Sweeteners (intense, bulk, polyols)

Food researchers employ botanical extract to unveil ‘super muffin’ with benefits

07-Mar-2023 By Oliver Morrison

Norwegian academics have demonstrated how using the tropical plant Hibiscus sabdariffa can contribute to increased nutritional value in everyday foods.

Erythritol and health risk: how much weight is behind the claims?

06-Mar-2023 By Oliver Morrison

Erythritol remains an important tool in long-term weight gain and disease risk, according to the international association representing the low- and reduced-calorie food and beverage industry, after research showed that the popular artificial sweetener...

‘90% of our portfolio will be HFSS-compliant’: A deep-dive into Danone’s new health commitments in UK & Ireland

06-Mar-2023 By Flora Southey

Danone UK & Ireland is setting new health commitments for its consumer portfolio of brands. Zoe Ellis, head of consumer nutrition, talks us through the company’s strategy in achieving more than 90% HFSS compliance.

Mānuka honey claims dismissed in UK and US: ‘All non-NZ brands failed the test’

01-Mar-2023 By Flora Southey

Testing of non-New Zealand mānuka honey brands sold in the UK and US reveals all missed key indicators of mānuka according to New Zealand export standards.

Protecting against a ‘dystopian’ future: ‘Coffee, bananas, and chocolate could soon be much harder to buy’

28-Feb-2023 By Flora Southey

Climate change, coupled with ‘deeply unfair trade’, means that some consumer staples could soon be missing from supermarket aisles, predicts the Fairtrade Foundation. What challenges and opportunities exist in encouraging industry to support ethical trade?

Dole experiments with BlueTree tech to cut sugar in juice: ‘Pineapple sets a higher bar than orange’

24-Feb-2023 By Flora Southey

One technology Dole Packaged Foods is trialling to reduce the sugar content in its pineapple juice comes from BlueTree Technologies. We hear about the Proof of Concept (PoC) process between an established food and beverage major and a food tech start-up.

Stevia sweeter news for planetary health than cane and beet sugar, suggests research

22-Feb-2023 By Flora Southey

Production of steviol glycosides extracted from stevia grown in Europe produces just 10% of the greenhouse gas emissions associated with sugar production, according a life cycle assessment.

The rise and rise of healthy indulgence: ‘In tough times, food offers opportunity for delicious escapism’

15-Feb-2023 By Flora Southey

Macro trends, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis, are driving uptake of products claiming to be both healthy and indulgent, according to ingredients suppliers.

The FoodNavigator Podcast: How innovation hopes to bring fun, sociability and indulgence to low/no drinks

15-Feb-2023 By Oliver Morrison

What innovations are occurring that can elevate low/no alcohol beverages from simply being premium soft drinks into something that remains a pleasurable experience for consumers?

‘We evaluate this in terms of cost versus impact’: Ingredion outlines the ‘trade-offs’ needed to advance environmental sustainability

25-Jan-2023 By Katy Askew

Ingredion’s carbon reduction targets include a 25% cut in absolute GHG emissions by 2030. But progress isn’t always a linear journey and ‘trade-offs’ must sometimes be made as the food industry grapples with complex – and even competing – challenges,...

Challenger brands backed to improve nutrition in low-income households: ‘Consumers don’t trust big brands anymore’

25-Jan-2023 By Flora Southey

Although households on lower incomes are spending more on unhealthy food and drink than affluent households, healthier challenger brands have the potential to win over these consumers, FoodNavigator hears.

Editor's Spotlight

The glucose revolution: are you ready?

23-Jan-2023 By Nikki Hancocks

Consumers’ psychological relationship with food is about to transform on a grand scale, thanks to the proliferation of wearable technology and the building ‘glucose revolution’, according to an industry expert.

Low sugar, higher calcium: Demand for tasty, healthier treats inspire chocolate innovation at Tatgu

12-Jan-2023 By Hui Ling Dang

Singapore chocolate firm Tatgu used the pandemic to press ahead with innovation across its low-sugar and -GI, and high-calcium product ranges, as it seeks to meet soaring demand for better-for-you treats.

