KRAFT FOODS RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT & QUALITY ...

KRAFT FOODS RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT & QUALITY
INNOVATION INVESTMENTS FACT SHEET
June 2012
Kraft Foods has been stepping up its innovation investments for several years, which
is driving business momentum. Today, more than two-thirds of Kraft Foods’ products are
preferred to the competition -- compared to about half in 2006. Innovation is helping boost
top-line growth, with new products generating 10.5 percent of the company’s net revenue in
2011, up from just 7.4 percent in 2009. Together, Kraft Foods’ Research, Development &
Quality team is finding new ways to delight consumers, create superior products and win in
a fiercely competitive marketplace. Below is a summary of recent innovation investments
from around the world:
BRAZIL: Kraft Foods’ R&D Center in Curitiba is in one of company’s fastest growing
geographies, and it now has has twice as many team members than when it opened in
2005. The company has invested approximately $15 million in its R&D center since
opening, and today approximately 100 employees work across the company’s portfolio
on chocolate, powdered beverages, gum, confections, biscuits and cheese. Teams
specialize in tailoring the company’s global categories to local tastes, and recently
collaborated with their R&D counterparts at the Bournville, UK, Chocolate Center of
Excellence to meet the growing demand for Lacta, the country’s most popular chocolate
brand. Together, they updated and expanded its pilot plant to create new
manufacturing techniques that require less space, less energy and provide greater
productivity. Team members have also used their sensory, analytical and statistical
skills to create new varieties of Tang powdered beverages more efficiently.
CHINA: Kraft Foods’ Suzhou R&D Center team has created more than 60 new products
since opening in the spring of 2009, helping drive double-digit growth in new product
revenue in China last year. And the company has invested an additional $5 million for
further development since the opening. In Suzhou, employees helped create Oreo green
tea and vanilla ice cream flavored varieties with a unique cooling sensation – making the
“twist, lick and dunk” ritual even more fun in hot weather. Team members also
introduced Pacific biscuits, the first 100 percent wholegrain biscuit of its kind in China.
And as a regional center of excellence for biscuit, Suzhou employees even helped launch
the Oreo brand in India.

CZECH REPUBLIC: Kraft Foods recently invested nearly $1 million in a new bakery pilot
plant at its Opava manufacturing facility. Bakery team members from seven facilities in
Central Europe now have a central location to collaborate, bringing new techniques and
prototypes to market more quickly than ever before. The approximately 2,100 squarefoot
building provides a space for large-scale tests of new bakery technologies for fastgrowing
biscuit brands, including Oreo, belVita, Milka, Barni and TUC.
FRANCE: Kraft Foods invested about $20 million in its European Biscuits R&D Center in
Saclay, which opened in April 2011. Saclay supports product development for many of
Europe’s most beloved biscuit brands, including LU, belVita, Oreo, Mikado, Prince, Saiwa
and TUC. It’s home to approximately 120 researchers, engineers, nutritionists, pastry
chefs and product and packaging developers who focus on nutrition, superior product
quality and sustainability. The team recently created Mikado King Choco, an even more
delicious and indulgent recipe of Mikado. And they’ve improved nutrition profiles for
several products -- reducing saturated fat by 20 percent in Oreo, by 30 percent in
Prince, and by 40 percent in TUC, as well as reducing sodium content by 20 percent in
Oreo, and boosting the whole grain content in belVita by 33 percent. The team also
supported the LU Harmony agricultural sustainability program.
MEXICO: In February this year, Kraft Foods completed a multi-year, $50 million
investment in its Mexico City innovation center that will bring new technologies to the
marketplace more quickly and efficiently than before. The Mexico City R&D Center team
recently debuted new technologies in its three-layered Trident Twist chewing gum, as
well as sliced Philadelphia brand cheese in individually wrapped packaging along with
more than 20 varieties of Tang powdered beverages. Today, team members work in
upgraded labs for product and packaging development, analysis and sensory evaluation.
The center includes a fully equipped pilot plant for manufacturing and testing new
powdered beverage, cheese, cracker, chewing gum and confectionary products.
SINGAPORE: Kraft Foods’ R&D Center in Singapore is a “one-stop shop” for creating
new indulgent confections for Asia and beyond. Employees developed Cadbury Dairy
Milk Eclairs with unique liquid chocolate centers and Cadbury Rich Brownie – a premium
chocolate experience for Indian consumers that sells for less than two rupees. They also
helped create Halls Soft, the company’s first powder-filled and coated chewy candy for
consumers in Thailand. Most recently, the company invested an additional $1 million to
boost product and manufacturing development and consumer sensory analytics.
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SWITZERLAND: Kraft Foods’ Gum and Candy Research & Development Center in
Eysins is home to talented product and package developers and quality experts focused
on innovation for many of the world’s most beloved confectionery brands. The $14
million center, which opened in the fall of 2010, is home to breakthrough gum and
candy innovation on brands including Trident Gum, Halls Confections, and regional
favorites such as Bassett’s, Carambar, The Natural Confectionary Co., Trebor and V6.
Team members recently helped create new Trident Mystery Gum, Trident Twist, Guzzle
Puzzle and jellied confections shaped like the Olympics mascots. Eysins’ talented
product and package developers and quality experts have supported Kraft Foods’ leading
positions in gum for markets across Europe. They also collaborate closely with the Kraft
Foods Global Gum & Candy Center of Excellence, based in Whippany, N.J., to drive
innovation and new technologies and global category growth platforms.
UNITED STATES: Kraft Foods’ Research & Development team – based in Illinois, New
Jersey, New York and Wisconsin -- recently has created entirely new product categories
with MiO Liquid Water Enhancer and Kraft MilkBite Milk & Granola Bars. The team
developed Oscar Mayer Selects meats that use natural ingredients such as celery juice in
place of artificial preservatives. And they’re making it easier for today’s consumers to
try new flavors and customize their foods. Kraft Fresh Take serves up flavor
combinations in a special blend of Kraft Natural Cheeses and seasoned breadcrumbs,
and Velveeta Cheesy Skillets let consumers add ground beef, chicken or tuna for a dish
the whole family can enjoy. The team's latest creation is Planters NUT●rition Energy Mix
peanut butter, a unique combination of peanut butter and wholesome ingredients like
bananas, granola, berries, raisins and cinnamon. Working together, they developed the
right formulation and manufacturing process so every bite has the delicious taste of
peanut butter and the perfect blend of ingredients.
About Kraft Foods Research, Development & Quality Team
Kraft Foods’ world-class network of approximately 3,300 food scientists, chemists
and engineers invent delicious products at 15 major R&D Centers in Asia, Europe and North
and South America with an R&D expenditure of more than $700 million in 2011. The
company seeks to be the partner of choice in the innovation community and recently
launched its new Open Innovation website
http://www.kfcollaborationkitchen.com/EN/Pages/Home.aspx for prospective partners to
see how partnering with Kraft Foods means access to talented people, terrific brands and
superior quality.
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