Consumer-driven product development

Marika Viitala

Product Group Manager, Atria Finland

I work as a Product Group Manager (Convenience Foods) at Atria Finland, and I’m responsible for developing new meals and continuously improving existing products in collaboration with the product development team.

Recently, Finnish consumers have shown a growing need for meals for one that make everyday life easier, and at the same time there is a heightened awareness of domestic production, the origin of ingredients and environmental impacts.

The starting point for the development of our new potato-based convenience food product was to meet these expectations.

The product development process was carried out in close cooperation with the product development, packaging and packaging technology teams, and the expertise of experts from various fields was utilised. The process included improving the traceability of raw materials, designing new packaging, and conducting consumer surveys to ensure the functionality and appeal of the product and packaging. In particular, the traceability of potatoes back to the municipality where they are grown is a key focus of our efforts, and this information is printed on the packaging in collaboration with our supplier. Local sourcing is a core value for us: the main ingredients are Finnish, and the origin labels make this clear to consumers. In turn, the design of the new packaging aimed to reduce the use of plastics and improve recyclability.

The packaging is made of cardboard, is recyclable, and contains only 4 grams of plastic, whereas similar products on the market typically contain about 20 grams. It can withstand oven, microwave and airfryer temperatures, protects the product during processing, and is easy for the consumer to use. Logistics have been optimised so that packages take up as little space as possible, which reduces the environmental impact and improves transport efficiency.

Climate-friendly ingredients: potatoes are the main ingredient and a climate-friendly source of carbohydrates, and meat and dairy products are sourced responsibly from Finnish farms. In the future, the aim is to extend origin labelling to other ingredients and products, as well as to continue developing new innovations with a two-year development cycle.