The Spadel Naturality Framework, updated

A lot has changed since we first introduced the Spadel Naturality Framework back in 2015. Environmentally, socially, economically, and technologically. Just as our world and expectations evolve, so must we. Which is why we’re proud to introduce the updated Spadel Naturality Framework as part of our Source of Change 2025 CSR strategy.

With this update, we’re addressing important strategic and commercial concerns explains Marianne Mahieu, Group Formulation R&D Manager in the ‘Brand, Innovation & Sustainability’ Team at Spadel.

Innovation doesn’t sleep

Strategically, we need to embrace all the innovations that the food and beverage industry brings. Commercially, we need to ensure every decision we make is both sustainable for the planet and for the company.

Our Naturality Framework helps us respond to consumer demand for more natural and less processed products at affordable prices. It also gives our suppliers clear technical criteria on what ingredients and compositions we consider to be natural whilst keeping the door open for future innovations.

“To stay true to our promise to deliver pure, healthy beverages, we need to provide suppliers with clear technical criteria whilst keeping the door open for future innovations.”

Why do we need a Naturality Framework?

Although natural mineral water is strictly regulated, there is no legislative framework on what is considered a ‘natural’ product. To label a product as ‘natural’ you merely need to comply with the ‘general principles of fair practice’, which is a rather vague definition.

It is precisely because of this regulatory limitation that the Spadel Group has developed its Naturality Framework, first in 2015. We want to communicate as transparently as possible about all our product developments as we further enhance stakeholder trust.

Why update the guidelines?

Economic pressure and challenges such as feeding the world’s growing population and responding to the increasing demand for vegan products have led to all sorts of new technological processes being developed.

And although the food industry is strictly regulated, science and technology are evolving faster than the regulations that govern them. It’s therefore essential that we lay out the ground rules for our suppliers and our customers. A set-in-stone assurance on what does (and does not) go into our ‘other than water’ products.

What remains the same?

With our 2025 update we stay true to our DNA: all ingredients, colours and additives must be naturally present in nature or come from natural origins. This means they are mainly derived from fruits, plants, vegetables, algae, fungi or even mineral deposits. The clue is that the origin raw material comes from nature, not from a lab.

GMO sources, chemical organic synthesis, nanotechnology and petrochemicals remain a hard ‘no’ for us. Just as we’ll never use intense artificial sweeteners, such as sucralose or aspartame.

What has changed?

The main change is that we have adopted the international ISO/TS 19657 norm to evaluate whether an ingredient is natural or not, and we have replaced our initial naturality pyramid by the clear decision tree which is part of the ISO norm.

While doing this, we shift from our objective to use the most natural ingredient solution (whatever its cost) to the objective of proposing the most globally sustainable, natural solution.

Five Key Points:

All in all, our new Naturality guidelines are easy to understand and can be summarised as 5 key points:

• 100% natural ingredients (according to ISO/TS 19657 norm) – NEW
• Any bioengineering tools or processes to be authorised by the EU – NEW
• All flavours are natural (according to EC Regulation 1334/2008)
• All raw materials and ingredients are non-GMO
• Any communications are based on the natural origin of ingredients

ISO/TS 19657

The ISO/TS 19657 norm is an international standard that defines the criteria under which food ingredients are considered natural. It’s commonly used and known in the B2B food industry. ISO/TS provides guidance on ingredients yet does not cover the flavour aspect in food stuffs.

We have adopted the ISO/TS norm decision tree to evaluate whether an ingredient is natural. But with the Naturality Framework we are taking things even further: we are defining the parameters for all our ingredients, flavourings, colourants and additives.

“Our updated Naturality guidelines ensure the economic sustainability of our ‘other than water’ products in an increasingly challenging competitive context.”

The Spadel Naturality Framework

We have created our own framework to ensure that our suppliers and customers know precisely what they can expect from us. As a B Corp certified positive impact company, we share an inherent connection with the world around us. This means acting transparently and for the greater good of our planet and its people.

The updated Spadel Naturality Framework helps us put this into practice.