Heinz leans on NPD to grow Lunchables sales post-lead claims
Lunchables sales would take a long time to stabilise after the negative âand falseâ concerns over lead contamination, âwhich have lingered among parents who are worried about the impact to their kidsâ, US investment bank TD Cowen said in a Kraft Heinz Company update.
Kraft Heinz would reverse the sales hit first by implementing a growth plan to coincide with the âcritical” upcoming back-to-school period, and then a series of product innovation.
Kraft Heinz Lunchables innovationâWeâre activating partnerships with kid-loved brands, featuring sweepstakes and on-pack branding across top-selling Lunchables products,â a spokesperson told FoodNavigator.
âOur most recent partnership drove double-digit growth on the featured items,â they continued. âIn October, weâre also launching a first-to-market innovation the category hasnât seen before.â
The contamination claim occurred in spring, but Kraft Heinz maintained lead levels detected by the interest group fell below established safety standards, âindicating minimal riskâ.
âLead is not an ingredient in Lunchables. Lead can be present at low levels in many common foods like grains, fruits and vegetables as it is often found in soil and water where those crops grow,â said the spokesperson.
Lunchables lead claimsâThe mere presence of small amounts of lead doesnât equate to harm or make a food less wholesome. To put things into perspective, a vegetable like spinach can contain more lead than what was reportedly found in Lunchables products.â
Meanwhile, a snacking platform of its own was not a priority for Kraft Heinz, the business said in anticipation of Marsâs $36bn acquisition of Pringles maker and snack giant Kellanovaâ, formerly the Kellogg Company, last week. While admiring the strategic footprint and scale of Kellanova in emerging markets, it would instead focus on building its organic strategy.
Kraft Heinz Company also maintained it had no acquisition plans of its own.
