In an effort to attract Canada’s fastest-growing ethnic population to its prepared baby foods, H.J. Heinz Company of Canada has decided to go further than simply featuring a cute Asian baby on its jars of mashed carrots.

Instead, it’s developed a product specifically for Asian tastes – Heinz Congee.

Congee – a rice-based Far East staple resembling porridge – is prepared plain or in combination with vegetables, pork, chicken, beef or seafood.

In North America, the Heinz line will include every flavor (including plain) except seafood, says Valerie Bell, group market manager of infant feeding for the North York, Ont.-based company.

Although a tuna flavor will be available in the Far East, Bell says Heinz decided against a seafood version in North America because physicians here recommend seafood not be introduced to babies until they are at least two years old (because of the possibility of allergic reactions). Also, says Bell, certain fish carry the added threat of bones, which can cause choking in infants.

Besides being a first in terms of labeling (Heinz has never featured an Asian baby on its baby food jars before now), Heinz Congee marks the first time the company has introduced an ethnic-specific product simultaneously in Canada and abroad.

So, while Heinz Congee can be purchased in supermarkets across Canada, the exact same product is being sold in Hong Kong and Singapore, with plans to roll out the line to other countries in Asia.

Heinz Canada has also provided samples of the product to its u.s. parent, which is considering introducing Congee to a few markets south of the border.

‘Originally, the idea came from our export group,’ says Bell. Although she didn’t have figures available, Bell says that Heinz Canada exports a ‘tremendous’ amount of baby food into the Far East and the Middle East. With much of its export business going to Asia – and 1.4-million ethnic Asians across Canada, of which 700,000 are Chinese – it was only a matter of time before the company developed a commercially-available baby food that appeals to this community’s traditional tastes. In fact, Congee is only the first in a series of ethnic-specific baby foods to be developed by Heinz.

According to Bell, the Chinese community is far from averse to buying prepared baby foods. They already purchase Heinz – primarily its fruit and juices, she says. However, because prepared congee was such a stretch from the somewhat bland ‘chicken and peas’ combinations of traditional Heinz baby foods, focus groups played a major role in the development of the new line, says Bell.

The company focused on two groups – Chinese mothers who had just immigrated to Canada and those who had been living here for at least three years. ‘We tested packaging, advertising, what would work, what wouldn’t work,’ says Bell.

Heinz hired Alex Wong Inc., an ad agency in Markham, Ont. that specializes in Chinese marketing, to develop labeling and put together the company’s launch package.

Although the Chinese community tends to consider congee a first food (introduced as soon as the baby is ready for solids, at about six months), Heinz decided to stage the food as one of its Junior products, starting at eight months.

Bell says the texture of the congee, which is a bit lumpy, made it more appropriate for an eight-month-old baby. It didn’t hurt that the number eight is considered lucky to the Chinese. Also, the Junior foods are labeled in red – an auspicious color for the Chinese.

The labels feature English, French and Chinese characters and each jar also features an illustrated animal – to correspond to the flavor of the congee (pork congee features a little pig, for example).

Perhaps most importantly, the company had to perfect the taste and appearance of the product – picking up a few lessons about Chinese culture along the way. For example, in one of the earlier versions, Heinz food developers included certain spices that, to the Chinese, are only to be used medicinally – not suitable to baby food at all. Green pepper was also a no-no because the Chinese consider that a ‘hot’ food, another ingredient unsuitable for babies.

Through its Heinz Baby Club, the company is sending out 265,000 fsis into high-penetration markets across Canada – mainly in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver – to promote the line, says Bell.

Promotion will emphasize the fact that Heinz Congee is iron-fortified (Bell says that Chinese children are more likely to be iron-deficient than their Caucasian counterparts.)

The company will advertise the new product through print in Chinese newspapers and on tv with a modified spot, originally created by Toronto’s ddb, which features the sentiment ‘How will I know what to feed her?’

Heinz will also support the line at parenting shows in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver, along with shows that specifically target the Asian market, such as Markham, Ont.’s Asian Family Shows.

‘It’s very important to get the grandparent’s approval,’ says Bell.