As consumer lifestyles become increasingly fast-paced, the demand for nutritious, convenient food solutions continues to rise. Products that align with health-conscious choices without compromising on taste or ease are shaping the future of the food industry.
“At Caldic, we saw this trend as a strategic opportunity,” says Marie McRoberts, Sr. Customer Development Manager, Nutrition / Dietary Supplements, Caldic North America. “Busy consumers want nutrient-dense, easy-to-prepare meals. Our role is to help our customers meet those expectations with smart, scalable solutions.”
One such opportunity knocked at our door when a customer asked us to develop a fortified mac and cheese product that delivered meaningful nutritional value. Traditionally high in carbohydrates and low in micronutrients, a nutritional mac and cheese required a complete formulation rethink.
“By leveraging our experience in enrichment blends under the Daminaide® brand, we developed a custom solution that significantly improved the product’s nutritional profile,” Marie explains. “This project allowed us to draw on our in-house application lab, technical expertise, and global sourcing capabilities.”
The development process was collaborative and iterative. Our global sourcing team first identified key ingredients - whole food sources such as spinach, broccoli, and sweet potato - while the R&D team worked to integrate them into a functional enrichment blend.
“We weren’t just enhancing nutrition; we were focused on maintaining taste, texture, and convenience,” Marie notes. “Our technical team carefully adjusted the blend through several trials, ensuring the product would meet Reference Daily Intake (RDI) targets while remaining appealing to consumers.”
The final blend offered a robust nutritional profile featuring essential vitamins, minerals, and protein without extending preparation time or affecting the product’s shelf life. The end result was a clean-label, nutrient-enriched mac and cheese that met both market and consumer expectations.
“We’re bridging the gap between nutritional science and real-world product development. By combining our global supply network with technical expertise, we’re helping food manufacturers respond to evolving consumer demands and deliver products that truly stand out in the market.”
The success of this initiative has already led to continued collaboration. The customer has since returned with similar challenges, which the team has been able to support through further adaptations of the original formulation. Ultimately, this project reflects our broader commitment to innovation and partnership.
Food trends move fast, like wellness, taste, plant-based and sustainability. Caldic blends global sourcing with local labs to co-create delicious, functional, on-trend solutions. We help food brands scale faster, reformulate smarter, and deliver what consumers crave.
