Hot off the heels of launching the reduced sugar Kit Kat, Nestlé Rowntree’s brand is unveiling its new 30% less sugar versions of firm favorites, the best-selling Rowntree’s Fruit Pastilles and Rowntree’s Randoms.

Following two years of research and development, the candy breakthrough is the latest innovative recipe change wher sugar has been removed and replaced by increasing fiber content in these brand new versions that are on the shelves alongside the existing classic products, giving consumers more choice in the confectionery aisle.

As well as having 30% less sugar, the new products also have fewer calories and remain free from artificial flavors, colors and sweeteners ensuring 100% fruity flavor.

Last week FoodIngredientsFirst reported how new versions of Nestle’s iconic confectionery brand Kit Kat have been launched with 10% less sugar and more cocoa and milk - and Nestlé insists there is no change to taste.

However, around 9,000 consumers have already had the chance to try the new Rowntree’s products as part of a large-scale blind taste test led through social media when blank packaged product samples were distributed to people asking to feedback on the products using the hashtag #RowntreesTasteTest.

The consumers did not know the sweets were different to the regular Rowntree’s range and  Initial feedback has been “overwhelmingly positive”, according to  Nestlé which says consumers describe the sweets as “juicy”, “fruit” and “chewy”.

There is 55.9g of sugar per 100g of sweets in the regular version of Rowntree’s Fruit Pastilles and 53.1g of sugar per 100g of sweets in the regular version of Rowntree’s Randoms. There is 38.5g of sugar per 100g of sweets in the Rowntree’s 30% Less Sugar Fruit Pastilles and 36.5g of sugar per 100g of sweets in the Rowntree’s 30% Less Sugar Randoms.

This is all part of Nestlé’s strategy to remove 10% of the sugar across its confectionery portfolio by 2018.

“Our announcement last month was all about improving our existing products while this launch is all about choice. These new products will sit alongside our existing range and offer a real alternative for consumers,” says Dame Fiona Kendrick, Chairman and CEO of Nestlé UK and Ireland.

“We are delighted that our innovation gives consumers the option of a significantly reduced sugar version of both Fruit Pastilles and Randoms and, as consumers make the switch to the less sugar version, it can help deliver a reduction in the amount of sugar consumed overall.”

“Confectionery can play as much of a part in the efforts to reduce sugar and tackle obesity in the UK as any other category and, as we’re demonstrating, we’ll take every opportunity to innovate and reformulate to improve our products.

“We have worked incredibly hard to create these brand new versions of our favorite sweets. There have been as many as 76 different versions of the recipe over two years of research and development to ensure that what we have ended up with is just as good as the full sugar products.”

The new Rowntree’s products will be exclusive to Tesco from this week before being available more widely in the summ