Dive Brief:
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Know Brainer Foods, which produces coffee creamers containing medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) and organic grass-fed butter, is working with Nestle to develop a multi-serve product with added collagen protein, according to BevNet. The companies were linked through the Terra Food + Ag Tech Accelerator program operated by RocketSpace and Rabobank.
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Shari Leidich, founder of the Colorado-based startup, told BevNet her company has benefited from Nestle's consumer insights and product development knowledge, while the Swiss food giant is able to further investigate the ketogenic (high-fat, low-carb) functional foods space.
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"Nestle sees a lot of promise in functional foods and beverages to solve a real consumer need," Ashlee Adams, Nestle USA's head of open innovation, told the publication. "We had some early meetings with Shari and [COO Greg Leidich] and we were really impressed with them as people and as founders of the company they are building."
Dive Insight:
Adding butter to coffee may not be a new phenomenon, but once word got out to social media that Ed Sheeran and players on the L.A. Lakers were blending their morning coffees with the dairy product, the practice quickly exploded in popularity. While butter may not be the most healthy alternative — it is packed with cholesterol and fat — it's increasingly growing in popularity as an all-natural option compared with products such as margarine.
Bulletproof 360 raised more than $19 million in 2017 to fund its Bulletproof Coffee, a product blended with grass-fed butter. The company claims its buttery coffee boosts cognitive function and can help with weight loss by jump-starting the consumer's metabolism and reducing cravings. And Los Angeles-based Grass Fed Coffee raised funds via a Kickstarter campaign to help with its launch next month of RTD butter coffees — which will include organic chicory.
Know Brainer makes the same type of brain-boosting claims for its products. According to Leidich, adding hot water to one of the company's powdered products can establish an energetic tone at breakfast.
"You have that in the morning instead of grabbing a bagel or muffin. It fuels your mind and body for three to four hours," she told 5280, a Denver-based magazine. "When your brain and your body are satisfied, you don’t grab the carbs, you don’t grab the sugary foods the rest of the day."
So far, consumers seem to agree. Leidich told 5280 that Know Brainer's products sell out weekly on Amazon. In addition, the company won the pitch slam competition at Natural Products Expo East 2017 in September.
The collagen protein add-on could be an smart investment for the company since consumers looking for anti-aging products might be intrigued by an item marketed to help repair their tissues and joints while also flavoring their morning coffee.
Nestle, the world's largest coffee producer with such well-known brands as Nescafe and Nespresso, has been delving deeper into the market through its acquisition last year of Chameleon Cold Brew and the purchase of a majority stake Blue Bottle Coffee.
Nestle now produces an all-natural version of its Coffee-Mate brand, so it makes perfect sense for the company to check out new developments in coffee creamers, particularly ones containing on-trend functional ingredients.
While the current collaboration between the Swiss giant and the Colorado startup reportedly doesn't include financial investment or an equity stake, if the new Know Brainer product line is well-received, it wouldn't be surprising to see Nestle double down on its involvement with the company.