An increasing need for health and wellness food and beverages continues to drive sugar reduction. Despite pressure building for the industry to slash sugar rates in products, consumers still crave sweet flavors. As consumers demand natural, low-calorie sweeteners that deliver on taste, a range of sugar-reducing solutions continue to hit global markets. Several of these seek to close the gap between halo-topped sources like stevia and what is commercially viable for food manufacturers.

While Innova Market Insights has found that some macronutrients such as fats and certain carbohydrates have made a comeback over the years, sugar is consistently demonized and consequently, consumers are cutting their intake. According to the market researcher’s Consumer Lifestyle and Attitudes Survey 2018, nearly seven out of ten consumers across the countries surveyed (US, UK, France, Germany, China and Brazil) have reduced their sugar intake. Consumers seeking low-calorie solutions are looking for natural or nutritious substitutes rather than artificial sweeteners.

Highs for stevia
Regulatory approval for the use of stevia in food and beverages was a win for food manufacturers who could utilize a high-intensity, zero-calorie sweetener with a “back to nature” approach. Both manufacturers and consumers who are looking for sweeteners to cut down sugar intake are not only looking for a sweetness that sugar manifests but taste, mouthfeel and even flavor to achieve a more sugar-like taste profile.

Over the past two decades, stevia has led the way in natural sweetener markets. It works well with other sweeteners and flavors.

According to Jackson Pillow, Global Communications Manager at Purecircle, the use of next-generation stevia sweeteners is going to increase in 2020. “ With more access to next-generation stevia leaf sweeteners, food and beverage companies will be able to use non-GMO, plant-based stevia sweeteners at a global scale, and in a wide array of food and beverage categories,” he tells.

“The sports, fitness and nutrition categories are increasingly looking for new ways to introduce natural, zero-calorie sweetening solutions into their products,” Pillow notes. Stevia is also keto-friendly, and because it is plant-based, it aligns with significant trends in the category. Food and beverage products marketed to children is another important area, as companies are trying to incorporate non-GMO ingredients that enable sugar reduction in their products. “There is a tremendous need and demand for reducing sugar in natural ways. Stevia is one of the very few options well positioned to meet this need,” Pillows adds.

“Considering mass health, more countries have levied taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), and the taxes have the inclination to be expanded across to unhealthy foods. With the pressure of cost-in-use, more food and beverage manufacturers will resort to non-nutritive natural sweeteners like stevia, monk fruit and thaumatin. Categories that have a large market size and require a high amount of sweetness will definitely benefit the most from those natural sweeteners,” Dean Francis, CEO of Sweet Green Fields explains.

In particular, non-nutritive natural sweeteners have gained popularity because of their natural sweetness and low-calorie content, he adds. “The increasing number of new products launched with stevia is occurring worldwide with all global regions participating, of which carbonated soft drinks, snacks, juice drinks, other beverages and dairy are in the top five. This indicates an incremental popularity of stevia used in food and beverages.”

“We see an increased demand for natural sweeteners, especially stevia sweeteners that deliver clean sweetness and zero calories. New product launches using stevia are booming globally,” adds Francis.

What’s next?
Allulose could be one to watch in 2020. It is a low-calorie sweetener that is naturally occurring in small amounts in wheat, some fruits, including figs and raisins, a variety of other foods and can also be manufactured. It is one of many different rare sugars that exist in nature in very small quantities. Launches featuring the ingredient thus far have been few and far between, but scientific support is growing. Innova Market Insights reports that patent activity is thriving in natural sweeteners, with 42 percent growth in allulose publications just one indicator of this trend (Global, 2018 vs. 2017).

The US mainstream commercial adoption of allulose looks closer than ever after the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it would allow the low-calorie sweetener to be excluded from total and added sugars counts on Nutrition and Supplement Facts labels when used as an ingredient.