Ingredients

Nut chocolate consumption increases globally, says Almond Board of California-backed study

15-Mar-2017 By Douglas Yu

A survey conducted by the Almond Board of California (ABC) and Sterling-Rice Group (SRG) suggests 70% of consumers across the globe prefer chocolate products with nut inclusions. 

Mars to bring Maltesers to the US & Canada

13-Mar-2017 By Douglas Yu

Mars will launch chocolate snacking brand Maltesers in North America for the first time.

Going its ‘own way’: Lindt invests $14m in sustainable cocoa in last eight years

13-Mar-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Lindt has invested around $14m in its sustainable cocoa program since 2008 as it aims to have a fully traceable and verifiable supply by 2020.

Gelatin-free winegums texture problems cracked with starch blend launch - Cargill

09-Mar-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Cargill has developed a starch blend that it claims can more closely match the texture of gelatin and can cut drying time in half.

Stevia approved for ‘energy-reduced’ candy in the EU

09-Mar-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Steviol glycosides have been approved for use in some ‘energy-reduced’ sugar confectionery in Europe, allowing manufacturers to combine the sweetener with sugar.

Nonni’s Foods competes with Oreo with seasonal biscotti

09-Mar-2017 By Douglas Yu

Artisan bakery, Nonni’s Foods, has launched limited batch spring biscotti to boost market share in the growing snack category. 

NCA State of of the Industry Conference 2017

Premium & healthy snacks: Mars and Ferrero execs chew on 2017 US confectionery trends

09-Mar-2017 By Douglas Yu

Ferrero North America CEO Paul Chibe and VP of strategy and insights at Mars Matt Lloyd weigh in on 2017 confectionery trends.

Nestlé UK to cut 10% of sugar in confectionery range by 2018

08-Mar-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Nestlé has pledged to remove 7,500 metric tons of sugar in its UK confectionery range via reformulation, calorie limits and new technology.

Ritter rules out own cocoa label as it fast-tracks sustainability target

07-Mar-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Ritter Sport now hopes to reach its goal to source only sustainable cocoa by 2020 rather than 2025.

Cémoi acquires US private label firm Chris Candies

06-Mar-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

French supplier and branded chocolate maker Cémoi has acquired Pennsylvania-based molded chocolate company Chris Candies.

Hershey looks to upgrade chocolate confectionery lab upon visiting AAK’s new innovation center

06-Mar-2017 By Douglas Yu

AAK has opened an innovation center in Edison, New Jersey, during which it highlighted some of the most up-to-date product making technologies to partners, including Hershey, Mondelēz and Barry Callebaut.

Taza reduces dark chocolate bitterness through stone grinding process

06-Mar-2017 By Douglas Yu

Taza Chocolate has never conched its cocoa beans since it started 10 years ago in Somerville, Massachusetts, as the company believes stone grinding is the best way to reduce bitterness of dark chocolate.

Nestlé ramps up gluten-free production with new Auckland facility

02-Mar-2017 By Douglas Yu

KitKat maker Nestlé has expanded its South Auckland factory in New Zealand with a new $2m gluten-free facility, according to a recent release.

Anlit develops veggie turmeric gummies to tap confectionery supplement growth

02-Mar-2017 By Douglas Yu

Anlit has develop its first pectin-based gummies that deliver curcumin amid growing interest for natural confectionery supplements for adults.

Startup Watch

Confectionery firm which only uses social media as its marketing tool sees 60% growth

02-Mar-2017 By Jenny Eagle

Start-up confectionery firm Lavolio, which only uses social media as its marketing tool, is expecting 60% growth this year.

SugarSin to launch rosé wine gummies

01-Mar-2017 By Jenny Eagle

SugarSin ‘gourmet confectionery for adults’ is extending its Prosecco and Cocktail Gummy range with the launch of rosé gummies this month.

Where next for stevia? From designer glycoside blends to fermentation and enzyme modification

01-Mar-2017 By Elaine Watson

If high purity Reb A used to be the only game in town when it comes to stevia, the game has become a lot more sophisticated in the past couple of years as suppliers compete to provide the best-tasting combinations of steviol glycosides, and products become...