Caffeine kick: Intake improves time to exhaustion in runners – meta-analysis

12-Jan-2023 By Tingmin Koe

The intake of caffeine has been shown to improve running performance, especially at long-distances, according to the findings of a meta-analysis.

GOS prebiotic an effective sugar-replacement in gummies

10-Jan-2023 By Nikki Hancocks

The prebiotic Galactooligosaccharide (GOS) provides a promising replacement for sugar in gummy products, even improving shelf-life, research concludes.

New dietary fibre insights drive nutritional and health launches

06-Jan-2023 By Natasha Spencer

Following the results of a European study that reveals nutrition, health, taste and price lead dietary fibre needs, we explore how consumer perceptions and attitudes are evolving and shaping new product launches.

Superfrau targets fun but functional beverage category with upcycled fizzy whey drink

05-Jan-2023 By Elaine Watson

Massachusetts-based startup Superfrau is targeting the emerging functional soda category with a vitamin and mineral packed sparkling beverage made from one core ingredient: upcycled liquid whey from Greek yogurt production.

KraftHeinz, Wyss Institute develop new approach to make sugar healthier: ‘We thought we’d come to the Wyss with an impossible problem, and they turned it on its head to present an even crazier idea to solve it’

22-Dec-2022 By Katy Askew

In 2018, the KraftHeinz Company approached the Wyss Institute to develop a solution to sugar reduction that is workable in a food production setting. After four years of collaboration, the research team has developed an answer: enzymes that convert sugar...

Dairy alternatives increasingly seen as complementary to dairy products: survey

21-Dec-2022 By Oliver Morrison

Two thirds (67%) of European consumers see plant-based dairy as complementary, not a substitute to dairy products, and ‘an opportunity to try something new’ (65%), new research from ofi shows.

Amai Proteins finalizing initial closing of $100m round as it gears up for launch of ‘designer’ sweet protein in 2023

02-Dec-2022 By Elaine Watson

Israeli food tech startup Amai Proteins is finalizing the initial closing of a $100m funding round as it gears up to launch its first product next year: a designer sweet protein up to 3,000 times sweeter than sugar with a clean taste and excellent heat...

Plant-based ‘honey without bees’ prepares to create a buzz in Europe

02-Dec-2022 By Flora Southey

US-based MeliBio is partnering with organic food producer Narayan Foods to bring its plant-based bee-free honey product to Europe under the Better Foodie brand.

WATCH: Next-gen biomanufacturing… from lower-cost feedstocks for precision fermentation to ‘cell-free’ approaches

28-Nov-2022 By Elaine Watson

Biomanufacturing everything from ‘animal-free’ dairy and egg proteins and high-intensity natural sweeteners to heat-and pH-stable red pigments is a hot topic in food tech. But which microbes will be the production workhorses in future, will new cell-free...

Chr. Hansen and CP Kelco co-develop shelf-stable, plant-based yoghurt alternatives for consumers ‘unwilling to compromise’

28-Nov-2022 By Flora Southey

The ingredients majors have combined expertise and technologies to develop their ‘vegurt’ offerings. FoodNavigator asks Chr. Hansen and CP Kelco about the challenges they’ve overcome to create ambient, plant-based yoghurt alternatives.

Active approach: Swisse debuts three-stage sports nutrition for everyday consumers

28-Nov-2022 By Tingmin Koe

Swisse has launched its first set of sports nutrition products designed for the general public’s active lifestyle needs – a move that it sees as expanding the category largely catered to elite athletes.

Nestlé's nutrition transparency push: ‘We aim to continuously improve the nutritional value of our foods and beverages’

23-Nov-2022 By Katy Askew

Nestlé will make the nutritional values of its global portfolio more transparent by including details in its annual report, starting this year. The company plans to benchmark its food and beverage brands against the Health Star Rating system developed...

