Starbucks

Starbucks Corp, which has tried for years to jump-start a much-criticized food division, plans to revamp its menu at the end of this month to lure health- and cost-conscious consumers.

On June 30, the world’s top coffee chain will begin selling baked goods without high-fructose corn syrup or artificial flavors and dyes, and will introduce salads and other items.

“Food has been the Achilles’ heel of the company … That statement will be long buried after we launch this program,” Michelle Gass, Starbucks’ executive vice president of marketing, said on Tuesday.

The new campaign — which will be promoted with the tag “Real Food. Simply Delicious” — follows last year’s health and wellness push that added food like oatmeal, smoothies and a protein plate to Starbucks’ repertoire.

The ingredient changes, which also include removing preservatives where possible, will affect about 90 per cent of the baked goods Starbucks sells and are part of the coffee chain’s ongoing efforts to appeal to increasingly health-conscious consumers as recession has damped spending on little luxuries like lattes.

Food prices will not rise as a result, Gass said.

Further, this summer in Dallas, the company is testing a Frappuccino formula that Gass says mirrors what the company is doing with food.

Starbucks’ latest move lands as fast-food chains like McDonald’s Corp sell more coffee and cappuccinos.

Food accounted for 17 per cent of sales at company-operated Starbucks cafes in its fiscal year ended September 2008, up from 15 per cent in fiscal 2006.

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Source: Financial Express