Media’s role in cocoa sustainability

Stop the white noise: How can chocolate makers be tempted to bite into cocoa's poverty and child labor crisis?

27-Feb-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Reporting effective approaches to tackle deep-rooted poverty and child labor in the cocoa sector should take precedence over shock headlines, writes ConfectioneryNews’ editor.

Mondelēz adds Minions mints in China with Stride

24-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Mondelēz has launched Minions-themed varieties of Stride mints in China  through partnership a partnership with Universal Pictures.

Coffee Flour expands footprint into chocolate and baking categories

23-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Coffee Flour, a firm that started with an idea to take advantage of discarded coffee cherry fruit, is vying for health and nutrition-focused investment partners after recently being selected by the Launch Food Program as a 2017 innovator.

CEO Q&A

What did Divine Chocolate learn at Davos? CEO weighs in on Brexit, Theresa May, Trump and women’s issues

23-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Divine Chocolate's CEO Sophie Tranchell discusses takeaways from the World Economic Forum last month in Davos, Switzerland.

Startup watch: Ruben’s Chocolate

Buffalo milk chocolate targets supermarket listings in Austria and Italy

23-Feb-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Austrian startup Ruben’s Chocolate is eyeing supermarkets in its home market and Italy for its buffalo milk chocolate brand Augusto.

Ivorian cocoa farmers earn less than $1 a day, finds Barry Callebaut-backed study

22-Feb-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Cocoa farmers in the top producing country Côte D’Ivoire earn around 91 US cents (CFA 568) per day, according to a study by Barry Callebaut and the French Development Agency (AFD).

Carmit launches private label vegan chocolate with rice flour

22-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Private label maker Carmit Candy has developed a dairy-free vegan chocolate, which it will debut at Expo West in Anaheim, California, next month.

Whole Foods executive-created OCHO Candy fills Easter's organic chocolate void

22-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Organic confectionery brand OCHO Candy has developed its first Easter egg after spotting an unmet need for natural alternatives during the holiday season.

Sacrificing taste for sugar reduction will ‘kill our category’: Barry Callebaut innovation chief

21-Feb-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Barry Callebaut’s head of innovation expects the chocolate industry will opt for natural fibers to gradually cut sugar and calories, but says uptake for sugar reduction remains low.

Hershey and Mars lose China market share to Nestlé and Ferrero

21-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Hershey and Mars have lost market share in China's declining confectionery category to Nestlé and Ferrero, according to Euromonitor Shanghai.

Mars to enter UK supplement space with cocoa flavanol pills

16-Feb-2017 By Emma Jane Cash

Confectionery giant Mars plans to launch its CocoaVia line of cocoa flavanol-based food supplements in the UK and Ireland later this month.

Startup Watch

Dave’s Sweet Tooth may break $1m revenue after e-commerce scale-up

16-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Michigan family-run toffee brand Dave’s Sweet Tooth has reported a 300% sales growth along with a 2,500% e-commerce business increase in 2016 after launching a new website through the Shopify platform last year. 

Health & wellness chocolate to outpace regular category: Euromonitor

15-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Functional, organic and reduced-sugar chocolate are set for higher volume and value growth than regular chocolate up to 2021, says Euromonitor.

‘Potentially full scale-up’: Cargill pilots cocoa child labor monitoring system

14-Feb-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Cargill has begun trialing the International Cocoa Initiative’s (ICI) child labor monitoring and remediation system in cocoa growing communities in Côte D’Ivoire.

Hershey's chocolate Valentine’s NPD: KitKat Red Velvet, Reese’s hearts and more

14-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Hershey has  launched a string of Valentine’s Day products this year under its core brands across the US, including KitKat, Reese’s, and Cadbury, as IRI estimates the season generated nearly $2.8bn worth of candy sales in 2015.

Wrigley launches first soft chews under Orbit brand

14-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Wrigley has added a soft chew format for Orbit White in the US as the country's chewing gum market returns to growth after a challenging few years.

Van den Bosch ensures hearts are not broken on Valentine’s Day

13-Feb-2017 By Jenny Eagle

In the US alone, 58 million pounds of chocolate and 36 million heart-shaped boxes are sold during Valentines’ Day – worth $448m.