Tate & Lyle adds ERYTESSE erythritol to sweeteners portfolio

18-Nov-2022 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Tate & Lyle has expanded its sweeteners toolbox with ERYTESSE erythritol, which provides 70% of the sweetness of sucrose, a similar temporal profile, and zero calories.

Orange juice developed with 30% less sugar, more fibre, but ‘original taste’

18-Nov-2022 By Flora Southey

Louis Dreyfus Company has developed a not-from-concentrate orange juice with less sugar, more fibre, while preserving its original taste and vitamin C level.

Sugar campaigner calls for clampdown on ‘misleading’ nutrition and health claims on baby and toddler food

16-Nov-2022 By Oliver Morrison

Despite UK government guidance that no added sugars, including those from processed fruit, should be consumed by children up to the age of two years old, new research from Action on Sugar (based at Queen Mary University of London) has revealed what it...

Bee-free honey developed via precision fermentation for global market

15-Nov-2022 By Flora Southey

In the Netherlands, Fooditive is working on another novel ingredient: a precision fermentation-derived honey alternative. We catch up with founder Moayad Abushokhedim, who talks enzymes, sweeteners, and target markets.

Start-up cuts 70% sugar with sweetener-free substitute: ‘It’s a plug-and-play solution’

09-Nov-2022 By Flora Southey

Israeli start-up Resugar has developed a 1:1 sugar substitute for food manufacturers, and ice cream major Froneri – owner of the Nestlé-Froneri brand in Israel – is amongst its first clients.

Valio leverages AI and dairy proteins for 30% sugar reduction in milk chocolate: ‘The taste remains the same’

07-Nov-2022 By Katy Askew

Dairy company Valio is using the power of artificial intelligence to design a milk chocolate that it describes as ‘future proof’.

Barry Callebaut unwraps ‘second generation’ of chocolate: ‘It gives a cocoa bite, instead of a sweet bite’

03-Nov-2022 By Flora Southey

The chocolate major is ‘redesigning’ how it farms, ferments, and roasts cocoa beans to develop a range of chocolate. We ask Bas Smit, Vice-President, Global Marketing and R&D, how the company is putting ‘cocoa first, sugar last’.

Better Juice opens full-scale manufacturing plant to tackle sugar content in fruit juice

02-Nov-2022 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Food tech startup Better Juice has opened its first full-scale manufacturing plant to enable commercial production of its patented sugar reduction technology, which can reduce sugar content in juice products by 30-80%.

Rare sugars expert announces sweetener breakthrough

26-Oct-2022 By Oliver Morrison

European industrial biotechnology specialist BRAIN Biotech has teamed up with Bonumose to bring the rare sugars expert’s sweetener tagatose to market globally.

BlueTree: Meet the start-up filtering out disaccharides to cut sugar but leave taste

19-Oct-2022 By Flora Southey

Unlike most sugar reduction solutions on the market, BlueTree Technologies isn’t replacing sugar with a substitute. Meet the Israeli start-up working with ‘simple’ technology to remove disaccharides from milk and juice.

How Givaudan is re-thinking sugar reduction: ‘Holistic profiling is not about replacing the sugar experience’

11-Oct-2022 By Katy Askew

Givaudan has developed a ‘radical approach’ that it says can assist efforts to reduce the amount of sugar in products: ‘holistic profiling’. FoodNavigator hears more about how this new technique represents a departure from conventional approaches to cutting...

Cutting 80% sugar with a multi-ingredient formula: ‘Unlike current sugar substitutes, there is no compromise on taste’

10-Oct-2022 By Flora Southey

Meet Sweet Balance: the Israeli start-up developing customisable ‘building block’ sugar substitutes for the food and beverage industry.

Kellogg’s invests in reformulation, new ingredients, and packaging design in UK

10-Oct-2022 By Flora Southey

The breakfast cereal and snacks major has opened a new food innovation centre in northern England, dedicated to food development and packaging design.

