The first-ever smoothies were mixed in Hollywood, California during the 1940s. They were a favourite with film actors, who wanted a quick burst of nourishment before going on set.

Fast forward to the 1980s and smoothies are becoming increasingly popular in gyms and health clubs and breaking into the wider US Market for soft drinks. Today, annual sales in the US are worth $2bn – up 80% in 5 years. (Mintel Market Research Report 2007).

The smoothie crossed the Atlantic in 1994 and has shaken off its niche market status to become a major market sector. In 2007, Britons drank 34m litres of smoothies and Mintel predicts that volumes will triple to 100m litres over the next 5 years.

Within the smoothie market, you’ll find ’functional’ smoothies, with natural power boosters for detox or extra energy. These are still a relatively small sector with 11% of the market but show the fastest rates of growth. Meanwhile smoothies with dairy ingredients like yoghurt are steadily losing market share but still represent a significant percentage of the market. By far the largest and most buoyant sector is the pure fruit smoothie, with 1-3 different fruits plus a little juice.

Smoothies are benefiting from two distinct trends in the food market. The first is the trend towards healthier eating and the increased consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables, as stimulated by the Government’s ‘5 portions a day’ campaign. One smoothie = 1+ portions. It’s as simple as that.

The second trend is the move away from carbonated soft drinks made of chemicals and sugar. Dentists, nutritionists and behavioural scientists have all raised serious doubts about the value of these drinks and parents are looking for alternatives.

Then of course, there’s the third factor. The taste: It’s gorgeous. One sip and you and the smoothie are friends for life.

All the supermarket chains sell smoothies for home consumption. But these, by definition, cannot be freshly made. And despite the huge sales volume, only 31% of adults are regular smoothie buyers. The problem has been – how can you take freshly made smoothies to people in cafes, bars, health clubs, gyms and restaurants? How can you enable any club or café owner to cash in on the swing to smoothies without storing a mountain of fruit? The Original Smoothie concept solves this problem triumphantly. Our first Master Distributor for Spain has only recently been appointed – but within a short period of time has introduced the concept to over 600 bars, clubs and restaurants.