for children as part of a broader soft drinks range.
The company says demand is on the increase for its children’s drinks range, Simply Fruity. Quoting its own in-house sales data, it says sales have reached 45m bottles a year and quoting Nielsen Scantrack it says the brand is showing year-on-year sales growth of 15%.
Packaged in 330ml bottles with sports caps, Simply Fruity is available in four flavours – Orange, Blackcurrant & Apple, Strawberry, and Apple.
“Simply Fruity resonates with mums as it combines a great-tasting choice of flavours with high quality and fantastic value,” said Adrian Troy, AG Barr’s head of marketing.
The marketing chief said Strathmore, the firm’s Scottish water brand is also popular as a purchase for children’s consumption.
Strathmore’s flavoured water variety, Strathmore Twist, is available in a variety of pack sizes including 330ml which he said was designed to be an ideal size for children.
“Strathmore Twist, Scottish water with a twist of natural fruit flavour, is a trusted quality beverage which children enjoy,” he said. “Available in Strawberry & Blackberry and Lemon & Lime flavours, it offers retailers a simple way to boost their profits.”
• Health, convenience, customisation and the need for added value are key consumer concerns that have affected children’s drinks over the last year, said Vimto UK marketing controller, Emma Hunt.
“As a business we have invested in recent years to respond to this need. In particular, we have increased our no-added-sugar variants across our RTD still juice ranges including Vimto and Panda.
“Convenience continues to play an important role in purchase decisions as more people are looking for drinks to consume on the go, so portable and convenient packaging like the Vimto Minis and Panda 250 ml sportscap bottles fulfil a need for active kids,” she said.
