Butter in Coffee: Nestlé Invests in New Trend

The name “bullet-proof coffee” has become a common term for consumers who are regularly blending a mixture of MCT oil and grass-fed butter into their morning coffee beverages. With celebrities like Ed Sheeran and players on the L.A. Lakers promoting the beverage on their social media accounts, more consumers are becoming interested in the unique recipe. Food giant Nestlé does not plan on missing out on this growing trend and is currently working on developing an all-in-one creamer product with Know Brainer Foods.

The butter coffee trend sparked in 2017 when Bulletproof 360 raised over $19 million in Series B funding for their Bulletproof Coffee products. The company claims that their mixture of grass-fed butter, MCT oil and coffee provides performance-enhancing energy to consumers, both at a cognitive and metabolic level. With support from several influencers, bulletproof coffee became the morning beverage of choice for many consumers. However, the process of blending the three ingredients in a blender prior to consumption requires extra time. Know Brainer Foods has developed a coffee creamer claiming to have the same benefits but with added convenience.

The Colorado-based start-up sells prepackaged creamers that are infused with grass fed butter and MCT oil. They also have instant coffee varieties that have these two popular ingredients in them as well. Know Brainer Foods’ prepackaged products make it easy for consumers to enjoy a cup of ketogenic coffee without the hassle of using a bender to prepare it. Their innovative products caught the eye of major CPG company, Nestlé, via the Terra Food + Ag Tech Accelerator program in October.

Now the two companies are collaborating to develop a 10-serving 16 oz. multi-serve coffee creamer product that contains the two necessary ketogenic fats (grass-fed butter and MCTs) with added collagen protein. The additional ingredient allegedly has anti-aging properties and is marketed to help strengthen tissues and joints. This new creamer product – set to launch at the Natural Product Expo West 2018 – has a lot of potential in the market as a valuable keto-friendly creamer.

The ketogenic diet was first introduced in the 1920s as a therapeutic treatment for paediatric epilepsy. The diet, also known as the low-carb high-fat diet, induces ketosis – when the liver produces ketones in order to burn fat for energy – in the human body. When the body reaches ketosis, people experience more energy, weight loss and enhanced mental focus. Such results make this diet widely popular in the health-focused consumer market, leading them to purchase more healthy-fats.

Nestlé’s collaboration with Know Brainer currently involves no investment or equity claims. However, according to Ashlee Adams, Head of Open Innovation at Nestlé USA, they are willing to continue working with the company after the Tech Accelerator 8-week pilot period ends in February.