We spoke to Andrew Gibb about overcoming the obstacles, why vitamin why the way juice is made is so important and what's next after these turbulent times.
When he first moved from Melbourne to the UK capital, his first job was to introduce the benefits of high-pressure pasteurisation (HPP) juice market.
He had already seen the benefits of being in Europe, namely the proximity to a host of different countries but was very surprised nobody had yet tapped into HPP and quickly went about introducing the process.
“I remember arriving and quickly realising nobody here was doing the HPP juices and this is a market ten times the size of Australia and yet, nobody was doing what we were doing.
“There are so many benefits to HPP for example, being raw and fresh – no heat means that each ingredient remains raw and fresh with maximum nutritional benefits so you get the most out of every sip, plus it preserves nutrients and enzymes, kills bacteria and pathogens.
“It also gives products an extended shelf life and helps reduce food waste.”
Gibb said the simple thinking behind HPP is to make juice work harder and taste better, vindicating the ‘permissible’ natural sugars that inevitably inhabit fruit and vegetable-based products.
He added: “The problem for the UK’s juice fixture is that it lost its way, dependent on outmoded heat-based technology (heat pasteurisation) whose heavy-handed nature inadvertently strips everyday juices of a lion’s share of their enviable taste cues and nutritional integrity.
“In stark contrast, HPP uses ‘clever science’ hyperbaric pressure that kills any spoilage micro-organisms without compromising the ingredients taste or nutritional worth.”
Covid was in its infancy when Gibb took the decision that his juices and smoothies needed to achieve super-juice and super-smoothie status by offering a wider gamut of vitamins than traditional vitamin C centric juices could offer A, B, D and E.
He said: “Our juices have extra vitamin D in them which was identified as a key defence against Covid. I think it’s well-known that juice first made its name as a convenient vitamin C hit that rounded off the perfect breakfast. Back in the day it was a drink of distinction that made an alright breakfast a more well-rounded breakfast.
“As time went by and breakfast lost its way as a standout eating occasion, juices and smoothies floundered, with aisles becoming packed with copycat products lacking nutritional gravitas or 'memorable' taste cues.”
Coldpress, Gibb says, is part of a new generation of super-juices and smoothies that recognises that in today's increasingly cluttered soft drinks fixture, best-in-class juices need real cut-through.
He added: “It is no longer enough for premium juices to be a sound bastion of vitamin C because modern drinks need to support hectic life schedules like never before and that’s why we’ve made sure Coldpress covers all your Vitamin A to E needs.”
There are always plans to simplify the ingredient decks as well.
A new product is called Rise & Shine and is a new recipe to give greater functionality to orange juice offerings. Mend & Defend and Survive & Thrive have been simplified to reduce sugar count by 20% while securing added functionality.
Ginger has been added to existing products Mend & Defend and Survive & Thrive for anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects, improved digestion and its proven track record in stabilising blood sugar levels.
Rise & Shine and Mend & Defend have had carrot added as a healthier sweetness alternative and lemon has been added to two recipes to support better digestion and support improved blood sugar levels.
Gibb added: “Like many other businesses, the last two years have led to countless problems. Brexit has led to a host of issues for the company and being in Europe was what excited me the most at first. The introduction of the sugar tax led to complications for Coldpress but they persisted.
“Covid wreaked havoc on supply chain issues and logistics became a 'nightmare'. Even when things slowly started looking like they were getting better, the war in Ukraine brought further issues.”
He keeps going because more than anything he loves the technology of how the juices are made.
“The process might seem a lot, but the benefits are endless. We can get rid of all the bad stuff in juice and maintain all the goodness. The nutrients, vitamins, taste and freshness all remain intact.
"A lot of our European drivers are from Ukraine and they would drive our trucks from Spain to here. When the war started and Ukrainian men were told to stay back and fight, this meant we experienced delays in all our deliveries.
“Being a small business certainly comes with its challenges that you wouldn't think of.”