UK Flavour Association celebrates centenary
The UK Flavour Association (UKFA) marked its centenary with a gala dinner on 21 September as part of London Flavour Day at Church House, London.
Guests including leading flavour companies, the Food & Drink Federation (FDF) representatives and a European
delegation from the European Flavour Association (EFFA) gathered to reflect on a century of British flavour innovation and to look forward to what the future might hold for the industry.
The event included an interactive presentation from guest speaker, Professor Charles Spence, head of the crossmodal research laboratory at the department of experimental psychology at Oxford University.
He comments, “In the near future, the whole eating experience will become more central to brands’ marketing and product offerings and the UK flavour industry is undoubtedly well placed to assist them in developing products that stand out both on the shelf, and in the minds of their consumers.”
Steve Morgan, chair of the UKFA adds, “Modern consumers now place a massive demand on the industry for lower salt, sugar, fat and, most recently, lower calorie products, meaning that innovation has therefore shifted towards enhancing flavour attributes associated with the so-called ‘baddies’, or replacing them.
“Because of this ongoing, rapid requirement for innovation, flavour houses have played a major role in new product development and applications support in the food industry, moving from merely supplying flavours, to helping develop recipes and delivering solutions that take into account marketing, sensory and flavour demands.”