Unilever 2007 Annual Report Download - page 22

20 Unilever Annual Report and Accounts 2007
Report of the Directors continued
Operating Review – Categories
Our brands are household names in many countries around the
world. We create products that appeal to people’s different
preferences, based on our deep understanding of consumers’
varied habits and lifestyles.
Food and nutrition
We aim to provide foods which both taste great and are good for
you, and, in so doing, become the world’s leading food and
nutrition business.
To fulfil our goal, we are systematically improving the nutritional
profile of our product range through our Nutrition Enhancement
Programme. By the end of 2007 we had assessed the nutritional
composition of all our products – totalling over 22 000 recipes –
and removed a further 2 750 tonnes of saturated fat, 170 tonnes
of salt and 5 000 tonnes of sugar. This is in addition to the
substantial reductions already made by 2006.
We are also committed to ensuring that consumers are able to
make informed choices when buying our products. As well as
listing nutritional information on the back of packaging, we are
implementing the Choices programme, with a front-of-pack
stamp that identifies products which meet internationally
accepted dietary advice. In 2007 we continued rolling the
programme out globally together with other food companies,
under the auspices of the Choices International Foundation. This
was launched during 2007 and is advised by an independent
scientific committee. The stamp can now be found on products in
more than 50 countries around the world. See
www.choicesinternational.org for more information.
We focus on three key areas of consumer benefit when
developing new products: functional foods, lighter options, and
naturalness and authenticity. For example, in 2007 we developed
Promise Activ SuperShots, a Vitality shot with added natural plant
sterols, ingredients that are clinically proven to help actively
remove cholesterol as part of a diet low in saturated fat and
cholesterol.
Meanwhile, Hellmann’s Extra Light uses citrus fibre to create a
great tasting, very low-fat mayonnaise. Because of its low-fat
content the product has a higher margin – particularly valuable at
a time of increasing edible oil costs.
Lipton Green Tea in the US, Lipton Linea slimming teas in Europe,
and Lipton Milk Teas in Asia all flourished by exploiting tea’s
credentials as a healthy beverage. And a new range of restaurant-
quality frozen meals from Bertolli, which are packed with fresh
vegetables and ready to eat in minutes, was a hit with North
American consumers.
Health, hygiene and beauty
The desire to be clean and healthy and to look good is universal.
Our home and personal care brands have promoted health,
hygiene and beauty since the late 19th century and continue to
play a vital role in millions of homes around the world today.
In 2007 our household cleaning business had a particularly
successful year, with brands such as Cif and Domestos helping it
grow by 9%. From simple soap bars to the most technically
advanced concentrated liquids, our laundry brands are also
growing fast.
In skin care, the Pond’s brand went from strength to strength in
South East Asia, China and India, powered in part by the launch
of a new anti-ageing range. Vaseline was our fastest-growing
global skin brand, with underlying sales growth of more than 8%.
Vaseline Cocoa Butter range was its most successful launch in the
US in ten years. The brand also announced the Vaseline Skin
Fund, which is expected to launch in the UK and the US in 2008 –
and give 1 million people better access to information about
managing skin complaints.
Our deodorant brands also made good progress in 2007, with
Axe and Rexona both achieving double-digit growth. Rexona is
the world’s leading deodorant brand and Axe holds a leading
position in male deodorants.
Oral Care returned to growth in Europe while continuing its
robust performance in Indonesia, China and Africa – aided by
innovations such as a combined toothpaste and mouthwash.
During the year we announced the extension of our partnership
with the FDI World Dental Federation, which represents more
than 1 million dentists and we work together with the FDI in oral
health promotion and education programmes.
Science and technology
We are proud of our reputation as a world leader in research and
development (R&D). In 2007 we achieved growth across our
categories both through innovation – new products and new
mixes – and through renovation – the strengthening of existing
brands with new variants, packaging or advertising.
We strive to bring innovations to market more swiftly than ever
before. Following the completion of a major reorganisation of our
R&D activities, we have concentrated research and development
in global and regional centres in order to make the very best use
of our resources and create centres which are innovation
powerhouses. We are also increasingly working on fewer, larger
scale projects, having carefully chosen those that we think will
deliver the most value to the business either in terms of product
sales or margin improvements.