Kraft Heinz teams up with start-up accelerator to drive innovation: ‘We can create win-wins’

29-Sep-2022 By Flora Southey

The partnership will see The Kraft Heinz Company team up with agri-food tech accelerator StartLife to help meet consumer expectations across its portfolio, Miriam Ueberall, VP R&D International, Kraft Heinz, tells FoodNavigator.

Plant-based innovators push back at ‘ultra-processed, ultra-unhealthy’ critique

28-Sep-2022 By Katy Askew

Vegetarian diets are often characterised as healthy options delivering higher nutritional quality. But the surge seen in recent years of plant-based analogue products that many classify as ultra-processed has placed this reputation under pressure. Are...

Personalisation, the microbiome and the future of food: ‘We’ve only been able to scratch the surface of what’s possible’

27-Sep-2022 By Katy Askew

As the scientific understanding of microbiome health deepens, experts are predicting it will unlock the possibility of truly personalised nutrition that delivers specific health outcomes. But there is a long way to go before this vision becomes a reality.

Do artificial sweeteners increase risk of cardiovascular diseases?

15-Sep-2022 By Flora Southey

A ‘potential direct’ link between artificial sweetener intake and increased cardiovascular disease risk has been suggested by researchers, but industry is fighting back: “There is no causal evidence that low/no calorie sweeteners could increase the risk...

Will novel rare sugar allulose resonate with European consumers?

31-Aug-2022 By Katy Askew

Allulose, a novel rare sugar, is currently making its way through the Novel Foods process to gain regulatory approval in Europe. Does it have the characteristics that European shoppers are looking for in sweeteners?

Cocoa-free chocolate developed from oleaginous yeast and fermented oats: ‘There is no chance consumers could taste the difference’

22-Aug-2022 By Flora Southey

Brother-sister duo Dr Maximilian and Dr Sara Marquart are working to ease the pressure on cocoa supply chains with an alternative developed via traditional and precision fermentation techniques. FoodNavigator catches up with one half of the ‘chocolate...

Non-nutritive sweeteners back in the spotlight as new study challenges notion they are inert and says they can impact glycemic tolerance

19-Aug-2022 By Elaine Watson

A new study – published a month after the World Health Organization (WHO) sounded a cautionary note about the long-term effects of zero-calorie sweeteners such as sucralose and saccharin – suggests some diet sweeteners are not inert and can alter the...

Nutri-Score blocks ‘health-halo’ effects caused by claims on sugar, but should such claims be allowed at all?

18-Aug-2022 By Flora Southey

Fresh research out of Germany suggests the nutrition labelling scheme can prevent products from appearing healthier than they really are.

One ingredient that can do it all? Bio-based hydrocolloid developed to ‘clean’ up plant-based

16-Aug-2022 By Flora Southey

German start-up Bioweg claims its bio-based hydrocolloid made from bacterial cellulose can improve taste, texture, and appearance of plant-based meat and dairy alternatives.

Which Reb M production method is best for the environment? Ingredion LCA probes stevia sustainability metrics

10-Aug-2022 By Elaine Watson

What’s more sustainable? Using acres of land, water and energy to grow plants that produce minuscule quantities of natural sweeteners; or making them via a fermentation process using a microbe that’s been engineered to produce exactly the same molecules?

Scientists identify low calorie sweetener that improves gut health

05-Aug-2022 By Katy Askew

In search for a ‘better sweetener’, researchers have identified a low-calorie mixture that they claim is as sweet as table sugar and also good for your gut microbiome.

How is clean label evolving? Mintel talks regulation, processing, and linking ‘clean with green’

04-Aug-2022 By Flora Southey

The ‘clean label’ trend does not remain stagnant. Mintel’s Emma Schofield, Associate Director, Global Food Science, reveals how the trend is evolving in the face of changing regulation, interest is degrees of processing, and environmentally friendly consumers.