A CLEVER DRINK FOR CLEVER PEOPLE!

Showcased for the first time last October at Anuga, Northern Ireland based IQ Brands' innovative new functional fruit juice drink, Umego, is quickly proving a huge success in the market, with the company having recently secured distribution agreements with three of the UK's leading fast food distributors ??" Friar's Pride, Henry Colbeck Ltd and The Middleton Group. Umego is unique within the fruit juice category, as Nuala Breen, Sales & Marketing Manager for IQ Brands, explained: ???A first to market, Umego is a refreshingly healthy new functional fruit juice drink that provides 25 per cent of the recommended daily intake of Omega 3 EPA/DHA (fish oil), which, according to Dr Alex Richardson from Food & Behaviour Research, is the most important form of Omega 3, widely acknowledged to promote healthy brain and heart development. ???Available in three flavours ??" Orange, Blackcurrant and Apple, Umego is naturally sweetened with Fruit Up?®, which is 100 per cent derived from real fruit and is rich in vitamins C, E, B1, B3 and B6, as well as having a naturally low glycemic index (GI) rating. This means it releases its energy slowly, thus helping inhibit snacking between meals. Umego is also free from artificial colourings, preservatives, additives or sweeteners, making it a really healthy choice for all the family ??" a clever drink for clever people!??? added Nuala Umego was two years under research and development and was created by IQ Brands in response to increased consumer concern and awareness of healthy eating issues and growing levels of obesity, particularly amongst children. Available in 250ml single-serve and four-packs, its primary target audience is children aged 4 to 16 and women aged 21 to 39 ??" essentially females who care about the health and wellbeing of their own and their children's bodies. Umego fills a real need in the market. Soft drinks continue to perform strongly despite two poor summers and the credit crunch, with still and juice drinks showing year-on-year growth continuously since 2000. Concerns about health and nutrition are leading consumers to seek out more natural nutritious refreshment, with low/no sugar and added functional benefits. Umego meets all these consumer demands and looks set to develop a healthy market share in both the food service and retail markets. With depots ranging from London, Peterborough, Norwich, Nottingham, Gateshead, Newcastle, Coatsbridge in Lanarkshire and Wolverhampton, the three new distribution agreements give Umego extensive coverage from Scotland and the north of England, through the Midlands, London, the South and South East.