Sugar reduction with added fruit and vegetables on-trend at ISM 2020

06 Feb 2020 --- The addition of fruits and vegetables to confectionery is adding an aura of health to indulgent delights. As consumers seek sweetness from naturally derived sources, ingredient suppliers are offering up solutions to sugar-reduction without the addition of artificial sweeteners. Reporting from the show floor at ISM and ProSweets in Cologne 2020, FoodIngredientsFirst discovers ingredient suppliers’ strategies for reducing sugar.

“Sugar reduction is a big topic,” Stephanie Engel, Marketing Manager at Döhler, tells FoodIngredientsFirst. “We have developed sugar-reduced fruit gummies formulated with hemp lavender. We have replaced the sugar with an apple compound to have the sweetness impact, while avoiding adding sugars, which results in 30 percent less sugar than in a standard product.” The hemp and lavender in the product is positioned to have relaxing qualities, giving consumers an added reason to consume the product aside from taste and texture alone.

Although products containing fruit will still contain sugars on the label, sugars coming from fruit are perceived to be naturally more healthy and, therefore, more widely accepted by the consumer. Apple concentrate was also featured in a gummy prototype developed by Paradise Fruits. The sample formulation for an “exotic fruit snack” bears claims that it is gelatine-free, organic, made from real fruit and contains no added sugar. Other fruit concentrates in the gummies include passion fruit, orange, mango and lemon.

The inclusion of fruit in confectionery or elsewhere appeals to consumers who are seeking to reach their “five-a-day” target, notes Claus Christiansen, Sales Manager at Paradise Fruits. Increased awareness of getting more fruits and vegetables on a daily basis is pushing up the consumption of these products, which is driving demand for convenient formats like smoothies. In response, the company has launched a freeze-dried smoothie drop snack concept. Positioned especially for kids, Smoothee Drops can be formulated in various ways so that consumers can enjoy a smoothie in a snackable, on-the-go format

Beets are having a moment
Several products at ISM made use of beetroot’s natural sweetness and vibrant color to reduce sugar and add a burst of natural red in confectionery. Ingredient supplier and food manufacturer Pit contributed to these offerings with a new formulation of hot chocolate drinking powder under its brand Becks Cocoa. It features organic and reduced sugar claims.

Adding beets gives natural sweetness and color.“We see beetroot as a new food trend in taste. It’s not very common to use in the sweets industry. However, we see it as having a lot of potential to reduce sugar and make products healthier. The taste is similar to cocoa powder – it has an earthy flavor,” says Bertram Zehetbauer, Manager Sales & Marketing at Pit.

Similarly, Döhler reformulated the popular German Christmas cookie, the cinnamon star, with beets for an added vegetable claim and reduced sugar content. Engel notes that the bright color gives an added visual effect and contains more health benefits when compared to the standard product.

Less is more
While there is much awareness around the dangers of high sugar intake, confectionery remains an indulgent and celebratory product. It is a challenge for manufacturers to meet the need for less sugar while also reminding consumers that their product will deliver all the sensory pleasure they expect from sweets. One way to cope with this paradox is to focus on the positive positioning of what’s being added in place of the sugar.

UK-based Love Cocoa achieves positive positioning in sugar reduction by adding more cocoa in its product. “Consumers are reducing their sugar intake. For our part, we’ve reduced our sugar by putting more cocoa into our product. Before, we were at a 37 percent cocoa level, but now we’re up to 41 percent. We’ve seen a huge growth in consumers who want at least 70 percent cocoa in a standard product, but many actually want a higher percentage so we’re in the process of developing a product with 85 percent and 100 percent. We haven’t hit 100 percent yet because it’s a very bitter product,” says James Cadbury, Founder of Love Cocoa.

Meanwhile, Barry Callebaut is perfecting its WholeFruit Chocolate recipe following the launch of the Cacao Fruit Experience in October of 2019. Since the introduction, Nestlé has launched KitKats in Japan using Cacao Fruit Chocolate, which uses powdered pulp from the cocoa fruit to substitute traditional sugar. Although WholeFruit Chocolate is not officially launched, Bas Smit, Marketing Manager at Barry Callebaut, says that we can expect to taste the final product sometime this year.

Sugar-free and low GI claims
At ISM, Beneo displayed gummies with a low glycemic index (GI) claim using palatinose, a carbohydrate developed by the company. Palatinose has the same amount of calories as sugar. However, the structure of the molecules is designed for a slow release of energy, giving a functional twist to traditional sugar.

In other sugar-free trends, Capol displayed a sugar-free confectionery coating at ISM 2020. The company was celebrating 45 years of business in the confectionary surface treatments. Mary Hare, Regional Sales Manager at Capol, notes that although the coating around confectionery only has a tiny amount of sugar, sugar-free coatings are beneficial to those who want to use a zero-sugar claim. 

By Missy Green