Nestlé targets Millennial travelers with KitKat Mini Moments

13-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Nestlé International Travel Retail (NITR) has started rolling out KitKat Mini Moments across major international airports following an initial launch at Dubai International Airport in December, 2016. 

ISM 2017

Bon Bon Buddies extends Disney partnership with new fruit candies

09-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

UK licensing confectioner Bon Bon Buddies has unveiled its latest “100% fruit-made” candies, Fruitickles, at ISM 2017 in Cologne, Germany, but will not roll out the brand across the EMEA region until May.

Fake Ferrero and Mars chocolate seized in China

08-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Chinese police recently seized 300,000 counterfeit chocolate pieces during the 2017 Lunar New Year worth around 700 RMB ($102) per box, after a wedding candy store owner received complaints from local consumers.

Mondelēz’s Milka brand enters brownies segment, ready to roll out across Europe

07-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Mondelēz-owned Milka has launched its first brownie products in France, and plans to introduce the range across other key EU markets in 2017, according to the company’s Twitter.

ProSweets 2017

Döhler Cactus Pear-Kiwi functional gummie equivalent to one-and-a-half cups of espresso

06-Feb-2017 By Jenny Eagle

Döhler has launched a range of gummies and jellies based on 100% ingredients from fruit such as pectin from apple, juice concentrate, and fruit sugars instead of sucrose or glucose syrup.

Q4 and full-year results

Hershey bets on multi-textural snacking and Chinese e-commerce for growth

06-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

Reese’s and Cookie Layer Crunch will be major investment focuses when Hershey’s next CEO Michele Buck takes office in March, 2017, according to the company’s Q4 earnings conference call.

Mars invests $900m in US supply chain with sustainability its priority

02-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

M&Ms maker Mars has announced it will invest $900m in its US supply chain in addition to the recent $1bn investment aimed at boosting its domestic manufacturing capabilities. 

Gum in developed markets needs a boost, Mintel analyst warns

30-Jan-2017 By Douglas Yu

As gum manufacturers are battling the sluggish category growth by developing new and bold flavors, some makers have gone in the other direction: Innovating the texture, according to a recent blog post penned by Mintel’s director of insight on food and...

ISM 2017 Preview

Meringue kiss 3D sweetener melts in hot drinks

27-Jan-2017 By Jenny Eagle

Lampados International has launched a next-gen meringue kiss sweetener called Liteez.

Tim Tam enters the US as on-the-go snacks demand rises

27-Jan-2017 By Douglas Yu

Australian biscuit brand Tim Tam has entered the US market for the first time after the company decided to cater to the US consumer demands for on-the-go snacks, with a distribution deal with Connecticut-based commercial bakery Pepperidge Farm. 

Herza to promote no sugar 'Paleo' cocoa flakes

26-Jan-2017 By Jenny Eagle

Herza has launched ‘Paleo cocoa’ shavings made from pure organic cocoa mass in response to an increasing demand for chocolate with a high cocoa content.

Barry Callebaut eludes global chocolate declines in Q1

25-Jan-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Barry Callebaut has posted flat sales volumes and increased revenues in Q1 in the face of global chocolate confectionery volume declines.

Losing battle with ICE: CME Group suspends trading in European cocoa contracts

25-Jan-2017 By Douglas Yu

Global marketplace CME Group will suspend trading in all its European cocoa contracts beyond April 2017.

Nestlé tightlipped on frozen snack partnership with Hostess Brands

24-Jan-2017 By Douglas Yu

Nestlé has confirmed it is partnering with the Twinkies maker Hostess to roll out a line of Hostess ice cream in early 2017, but won't release details.

Chocolate’s ‘plight does not look set to improve’ in the US, says Euromonitor

23-Jan-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

The US chocolate confectionery market is set for a 1% volume decline between 2016 and 2021 as Americans’ GDP per capita is set to fall while the category is caught in an “anti-sugar crossfire”.

Mondelēz adds new flavors to Chips Ahoy Thins cookie portfolio

23-Jan-2017 By Douglas Yu

Mondelēz-owned Chips Ahoy has launched two varieties to its Thins product portfolio, including oatmeal and double chocolate, to continue tapping the portion control trend in the confectionery and snack industry.