Quinoa biscuits go down a treat: tasty, fair-trade produce which contains cocoa

 

The Wittenberg based company "Wikana" – founded in 1906 as the "Kant Chokoladenfabrik AG" – came up trumps at Anuga, the largest trade fair worldwide for the food industry in Cologne, winning the Taste Award for a fair-trade product. We talked to "Wikana" Managing Director Yvonne Böhm about the prize winning biscuit, fair-trade and the Green Week.What went into the prize winning fair-trade quinoa cocoa biscuit?Quite a lot. The fair-trade biscuit contains a lot of cocoa and above all quinoa, an old Incan cereal which is cultivated in South America. Quinoa has been one of the main food products there for 6,000 years. After the successful launch of our fair-trade quinoa double biscuit, we decided to expand our range of fair-trade products. The fair-trade quinoa cocoa biscuit with chocolate chips is very tasty and has a high cocoa content.What does it mean to produce a fair-trade biscuit and why are you developing products of this kind?Any manufacturer who sells fair-trade products must use ingredients which consist of at least 30% fair-trade raw materials. In terms of taste all I can say is that this biscuit is really quite special.First and foremost, we wanted to support a good cause. Fair-trade helps peasant families and plantation workers in developing countries to sustainably lead a humane life due to the fair product prices. Customers are also becoming increasingly aware of fair-trade products. These products are becoming a market segment for which there is an increasing demand and which is developing further. For this reason, we are also working on addressing customers. In addition to emphasising the ethical approach, we are also focusing on the particular quality of the products. The perception often used to be that if you buy a fair-trade product, you have to make sacrifices but you are doing a good deed. This notion is now changing: doing a good deed and getting good quality are now compatible.How does a new recipe come about at your business? Who tries the new products?The products are mixed, baked and tasted in the development laboratory. We have very strict quality standards which must be adhered to. A team made up of product developers and quality testers tries and checks the new product until the recipe is found. From the development up to the shop shelf – how long does it take to develop a new variety?In this case the process was very quick; it took us around 3 months. We normally anticipate a year for product developments on average. The quinoa cocoa biscuit was in fact an assortment extension. We already precisely knew where we could source the ingredients from. All raw materials for which there are fair-trade standards must be 100% bought from fair-trade certified producing organisations following fair-trade conditions. This means that we know precisely which country, cooperation and farmers our raw material comes from.Will there soon be even more new varieties of the "Wikana" biscuits?Certainly. We have been and are still very busy with our trade fairs preparations. We will present three new products at the ISM trade fair in Cologne at the end of January.On the subject of trade fairs, you will also be represented with a stand at the Green Week in Berlin from 21st to 30th January. What will you present to the visitors?Our classics such as our Othello biscuits, Viking biscuits and shortbread biscuits of course. But as we are aware that visitors always ask us about new products, we also want to offer something new and will therefore present our Othellino biscuit. We launched the Othello biscuit's little brother on the market in 2011. The special recipe for this classic has been enhanced with a cocoa filling and I can ensure you that it is very tasty.Author: Manuela BockContact:Wikana Keks und Nahrungsmittel GmbHManaging Director Yvonne BöhmDessauer Straße 8 
06886 Lutherstadt Wittenberg
ph: +49 (0)3491 429860 
Fax: +49 (0)3491 4298626
E-mail: wikana@wikana.deWeb: www.wikana.de