Novel, nifty, niche, nutritious and delicious – such was the stuff that Top Innovations of Anuga 2013 (aka Taste 13) award winners are made of. 
Winning Taste 13 honors at Anuga went to Sweet’n Savour Ribble Fries from Lamb Weston/Meijer.And a number of innovative frozen items – each ranking sky-high in quality and taste, while also providing end-users with ultra ease of preparation – were among the 53 triumphant products selected by a panel of judges convened by organizers of the world’s largest food trade show, which was held October 5-9 in Cologne, Germany.
In addition to evaluating the quality and originality of entries, judges took into account the criteria of packaging, user-friendliness, recipe originality and visual appeal.
Potato products were two of the top choices. One, Sweet’n Savour Ribble Fries, is a crinkle-cut sweet potato treat distributed to the foodservice sector by Kruiningen, Holland-headquartered Lamb Weston/Meijer (LW/M). The other, Pommes Frites with Sea Salt, is packed in 150-gram microwaveable retail boxes by Leopoldshohe, Germany-based Prima Menü GmbH.
Prima Menü’s Pommes Frites with Sea Salt retail pack is microwaveable.“The unique sweet and savoury flavor combination of sweet potato combined with a special coating gives our crispy fries a deliciously different taste and texture – with a crunch,” said Pieter van Liere, LW/M marketing manager for quick service restaurants. “Ribble fries combine the flavor of sweet potato with our specially developed seasoning, which tones down the sweetness and enhances the savoury taste experience.”
Bastian Pauls, managing director of marketing and sales for Prima Menü, told FrozenFoodsBiz.com that his company’s Pommes mit Meersalz is “a highly convenient snack item, as it takes only seven minutes to prepare in a microwave oven.”
Golden Fish Sdn. Bhd packs frozen Chili Mango Prawns in Malaysia.French fries with sea salt is part of a wide array of products in the Prima Snackfood assortment, which ranges from French Fries with Paprika Chili and Mini-Frikadellen with Potato Wedges, to Currywurst with French Fries and Chicken Nuggets with French Fries.
From the value-added frozen seafood sector, Chili Mango Prawns produced by Golden Fresh Sdn. Bhd. of Palau Pinang, Malaysia, received Taste 13 kudos. The offering features butterfly prawns accented with a spicy mango chili jam topped off with firecracker crumbs.
Versatile Oven Mett from Tillman’s may be presented and enjoyed in many ways.A second frozen seafood winner was Shrimplicious Bites from Zug, Switzerland-based Squarefish GmbH. Wild-caught Aegean shrimp account for 60% of the breaded and sesame seed-coated snack’s weight. Free of additives, the high-protein product is naturally low in calories and fat.
Oven Mett from Weissenfels, Germany-based Tillman’s Convenience GmbH, a member of the Tönnies Group, was a winner in the frozen meat sector. Available in three flavors, the easy-to-prepare snack can be utilized as a main component for a baguette or served with cheese, as a pizza topping, or baked in puff pastry.
Frenzel brand Sweet Pancakes can be popped in a toaster and ready to eat in a flash.In the non-meat segment, the Taste 13 judges singled out Vegetarian Curry Mutton Mushroom from Foods Wise Network of Selangor, Malaysia. Distributed in retail packaging, the all-natural product’s ingredients include soya beans, herbs and spices, in addition to mushrooms.
Last, but not least, in the frozen winners’ circle was Sweet Pancakes from Ringleben, Germany-headquartered FZ – Foods AG, which packs the retail product in 572-gram bags bearing the Frenzel label founded by the late entrepreneur Volkmar Frenzel. The pancakes are ready for heating in a toaster immediately after removal from the freezer.
