With barberries and wild strawberries – Food Union invests €25,000 in two new Lakto products

Latvia’s leading dairy producer, Food Union, is continuing to develop one of its most loved functional yogurt brands - Lakto. Just in time for the autumn season and the return to healthy eating routines, the company has invested €25,000 in launching two brand-new fermented milk drinks: Lakto with barberry flavour and Lakto Imuno with wild strawberry flavour. Both new products come in a convenient drinkable format and are already available in stores across Latvia.

The recipes for the new products were developed at Food Union’s Fresh Dairy Excellence Centre, located at the company’s main production facility - Rīgas Piena Kombināts. These yogurts enrich the Lakto range not only with juicy berry flavours, but also with versatile packaging formats - a smaller bottle for on-the-go convenience, and a larger one ideal as part of a full meal or snack, or even for preparing smoothies, yogurt bowls, and other dishes.

- Lakto with barberries - an innovative fermented milk product featuring an unexpected berry choice. Made from high-quality milk and enriched with beneficial acidophilus and bifidobacteria cultures, it also contains 30% less added sugar. The product comes in a sustainable and fully recyclable 450 ml PET bottle, making it easy to enjoy over multiple servings.

- Lakto Imuno with wild strawberries - a familiar and much-loved berry flavour in a new, mini-sized 100 g bottle, but with a seriously powerful formula. This yogurt is made from lactose-free milk and delivers around 20 billion live lactic acid bacteria – including acidophilus and bifido cultures - in every serving. It’s also fortified with vitamins A, B6, B12, and D.

Autumn - the yogurt season!

Estere Ermale, Brand Manager for Dairy Products at Food Union, says: “Autumn can be considered the yogurt season in our region - people return to their daily routines, work, and studies, and increasingly pay attention to a healthy lifestyle and nutrition. During this time, yogurts take up more and more space on refrigerator shelves because they are both a convenient and nutrient-rich meal component. That’s why we’re kicking off the autumn yogurt season with two new products. Consumers are already familiar with and especially fond of the forest strawberry flavor in the Lakto range, so now we’re introducing it in a new format. Meanwhile, the barberry flavor in Lakto is a special innovation. Barberry itself is a great added value - it’s rich in vitamin C, helps fight infections and improves heart health, and until now it has been practically unused in the dairy market. That’s why barberry is now entering the Lakto range for the first time as an innovative and very pleasant flavor”. 

Both of the new Lakto fermented milk drinks are already available in Latvia’s major retail chains as well as in smaller neighbourhood stores.

The Lakto brand now offers a total of 24 functional fermented milk products - including 21 drinkable options and 3 spoonable yogurts in 200 g cups. These spoonable yogurts are made using a unique thermostatic technology, which is actually where the Lakto story began. The original recipe was developed by Latvian scientists, and today the tradition continues at both Food Union production sites in Latvia – Valmieras Piens and Rīgas Piena Kombināts.

ABOUT FOOD UNION LATVIA

Food Union is the leading producer and distributor of fresh dairy products and ice cream in Latvia. The Food Union group in Latvia consists of Rīgas Piena Kombināts, Valmieras Piens, and Premia FFL. In the market, the company is known for its historic and widely recognized brands such as Kārums, Limbažu piens, Valmiera, Lakto, Pols, Excellence, and TIO. The main competence of the company is mainly in the segment of fresh dairy products and ice cream, and its brand portfolio boasts healthy and high-value-added products made from the best quality milk obtained from more than 100 Latvian farmers. The central office of the Food Union Group is located in Latvia. Since 2019, Riga has been the group's ice cream development center. Every year, more than 100 new ice cream varieties are developed for the European market at the Ice Cream Excellence Center. Since January 2024, Food Union Europe, including Food Union Latvia, has been majority owned by "PAG Private Equity." For more information, please visit https://www.foodunion.lv/.