Functional confectionery has made only small gains since approval of Barry Callebaut’s cocoa flavanol health claim but opportunities exist for premiumized chocolate products, says a Euromonitor analyst.
Testing the consumer liking of a new product may be an overrated idea that ‘breeds mediocrity’ and means products fail to differentiate themselves against the competition, according to David Howlett of MMR Research.
People perceive foods that are hard to have fewer calories than soft equivalents, according to new research published in the Journal of Consumer Research.
About 50% of our preference for sweet food and drinks can be attributed to genetics, about the same level of heritability as certain personality traits and asthma, according to a food sensory scientist.
ConfectioneryNews will be chairing a debate on the latest developments in cocoa flavanol science and the potential for better-for-you chocolate at nutraceutical trade show Vitafoods next month.
What is the future of food? Simple communication of complex advances will be crucial, as well as picking up the pace amid a global population boom to feed the world nutritiously and sustainably, according to FoodNavigator and NutraIngredients senior editors.
More research is required before the World Health Organization (WHO) cuts its guidance on daily sugar intake by half, according to the Association of Chocolate, Biscuits and Confectionery Industries of Europe (CAOBISCO).
Researchers believe a class of compounds found in cocoa known as oligomers may prevent weight gain and reduce diabetes risk, but the lead author says it is too soon to draw a link with dark chocolate.
Jelly Belly has added protein recovery malt balls to its Sports Beans range as the functional confectionery brand gains distribution in mainstream retail.
Japanese researchers claim that chewing gum for over 10 minutes can reduce stress, adding to a growing body of science linking gum chewing to stress relief.
Single-serve packages may help overweight people cut food consumption, says a researcher who claims limited research has been done on its relation to pack size.
The US National Confectioners Association (NCA) has earmarked consumer education on calories and sugar as an industry priority for 2014 but admits there is skepticism about industry-funded research.
Sugar has been linked to everything from heart disease to obesity and cancers in recent months. But is it as bad as all that? Our free-to-attend debate aims to tackle the key questions in the sugar debate. Have you registered yet?
A sweetener produced by isolating agavins from the tequila producing agave plant could offer blood sugar benefits to people with type 2 diabetes and offer weight loss hope to obese people, say researchers.
Chocolate giant Mars and the US National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute are readying themselves for a five-year research project into possible heart-health benefits of taking a daily flavanol-rich capsule.
DIGGING INTO INNOVATION & NPD WITH DATAMONITOR CONSUMER
The National Advertising Division has recommended that Hershey modify its packaging and advertising for Brookside candies so consumers know the product is made with fruit flavors and not real fruit.
Mondelēz International said it may include a pledge to reduce sugar in its new health & wellness program, but only if the World Health Organization (WHO) makes its latest sugar advice formal.
Special Edition: Consumer friendly confectionery packaging unwrapped
White packaging is on the rise globally, but it will be interesting to see how this plays out within the retail space, according to an industry commentator.
Barry Callebaut says chocolate makers can produce products in novel colors far easier with its new flower-shaped food colorant pellets compared to using high doses of powder and liquid dyes.
Mondelēz is to cut saturated fat and sodium by 10% by 2020, but suggests reducing consumer sugar intake is manageable with portion controlled products and education.
Reduction of salt, sugars, trans fat and total fat is a key focus area for Nestlé in efforts to meet its nutrition commitments, according to its latest annual report, "Nestlé in Society 2013".
Banning junk food near schools, one of India’s biggest and long-running public health issues, seems like it will continue some more after industry officials and health activists on a court–appointed panel were unable to forge a common direction.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has advised halving sugar intake advice from 10% of total calories to 5% of total calories in a new dietary guideline proposal.
Restricting marketing to children and continuing to cut salt, fats and added sugar in processed foods are among initiatives put forward in a plan to tackle childhood obesity, agreed by EU member states in Greece last week.
Dark chocolate may help restore flexibility to arteries and prevent white blood cells from sticking to the walls of blood vessels, but increasing flavanol content will not affect these effects and may even put consumers off, say researchers.
Goodbye Deo, hello Aroma Candy. Perfumed candy’s new name, lavender scent and packaging seeks to sedate high consumer expectations and go after a more “universal” appeal.
The US National Confectioners Association (NCA) and leading US firms say sugar has been ‘unjustly’ victimized in recent months and the public should be free to enjoy a sweet treat if they so desire.
The confectionery industry is in good shape and demand for sustainable products and those catering to health needs has never been higher, according to ISM organizer Koelnmesse.
The confectionery industry will begin to move away from sugar to ‘healthier’ alternatives, according to a manufacturer of stevia-sweetened energy and confectionery bars.
The FDA says it has “no reason to believe” that 4-MeI - an impurity generated during the manufacture of caramel colors III and IV - poses a health risk at current dosage levels, but says it is reviewing new data to determine whether it needs to revise...
Food manufacturers’ organisation the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) has slammed a Channel 4 programme on sugar – screened earlier this week (January 20) as – “highly misleading”.
Confectioners should replace white color titanium dioxide with rice starch to alleviate consumer health concerns, says supplier Beneo, even though toxicity has not been demonstrated by any authority in typical food uses.
Belgian chocolate is profiting from a consumer trend for authentic and traceable products, according to industrial chocolate producer and ingredients supplier Puratos.
A Channel 4 Dispatches programme to be aired in the UK this evening is to accuse scientists advising health ministers on sugar of a conflict of interest due to funds some receive from the food industry.