The War on Sugar – Five Ingredient Innovations in Response

GlobalData has highlighted five ingredient innovations to look out for in response to the War on Sugar; as brands attempt to overcome challenges posed by mainstream sweeteners. The company’s report, ‘Ingredient Insights: War on Sugar’, explains that health has emerged as a key purchase driver in the food and drinks sectors and sheds light on how brands are addressing demand for reduced- or zero-sugar formulations using key on-trend and emerging ingredients.

Choosing food and drink products with reduced sugar content has developed as a key goal for the majority of consumers worldwide. According to the latest data from GlobalData, 57% of shoppers in the APAC region are choosing foods with low/no sugar while 52% are doing the same when buying soft drinks.

Melanie Felgate, Senior Consumer Insight Analyst at GlobalData, ‘‘Food and drink brands offering ‘natural’ and ‘low sugar’ positioning must carefully consider the inclusion of highly processed sweeteners, as consumers are becoming increasingly concerned about their use with many actively avoiding products that contain them.’’

Coca-Cola’s first foray into a stevia sweetened cola – Coca-Cola Life which blended stevia with sugar – received mixed response, and has been discontinued in many markets including the UK and Australia. However, this year, the brand is set to trial Coca-Cola Stevia No Sugar in New Zealand; its first to be sweetened 100% by stevia and featuring ‘a flavor profile closer to sugar without a bitter aftertaste,’ thanks to its collaboration with PureCircle to supply an innovative stevia variant which is much higher in sweet-tasting steviol glycoside Reb M than conventional varieties.  

Report Scope:

• Gain insight on consumer trends and perceptions towards ingredients to support sugar reduction strategies.
• Identify new and emerging ingredients to help overcome challenges with sugar reduction and removal strategies.
• Discover the latest innovation and learn from what other brands are doing to reduce and remove sugar in food and drink products.
• Explore future challenges that the industry must overcome to cut sugar further.

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