Jam company aims to put banana spread on top

With the motto “the taste of spontaneous joy”, the South Pacific Jam Company (SPJC) has launched a range of jams featuring exotic fruit sourced from Australian growers. 

Using popular home-grown fruits, the Banana Jam, Mango & Ginger Jam and Guava & Pineapple Jam are made with crafted blends of Australian unrefined raw sugar, coconut oil and coconut sugar creating a caramelised coconut setting with up to 40 per cent less sugar than other jam and spreads.

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The range will be stocked next to premium spreads in quality retail health and grocery stores and in a select number of food service venues.

A soft launch commenced on August 28 in the Sydney market with a national roll-out scheduled for later this year.

According to company founder, Catherine Stace, the high-end jams are rich in both flavour and goodness.

“It’s quality in a jar. Australia has an abundance of tree fruits but culturally we’ve been stuck in a loop of runner fruits,” Ms Stace said. 

She says Aussies have overlooked the flavour profiles such as banana when it comes to condiments. 

“We want children to grow up loving jam without any downsides and for households to get creative with distinctly Australian flavours,” she said. 

The fruits used are either part of the “clean 15” or have an added layer of skin protecting the fruit, requiring less protection strategies than soil-based runner fruits.

All fruits are identifiable to Australian farms and contribute to zero wastage for farmers, the company says.

SPJC says there has been a consumer drive for sales of premium nut spreads.

“Consumers are in for a culinary surprise. It’s ‘the taste of spontaneous joy’ for good reason,” Ms Stace said.

“It’s smart business practice to look at ways to invigorate the breakfast trade and provide a fast, profitable turn-around on service without having to crack open an egg and turn on the cooktop.

“In a tough and competitive industry, the food service sector is repurposing their space into bespoke retail offerings, selling curated products that yield a healthy margin and espouse the values and aspirational lifestyle of their customers.”

Lindi Glass from Sharper Marketing developed the launch strategy and a B2C and B2B e-commerce website.

She says there is confidence, especially at in the higher end of the market, for “top shelf” spreads such as nut butter that has opened up new entries in the jam category.

“Why would a consumer use an inferior jam or spread when they’ve just spent $10 on a loaf of artisan bread?” Ms Glass said. 

“There’s a lot of shelf space dedicated to jams made with refined sugar and imported fruits, contributing to a stagnant market that’s ripe for innovative new entries.

“The South Pacific Jam Company range is versatile; you can add it to your toast, drizzle it on pancakes, top it on yoghurt, shake it up in a smoothie, slather it on a pavlova, add it to a cheese platter or create a salad dressing, creating multiple in-store locator opportunities. 

The SPJC brand was created to fulfil a lifelong promise by school friends Catherine Stace and Susie Cameron to recreate the banana jam Ms Cameron’s mum made when they were growing up in the suburbs of Sydney.

“It was our delectable secret that just had to be shared with others,” Ms Cameron said. 

The range is manufactured in Australia and comes in 1.3L commercial tubs and 300ml, 250ml and 40ml jars available retail and food service.

The recommended retail price RRP is $10.70 (250ml) per jar and $14.00 (300ml) providing 16.8 serves per 300ml jar.