Natural Colors & Flavors

Raw cacao pioneers Lovechock has a new owner. Pic: Lovechock

M&As

Lovechock eyes expansion after company takeover

By Anthony Myers

Lovechock, the Dutch raw cacao company, has been acquired by Belgian family-owned company Pauwels Engineering NV, the two parties have announced in a statement.

Läderach's new vegan range is in stores. Pic: Läderach

Free-from

Läderach launches luxury vegan range chocolate

By Anthony Myers

Premium Swiss chocolatier Läderach has launched a new vegan range that is now available in its three London outlets including a flagship store on Regent Street, Westfield Centre in Shepherd’s Bush and also Harrods’ Chocolate Hall.

'Improvements in the taste of stevia have come a long way'. Pic: HOWTIAN

Sugar reduction special edition

How natural sweeteners became a gamechanger for confectionery

By Anthony Myers

Consumers are trying to reduce or avoid sugar, and the demand for low or no sugar alternatives is rising in 2022 for the growing health-conscious public, with research suggesting more than 60% of US consumers wish there were healthier chocolate options...

Luker Chocolates' new natural sweetener range. Pic: Luke Chocolate

‘Better-for-you’

Luker Chocolate launches new sweetener range

By Anthony Myers

Luker Chocolate, the family-owned, Colombian chocolate manufacturer, has developed a new range of covertures that includes erythritol & stevia, which it says is being driven by an increase in consumer and client demand.

There’s plenty of truth that ‘we eat first with our eyes', coined by Apicius, a well-known Roman gourmand from the 1st Century. Pic: GettyImages/Renphoto

The psychology of colour in baking

By Gill Hyslop

Colour is one of the most important sensory cues when it comes to choosing what to eat – influencing what consumers see, what they taste and what they feel while doing it. How can bakery brands capitalise on this?

Pic: GettyImages

Special edition: Flavour trends 2022

Why caramel is one of the top flavours of 2022

By Anthony Myers

Caramel hits the sweet spot in the flavour stakes for a number of reasons, primarily because it is loved across consumer generations, with a number of NPDs using it to bring a premium feel while bringing comfort through nostalgia.

ABG Aged Black Garlic is a new flavour in the Gummies Space. Pic: Pharmactive Biotech Products

Special edition: Flavour trends 2022

Aged black garlic flavour invades gummies space

By Anthony Myers

Madrid-based Pharmactive Biotech Products has moved into the gummies flavour space with the introduction of Aged Black Garlic+ (ABG+), which they described as a sweet, ‘social’ flavour that is odour-free and thus suitable for functional gummies.

Pic: GettyImages

Special edition: Flavour trends 2022

What’s hot in confectionery flavour trends?

By Anthony Myers

‘To stand out from the crowd in the functional confectionery category, it’s all about creating exciting products that are healthy, nutritious, delicious and natural’, says Madeline Bills, Cocoa Ingredient Development & Innovation Manager, ofi.

GNT will be demonstrating how EXBERRY can be used to maximise visual appeal in confectionery at this year's ProSweets 2022. Pic: GNT

ProSweets/ISM 2022

GNT set to add colour to ProSweets Cologne 2022

By Anthony Myers

GNT, one of the industry’s main natural ingredients and food colour providers, is set to showcase its EXBERRY Colouring Foods in a vast array of confectionery applications at ProSweets Cologne 2022, which is scheduled to run from 30 January 1 February.

In a traditional chocolate bar, sugar accounts for around half the product. Pic: GettyImages

Sugar reduction/reformulation special edition

Replacing sugar in confectionery is ‘incredibly hard’

By Anthony Myers

Sugar is an important ingredient in confectionery, not only for its taste but also because it contributes to texture, bulk, mouthfeel, aroma, colour, and a number of other attributes that make up chocolate and candy.

TCHO's  new-look packaging. Pic: TCHO

Free-from

TCHO chocolate company makes move to 100% plant-based

By Anthony Myers

Pioneering craft chocolate maker TCHO (pronounced 'cho'), has announced it is replacing its milk chocolate-based bars with plant-based dairy alternatives and introducing a complete packaging makeover.

Excessive sugar consumption is a factor in COVID hospitalisations, the AHA stated. Pic: GettyImages

Sugar reduction/reformulation special edition

Sugar in the time of COVID

By Anthony Myers

Four in 10 consumers in Innova Market Insights’ global Health and Nutrition Survey in 2020 claimed to have decreased their sugar consumption over the studied 12-month period, with prevention of health conditions the leading reason, followed by weight...