may-jun-2019

CORNERING THE MARKET Product Innovation: Building Blue Diamond R&D Discovering all the new ways almonds can delight customers and consumers is what excites Blue Diamond ’s world-class research and development (R&D) team. Their pursuit of creating innovative almond applications – such as almond oil and almond protein powder – is quickly growing the brand in plant-based categories. Leading the team is Kurt Waananen, research and development director for Blue Diamond , and his experience of over 28 years in research and development is helping drive innovation. As a leader in non-dairy beverages and better-for-you snacking, Blue Diamond is continuing to develop new products in these categories. The launch of Almond Breeze Almondmilk™ Yogurt Alternative in Spain and, most recently, in the Northeastern U.S., puts the co-op’s brand in a position to satisfy consumer demands. But, the research and development team knows there are opportunities to keep expanding. “Almonds are well-positioned as consumers seek out plant-based alternatives to traditional dairy and meat products,” adds Kurt. The R&D team is also working on innovative new ingredients and they know there are many possible applications for almonds in categories such as snack bars, baking products, and plant-based meats. “We are fortunate at Blue Diamond to center all our research and development and innovation effort against almonds. There is such momentum when you start with a healthy and on-trend superfood.” Blue Diamond ’s commitment and support of new innovations is cause for even more excitement. Kurt believes the best solutions come from an integration of food science and process engineering skills, and refreshing those skills in sensory science is just another example of how Blue Diamond is building its R&D team. “Our R&D team magnifies its impact by operating with a strong ecosystem of external partners. Building and maintaining this ecosystem is dynamic work and one more example of what makes me excited to come to work each day.” In addition to a full set of projects driven by Blue Diamond ’s consumer and ingredients teams, the R&D team recently held a special innovation event at the Almond Innovation Center in Sacramento that challenged them to showcase their favorite innovative ideas and bring them to life with prototypes. Twenty-three different concepts and prototypes of new products were presented. “The event was inspiring and the team is looking forward to future innovation sessions and advancing some of these ideas into the business pipelines,” adds Kurt. Understanding consumer needs and investing in new technologies are giving Blue Diamond an edge in product innovation. 2 4 A L M O N D F A C T S