Vitaaltje, a croquette without meat
Mr F. Stevens, Febo
The Vitaaltje, the latest snack from Febo
Febo introduced the croquette Vitaaltje at the end of 2008 alongside the traditional Dutch croquette that is filled with meat ragout. Vitaaltje is a croquette without any meat and with less calories, less fat and less salt. With this, the snackcompany reacted to the consumer trend for ‘a day without meat’.
A vegetarian croquette, with less calories and a significant reduction in fat.
The basis of a croquette is a ragout, made from self-drawn bouillon and roux (flour cooked in butter), to which spices, vegetables and meat are added. The ragout is shaped into balls that are then rolled out, so that each ball gets the shape of a croquette. After the croquette has been formed it is given its first layer of breadcrumbs, passed through egg white, and then it gets its second layer of breadcrumbs. All Febo croquettes are distributed to the Febo outlets fresh, using refrigerated transport.
‘Meatless’ is used in the production of the Vitaaltje as an ingredient. Meatless is a meat substitute made from vegetable wheat proteins that has a good structure, and it ensures a smooth result. The wheat product also means that Vitaaltje is extra rich in fibre. Meatless has relatively few calories (70 kcal/100g) and less than 1% fat (of which 75% unsaturated).
It took around a year to develop the Vitaaltje.
Nutritional values of croquette
| Vitaaltje per croquette |
Vitaaltje Per 100 gram |
Beef croquette |
|
| Energy (kcal) | 187 | 208 | 251 |
| Energy (KJ) | 786 | 873 | 1050 |
| Protein (g) | 4,49 | 4,99 | 8,84 |
| Fat total (g) | 9,90 | 11,0 | 15,3 |
| Saturated fat (%) | 32,8 | 36,4 | 40,1 |
| Carbohydrate (g) | 19,6 | 21,8 | 19 |
| Fibre (g) | 1,7 | 1,9 | 1,4 |
| Cholesterol | < 13 | < 13 |
More than 75 percent of the people living in the Netherlands eat a croquette every now and again. According to figures from ‘the big croquette survey’ conducted in 2008, about 350 million croquettes are eaten every year in the Netherlands. It is not only the young who eat croquettes but in particular people in the age range of 35 to 49. The educational level of most of those who eat croquettes is mediocre or higher. Men and women are equally fond of croquettes.
Healthier varieties of the croquette, fried in healthier fats are desirable from the public health point of view. The snackcompany Febo wishes to extend the range further.
The FEBO organisation is a franchise organisation. It asks its franchise participants to join the campaign for Responsible Frying. This means that the snacks are fried in liquid frying fats that comply with the standard of the campaign.
Liquid frying fats contain a maximum of 5% trans fatty acids and a minimum of 65% unsaturated fatty acids that have a favourable effect on the cholesterol level.Core points:
- The Vitaaltje is a very tasty vegetarian alternative for the meat croquette
- The use of Meatless as ingredient in snacks gives good results
- The Vitaaltje contains 17% less energy and 10% less saturated fat in comparison with a beef croquette
- Frying in liquid frying fats helps to further improve the fatty acid composition
