Natural sweeteners are increasingly taking over sugar content in soft drinks, according to a market report.
Over 16 per cent of global soft drinks launches recorded by Innova Market Insights in the 12 months to the end of March 2016 used either a no added sugar, low sugar or sugar free claim. This type of positioning was particularly popular in juices and juice drinks, featuring in about one-fifth of introductions in the sub-category, rising to over 30 per cent in the US.
Lu Ann Williams, Director of Innovation at Innova Market Insights said “This interest in sugar reduction has combined with the ongoing emphasis on clean labelling to boost the use of natural sweeteners in particular, with more sophisticated blends developed for specific applications increasingly in evidence.”
Sugar content influences the purchasing decision of soft drinks for 57 per cent of consumers in the US, according to a 2015 Innova Market Insights survey. For the UK, where a sugar tax will come into force in 2018, the figure is 60 per cent. For Mexico, where a sugar tax is already in place, 57 per cent of respondents said that sugar content influences their purchasing decision of soft drinks.
At the same time as this interest in sugar reduction there has also been a continuing focus on clean label formulations, which has worked against some existing non-caloric or low calorie sweeteners and caused a backlash against some ingredients perceived to be “artificial”.
Regulatory approvals for stevia sweeteners in markets such as the USA, Australia and then the EU over the past five years or so, started the increasing use of sweeteners.
Soft drinks have been a key application area, accounting for 20 per cent of launches featuring stevia in the 12 months to the end of March 2016. Penetration has not been as fast as expected in some instances, with stevia featuring in just under 4 per cent of global soft drink launches in the said period.
Coca-Cola for Coca-Cola Life and Pepsi with Pepsi True are two of the leading players and brands that use stevia.
Other natural sweeteners are also increasingly being used, often in combination with sugar, stevia and/or other sweeteners such as erythritol. Honey and agave are also popular, and there is also growing interest in the use of monk fruit.
