Industry Insights · 11min read

Four European Organic Baby Food Brands

Learn about HiPP, Holle, Nuri & Little Tummy’s ingredients and commitments to sustainability.

The European baby food market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.2% until 2025 to reach a total of 9.2 billion Euros. The largest market shares are currently held by Germany, Russia, and the United Kingdom. While this number in itself does not represent staggering growth expectancies for the upcoming years, industry experts are seeing a significant increase in the demand for sustainable baby foods. As adult consumers become more aware of the personal health benefits and environmental benefits of consuming natural and organic foods, it is no surprise that the demand for products in these categories in the baby food industry mirrors these trends. An increasing number of parents are conscious of the nutritional content in their baby food and concerned by the prospect of exposing their babies’ growing bodies and minds to chemicals or pesticides. Thus we took the opportunity to highlight four exciting brands that are bringing sustainable and organic baby foods to shelves across Europe.

HiPP

HiPP is an internationally established, family-owned business currently in its fourth generation. For over 60 years, the Hipp family has been committed to organic and sustainable farming practices which include free-roaming livestock alongside pesticide-free, specially selected fruits and vegetables. Built on the belief that ‘green is good’, the HiPP brand proves its commitment to the environment time and time again by consistently exceeding EU organic standards. With 260+ self-imposed quality controls in place, parents can feel confident in the safety, nutritional value, and flavours in every spoonful of HiPP. Artificial preservatives, sweeteners, or colourants will never find their way into these natural and wholesome meals. Today, HiPP’s established baby and toddler food portfolio encompasses around 50 products, categorised by age (4 months to 3 years) and product type (jars, trays, pouches, cereals). 

“From clean air and water to happy, healthy animals and tasty fruit and vegetables, it matters to us that working with nature, rather than against it, can provide us with everything we need.”

As a pioneer for sustainability in the industry, HiPP takes pride in its wide-ranging environmental efforts. The brand’s commitment to animal welfare includes gentle and species-appropriate animal husbandry techniques as well as the protection of pollinators and promotion of biodiversity. Out on the fields, HiPP seeks to maintain rich and fertile farmland for future generations through a number of methods, such as crop rotations and maintaining close relationships with its farmers. The brand also does its part to reduce food waste by utilising fruits and vegetables that supermarkets deem too little, large, or ‘ugly’ for sales. 

Learn more on hipp.co.uk

 

Holle (Demeter)

Holle has been dedicated to natural ingredients since its founding 85+ years ago and therefore always prohibited the use of pesticides or chemical fertilisers. The Swiss brand’s baby and toddler portfolio features a diverse range of porridges, mueslis, pouches, cereals, and jars. Today, the ingredients in Holle’s baby food are cultivated using a mix of biodynamic and organic farming techniques. While Holle sources some of its crops, such as grains, from Demeter-certified farms in Germany, others are grown on organic farms in other parts of Europe, such as Italy or Hungary.

Biodynamic farming merges organic practices with esoteric growing cycle concepts. Thus, all actors in the agricultural system—including seeds, plants, animals, and humans—are considered to have unique and significant roles to play. The result is a balanced space in which all organisms coexist to make up one whole, living organism, namely the farm itself. Within this approach, the use of synthetic fertilisers and pesticides and GMO technologies is prohibited. Hence, parents can trust that the ingredients in Holle’s baby foods are both ethically farmed and natural. Holle’s further commitments also include a number of social responsibility and climate protection measures, such as the introduction of CO2 neutral baby porridges and projects that promote biodiversity.

Learn more on gb.holle.ch

 

Nuri 

Founded in 2017 by Jana Lange and Josephine Bayer, over the past three years, Nuri has proven itself as a promising innovator in the baby food industry. In contrast to conventional baby foods, which utilise heating techniques for food conservation, Nuri relies on shock freezing technology to maximise the nutrient, flavour, colour, and consistency retention of ingredients. The Berlin-based brand’s frozen, organic baby food currently consists of mash in three categories (fruit, vegetables, meat/fish) and will soon also expand its range to include a selection of finger foods. Nuri’s baby foods do not contain any salt, sugar, spices, additives, thickeners, or preservatives. It specifically targets health-conscious parents who express scepticism about conventional baby foods but do not have the time to cook nourishing, fresh foods for their babies on a daily basis.

Beyond the commitment to 100% organic and natural ingredients, Nuri’s sustainability efforts include 100% recyclable packaging and reduction of CO2 emissions by refraining from utilising glass (which is heavy to transport) alongside a list of renewable energy commitments. Furthermore, by portioning foods into 10 g pellets that can be kept in the freezer for up to 15 months, parents are empowered to portion their baby’s meals according to their age and eating habits which ultimately results in the reduction of food waste. 

Learn more on nuriforbabies.de 

 

Little Tummy

Guided by the motto ‘Mums Empowering Mums’, Little Tummy was founded by Nadine Hellmann and Dr. Sophie Niedermaier-Patramani after the duo recognised the lack of availability of ready-made yet fresh and organic meals for babies in the United Kingdom. Sophie is not only a mother herself but incidentally also a LMU and Harvard-trained paediatrician. Therefore, not only does she truly understand the importance of nurturing baby’s growing minds and bodies from a medical perspective but her qualifications equipped her with the knowledge and skills to carefully research and test hundreds of ingredients for the development of Little Tummy’s cold-pressed, organic baby food meals. Hence, Little Tummy utilises a cold pressure technology called High-Pressure Processing (HPP) to ensure the safety of their foods while maximising the retention of the nutritional content, flavours, and textures.

“We are here to change baby food for the better! With Little Tummy we support you to nurture your baby’s nutritional needs during the most critical time in their lives ” - Sophie & Nadine

Little Tummy exclusively sources 100% organic ingredients from the United Kingdom and European Union and all its products are certified with the EU organic seal as a proof of commitment to the highest quality standards. Little Tummy’s pots are made from toxin-free and BPA-free plastics. The brand’s packaging, including its cool packs and insulation used for transportation, is 100% recyclable. Moreover, product deliveries are only initiated once a week to help decrease the brand’s CO2 footprint. In 2019, Little Tummy received a gold medal at the Absolutely Mama Awards.

Learn more on littletummy.co 

Imagery: (1) Patrick Fore via unsplash.com, (2) HiPP, (3) Holle, (4) Nuri, (5) Little Tummy