Food And Beverage Manufacturers Focus On A Growing Hispanic Population
By Karla Paris
From beer to condiments, all segments of the food industry are shifting gears by accommodating the tastes of a rapidly-growing population
The U. S. is home of the second-largest Hispanic population in the world, with the Hispanic-American consumer base growing from 35 million to more than 57 million as of this year. At more than 17 percent of the total U.S. population, Hispanic–American consumers represent a rapidly growing customer base. Food and beverage manufacturers are capitalizing on this population growth by aligning product offerings, manufacturing facilities, and business plans to meet Hispanic consumer demands.
Food Manufacturer Goya, offers a full host of products ranging from condiments, pantry items, beverages, and frozen foods representing all of Latin America. The company is in the midst of a quarter-billion dollar expansion, opening four new state-of-the-art manufacturing, production, and distribution facilities in Texas, Georgia, California, and New Jersey. The California facility will cover 250,000 square feet in Los Angeles and it will serve all of the West coast. The 151,000 square foot facility in Atlanta will serve all of Georgia and the surrounding areas. Goya’s new Northeast headquarters in New Jersey, scheduled to open in fall of this year, totals nearly 900,000 square feet, making it Goya’s largest expansion in the company’s history. The new site in Jersey City will feature office space and a warehouse totaling 638,000 square feet on 40 acres of undeveloped land. It will also feature a fully renovated 240,000 square foot facility in Secaucus, NJ armed with a new rice packaging line to produce 600 bags of Goya rice mixes per minute, six times faster than its current production.
Beverage manufacturer, Dr. Pepper Snapple’s (DPS) Clamato is the category leader in the company’s portfolio. The product’s popularity among Hispanic consumers enabled it to become the number one tomato-based juice among Hispanics in both dollar and volume share. DPS’s sales in North America were far outpaced by those in Latin America during the last quarter. In fact, around 7.5 percent of Dr. Pepper Snapple’s revenues through last September came from Latin America, most of which were constituted by Mexico. Sales volume in the region increased 3 percent during this period on the back of strong performances by the company’s Clamato and bottled water portfolio.
Another boost for Clamato in the U.S. is Budweiser Chelada and Bud Light Chelada – blends of Clamato and Budweiser or Bud Light; a spicy-lime flavor creation. These products represented 16 percent of the Clamato trademark, growing 23 percent in 2013.
Chobani’s taking its product into Latin America in a big way. The company already has the best-selling Greek yogurt in the U.S. and now has its sights on reaching Hispanic consumers in the U.S. and Latin America. To satisfy the Latin-American market, Chobani will export multiple flavors and formats via quality and temperature-controlled shipments. However, shipments for Latin America will originate from the company’s New Berlin, NY, and Twin Falls, ID facilities. Chobani has been available in Panama for the last few months and will soon be available throughout the Caribbean.