America leads Latino food revolution with a dash of dulce de leche

It is easier to roll the stuff around one's mouth than it is to get its pronunciation absolutely correct. Dulce de leche. (DOOL-say duh LAY-chay.) In the coming months, Americans are going to have plenty of opportunity to polish their delivery as this typical Latino flavour hits the mainstream.

Mars is introducing dulce de leche-flavoured M&Ms, another blatant attempt by confectioners to cash in on America's rapidly growing and prosperous Hispanic market.

"Everything that is Latin is hot right now," said Scott Hudler, a spokesman for Mars. "We are trying to strengthen our relationship with the Hispanic community, which is increasingly influential. We have been working for two years to produce several prototypes and this is the best. It was important to make sure it was authentic."

Mars is not the first company to use the dulce de leche flavour. Häagen-Dazs, Starbucks and even McDonald's, have introduced products featuring the sweet, rather cloying taste of "sweet of the milk".

But the introduction of the the new variety of M&Ms – to be tested initially in five heavily Hispanic communities – represents further recognition of the importance of the buying power of the Latino community. The most recent census suggests Hispanics now account for 12.5 per cent of the US population, a total of 35 million citizens with a combined purchasing power of $325bn (£228bn). In reality, both figures are likely to be much larger, given the number of illegal immigrants living in the US.

This population is growing all the time. Since 1990, the Hispanic population has grown by 29 percent, and by the middle of the century Hispanics are expected to number a quarter of the total US population. The latest US census, taken last year, showed that Hispanics now outnumber the black African-American population. Felipe Korzenny, founder of Cheskin, a consultancy firm specialising in multicultural marketing, said: "Latino culture is extremely fashionable at the moment. There has been a very interesting reversal of the position of Latino culture, from what was essentially one of being second class to what is now very fashionable in terms of food, fashion and music.

"I think it is partly because of the growth of the Hispanic population. By being a larger segment of society it influences to a larger extent the way people think about food and fashion because everybody has a friend who is Hispanic.

"It is not just food, such as salsa, which now actually outsells ketchup. In music, groups such as the Buena Vista Social Club also captured the imagination. Now you hear Cuban music in department stores. Then there are people like Ricky Martin and Jennifer Lopez, whose combination of Hispanic vibrancy with elements of mainstream Anglo culture has been very popular and palatable.

"I recently spoke to a lady who reminded me that in the Sixties we used to say, 'We shall overcome' and that had now been replaced by 'We shall overwhelm'."

McDonald's has gone even further to "Latinise" its menus. In Miami it has been testing Cuban sandwiches containing ham, pork, Swiss cheese, pickles and mustard, dulce de leche-flavoured desserts and Latin "McOmelets".

Carlos Santiago, of the California-based firm Santiago and Valdes, who also specialise in multicultural marketing, said that while such products aimed to a certain nostalgia appeal, they are also designed to be very up to date. "People love anything that sounds Spanish and they will give it a try – absolutely," he said. "It's the new America and we all want to be part of it." But selling Latino flavours – even to the Latino community – may not be that easy. "It just tastes like a caramel sundae," 17-year-old Lili Martinez told The Miami Herald, after sampling one of the new dulce de leche-flavoured desserts from her neighbourhood McDonald's.

Denise Rodriguez added: "In a predominantly Latin community, you can go anywhere to get Latin food. McDonald's is famous for its hamburgers and fries. They need to stick with this stuff."