McCain launches potato chips that survives delivery

São Paulo – The Canadian McCain, the world leader in the production and marketing of frozen pre-fried potatoes, has created a formula to make the product more resistant to the shifting time of the increasingly popular "deliveries" of food. The novelty was shared firsthand with the site EXAME. The project began to be developed two years ago, focusing on the main consumer markets of the brand, the United States and Canada. The line "McCain Sure Crisp" debuted in May abroad, and is available for restaurants starting this month throughout Brazil. In São Paulo, the company closed a partnership to launch the product with the delivery service Rappi. Initially, through the application of the Colombian startup of deliveries, the consumer can opt for the new potato chips in 40 establishments accredited to the app. In the medium term, McCain will expand distribution and delivery partnerships. The idea of developing a product capable of surviving the delivery arose from an obvious problem: although the worship of French fries is universal, few people risk asking for the snack to eat at home given the conditions in which it arrives — in general cold and withered. Mindful of the problem, the company patented a formula that coats the potato sticks with a protective layer, creating a cone, which according to the manufacturer maintains the croctance after frying in the restaurant for at least 30 minutes. In general, a conventional potato fry loses the crocancy in a third of that time. With this, the company expects more people to ask for the potato in the mode of delivery. A survey conducted by McCain in Brazil points out that 90% of consumers "love" french fries. But when questioned about "how much they like potato chips in the delivery", this number drops dramatically to 24%. Without surprises, the fries appear among the three items that most "disappoint" in the delivery, alongside desserts (such as ice cream and milkshake) and meats. "We noticed that we were losing opportunities there. In large networks, almost 100% of customers ask for potato chips in the snack combo. Our research showed that in the delivery, on average, only 60% of customers asked for potato chips, which is low, "says the website EXAME Victoria Gabrielli, director of marketing at McCain. "One of the strongest trends of the moment is convenience. People want practicality and speed, and consequently the food delivery takes a ride. But the consumer doesn't want a bad experience either. It's not because he's going to eat at home that he eats badly. The demand of this consumer is also growing, "adds the executive. According to McCain, most of the formula of "Sure Crisp" is composed of natural ingredients, only a few ingredients are of synthetic origin, as the stabilizers used. The product has nothing of animal origin and has neither dyes nor aromas in its formulation. It also contains no gluten. The company does not say how much invested to develop the product. In a food delivery market that grows 30% month by month, solutions like McCain's are imperative, according to Raphael Daolio, director of Brands Partnership at Rappi in Brazil. "The challenge of the industry today is to ensure that the product that complements the main snack, whether it be the fries, the drink or an ice cream, keep the quality up to the customer's home," he says. Expansion Brazil is the fifth most representative market in frozen pre-fried potatoes, with an average growth of 7.5% per year. McCain grasps 30% of the category sales around here. In addition to investing in research and innovation (the company does not reveal how much it invested for the production of "delivery-proof" potato chips), it was necessary to adapt the production lines to produce the novelty, including that of the company's factory in Argentina, which provides to Brazil. "Even with the political and economic crises that Brazil faces, the fried potato market is still strong," says Victoria. So, since 2018, McCain has reinforced its expansion strategy around here. In April last year, the company acquired 49% of the shares of Forno de Minas, a leader in cheese breads in Brazil, and in May this year bought 70% of the shares of Sérya, a Brazilian food company that operates in the pre-formed potato market. To reinforce its productive capacity and meet the growing demand, the company approved an investment of about 100 million dollars to inaugurate its first factory in Brazil until 2021. The installation will be made in Minas Gerais, Brazil's largest potato producing state.