Kashi develops 'overnight oats' cup and sweet potato cereal

The Kellogg-owned organic cereal brand developed its ‘Overnight Muesli’ and ‘Organic Promise Sweet Potato Sunshine’ cereal as part of a wider NPD strategy focused on health and sustainability.

“We’re on a mission to transform health through plant-based foods,”​ its CEO David Denholm said.

But are these new products truly transformational? We spoke to David Jago, director of innovation and insight at Mintel, to find out.

Overnight oats: Tiring or exciting?​

“It’s a ‘new old’ proposition,”​ Jago said. “It ties into continued consumer interest in scratch cooking as a means to provide control and emotional engagement and also ties into the important trend towards tradition and authenticity – the idea of something less processed, more natural, traditional and old fashioned as good.”​

Kashi’s decision to develop the product in a cup pack so consumers can pour milk or another liquid directly into it was a  “very nice idea”, ​Jago said.

This packaging concept, he said, made the product “super convenient”​ and also enabled portion control and personalization easy for the consumer.

Sweet potato sunshine: Bright or dreary? ​

“Cereals are losing ground in many markets as consumers turn to other breakfast alternatives, so companies have been looking to new ingredients like quinoa and chia, for example, to maintain interest. Why not veggies too?”​ Jago said.

Veggies had already made their way into many products, he said, like snacks and baked goods and a big selling point was the nutritional profile and differentiated texture and taste.

In the past, he said some cereal companies in western markets had also experimented with sweet potato but none were brands with the presence or visibility of Kashi. “Most cereals containing vegetables have been found in Asia,”​ he said.

BakeryandSnacks.com previously spoke to Datamonitor Consumer innovation analyst Ghina Romani who said sweet potato was a big opportunity for global cookie and bakery manufacturers​ that gave products a better-for-you indulgence twist.

Kashi also launched a sprouted grains cereal, organic granola and chewy seed and granola bars. All products have been launched nationwide across the US.