Beneo’s latest sugar-free NPD hopes to sweeten summer

01 Aug 2017 --- Beneo has revealed its latest collection of sugar-free hard candy products using the sugar replacer Isomalt, which is derived from sugar beet. The new product developments include Beneo’s new Sweets Collection and the artisan Rock Candy. Beneo’s Isomalt has also received European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) health claims for its low-glycemic and tooth-friendly characteristics. In addition, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a dental health claim. According to Beneo, both of these facts “open up new marketing possibilities for confectionery producers.”

The sugar replacer Isomalt has a “mild, natural sweet taste,” according to Beneo’s press release. This is said to leave room for other flavors and allow for unique taste combinations to be created.

The Sweets Collection promises variations in ideas and tastes. The Mango Sticky Rice Delight, a candy concept with a different flavor on each side, is based on a very popular Asian dessert and has been developed in direct response to the growing demand for “ethnic authenticity” in the market. The company has connected the demand to Innova Market Insights’ figures showing that the number of new product launches with an ethnic positioning has nearly doubled in the past four years.

Elsewhere in the collection, the Fruit Veggie Twister swirl candy includes a combination of fruity and spicy flavors. In addition, the Hot-Cool-Booster is known as a “candy-in-candy” and combines two opposite flavors with a thin chili-fruit layer covering the lemon-menthol core. The candy’s innovative hot and cool flavor combination is described as “the perfect answer for consumers increasingly searching for new taste sensations.”

The new candies fit in with what the company sees as the likely trends in other flavors in sweet products in the future. “In particular, we see an increasing trend for fruit and vegetable combinations in many food categories, such as the Fruit Veggie Twister,” Thomas Schmidt, Marketing Director at Beneo, tells NutritionInsight. “We also see a growing demand for ‘ethnic authenticity’ in the market ... as more people travel abroad and experience more exotic flavors, we expect this trend to continue to grow in popularity.”

Meanwhile, Beneo’s Isomalt is also being used to improve the manufacturing of traditional candies such as Rock Candy. Until now the candy was only available including sugar, but the company is aiming to improve it not only by making it sugar-free and healthier but also by helping to facilitate its manufacturing.

Rock Candy can be transformed because Isomalt has a higher heat capacity than sugar, which means that cooling down takes longer and manufacturers have more time to process and mold the product into Rock Candy. What’s more, Beneo’s press release points out that thanks to the “mild, natural sweet taste of Isomalt,” if a sugar-like sweetness is desired, it’s possible to combine intense sweeteners as well, using Isomalt to mask any undesired aftertastes that may occur when including such sweeteners.

What does the future hold for Isomalt? “The biggest application for Isomalt is hard boiled candies because of its technological and nutritional benefits,” Schmidt tells NutritionInsight. “Besides hard candies, Isomalt has high growth potential in the chewing gum industry as it can be used in different applications such as in translucent or opaque coatings, in the gum pellet, or in chewing gums where you would like to achieve a special crunch. Beyond the chewing gum industry, we see an increased demand for Isomalt in sugar-reduced bakery products outside the EU.”

Speaking about Beneo’s confectionery application pipeline, Schmidt says that the company is “currently seeing a growing demand for soft chews and is currently working on some interesting sugar-free concepts for the [European market], as well as sugar-reduced concepts for the wider industry by including Isomalt in soft chews, gummies, toffees but also pastilles.”

“While sugar-free products are the main focus for using Isomalt in most countries, similar to the bakery industry outside of the EU, we’re now starting to see further opportunities within the confectionery industry for sugar-reduced applications as well,” Schmidt adds.

By Paul Creasy