September 2011/Prepared Foods -- Sweet taste has always been enjoyable to the human palate, and sugar is the most popular sweetener, because it provides a good level of sweetness per unit weight at a relatively low cost. Most consumers like its clean sweetness profile, which is free of off-notes or lingering sensations. It also is a good source of energy. Other “traditional” sweeteners, such as fructose, high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and various sugar syrups, have similar benefits and calorie content. Historically, the calorie content of sugar was advantageous; gradually, however, as energy-rich diets have emerged, these extra calories have turned into unwanted pounds around one’s waist.
Sugar is Great, but What Else is There?
According to Mintel, 45% of consumers acknowledge interest in low-sugar diets, in order to control calorie intake and to prevent diabetes and other health issues related to it. Recognizing this trend is here to stay, the food industry started looking for and/or developing a range of alternative sweeteners that provide more or less similar functionality, while cutting down on calories. These sweeteners are now found both on the list of ingredients of an ever-increasing number of food products and as stand-alone, tabletop sweeteners. Consumer interest for “natural” ingredients has modulated this trend, driving demand towards natural, low-calorie sweeteners, according to the report, “Rebaudioside-A Market Analysis,” FACT research, April 2011. While sugar and traditional sweeteners still dominate the market with a global sales volume of about 72 million metric tons in 2009, as opposed to about 0.9 million tons for other bulk and high-intensity sweeteners, this latter group has enjoyed more than double growth over the last four years.