Concerns surrounding obesity together with sugar taxes in many countries has spearheaded the demand for non-caloric, natural sweeteners according to a recent report from Canadean.
Although caloric sugar still holds the majority stake in the global sweetness market at an 80 percent share, consumer demand for natural alternatives is starting to catch up. Low or non-caloric sweeteners currently represent around 20 percent of the sweeteners market, and Canadean say that demand for plant-derived sweetners such as Stevia is projected to grow by five percent each year until 2017.
Although the category is growing, Canadean say that it’s rising from low volumes and it will take years to catch up with the current market leaders. In 2013 the soft drinks industry consumed only close to 700 tonnes of Stevia ingredients, versus 12,300 tons of Aspartame, or 8,700 tons of Acesulfame K. The largest natural sweetener on the market is Stevia, but Canadean also finds great potential in other herbal-sweeteners such as monk fruit.
Canadean does admit however that the taste of natural sweeteners still poses a significant barrier for some beverage products, noting that Coca-Cola in the US had to reverse engineer their Vitamin Water products back to their original composition as the American market didn’t appreciate the Stevia taste.
Karin Nielsen, ingredient analyst at Canadean, explains. “Stevia may be more suited for certain products such as teas, nectars, and juices, as it has an ability to enhance the taste of the natural ingredients.”