Following the success of The Collective Kefir cultured drink range in 500ml and 220ml variants this year, The Collective is launching a Kefir cultured yoghurt range (450g) in October. This new range is available in four delicious flavours – Natural, Madagascan Vanilla, Berries ‘n’ Hibiscus and Coconut.
What is kefir?
Kefir (pronounced keh-fear) has been enjoyed around the world for over 2000 years. It first originated in the Caucasus mountains and has been linked for centuries with positive health and well-being. This wonder dairy is made by fermenting milk with live cultures, but what sets this kefir yoghurt apart is the diverse blend and sheer number of live cultures. In fact, The Collective’s kefir yoghurt boasts a whopping 13 different culture strains!
The Collective has carefully crafted a thick ‘n’ creamy yoghurt with a complex flavour profile giving a wholesome natural taste with an indulgent texture. Using a gentle process, The Collective kefir yoghurts undertakes a slow fermentation process to help grow billions of live cultures whilst developing a thick and creamy texture. With the flavoured variants, The Collective has added a ‘hint of flavour’ from fragrant Madagascan Vanilla, creamy coconut milk with textured desiccated coconut pieces and floral Berries & Hibiscus. The Collective’s kefir cultured yoghurt is made with the finest natural ingredients including British milk and sweetened only with sugars from milk, fruit or blossom honey. This results in the range having 30% less sugar than other flavoured yoghurts (based on a market average). In fact, you will find the range contains as little as 5.4g -5.9g sugar per 100g with no added cane sugar.
The Collective kefir is also nutrient-rich, providing a source of protein and calcium and the natural variant contains a source of vitamin B2… there is a lot of goodness packed into this wonder yoghurt! Like all The Collective dairy goods, it’s vegetarian and gluten free.
The rise of fermented foods and kefir
The Collective prides itself on having its fingers on the pulse of global food trends. The New Zealand arm of the business have built a growing kefir category since being first to the NZ market in 2013. The Collective has seen the rise of fermented foods across a range of categories and consumers are becoming more educated on the benefits of eating fermented food and improving their health through what they eat. Kefir has historically been associated with health and well-being and it is being talked about more and more. Although there has been impressive growth in the kefir category over the last 12 months, The Collective believes there is an opportunity to turn this emerging trend into a more accessible offering and bring it to a much wider audience with their range of kefir yoghurts and drinks. Being a well-loved brand known for its taste credentials as a ‘Great Taste’ producer, The Collective kefir yoghurts will help consumers to feel good without compromising on taste.
The Collective kefir offers consumers a much wider diversity of different cultures (13 culture strains) vs standard yoghurt which tends to have 2-5 types of culture strains. The Collective believes this will appeal to shoppers who currently buy into natural or Greek yoghurts who want to take better care of their gut health and to feel good from the inside out. The Collective believes this handy fridge pack format and accessible but exciting flavours will make The Collective kefir yoghurt the next big thing to the natural category.
Amelia Harvey, co-founder of The Collective, says: “I’m so excited to enhance our kefir portfolio futher with the launch of Kefir yoghurt tubs. We’ve used the same approach to we used to develop our kefir drinks – carefully selecting the finest natural ingredients using minimal sugars to achieve the great taste we are known for whilst not compromising on the health benefits. We will continue to support our kefir range to drive education & awareness with a strong marketing campaign across shopper marketing, PR and digital.”
The Collective’s kefir cultured yoghurt range will be available nationwide in Waitrose, Sainsburys, Morrisons and Ocado from October 2018. £2.29 RRP per 450g tub.