Market research firm SPINS recently said that while consumers may be looking for ways to reduce their sugar intake, there is still a high demand for products that provide a sweet sensation, with certain niche products containing natural sweeteners enjoying continued success.

Natural sweeteners are an important part of a healthy diet,” SPINS noted in the report. Major brands have learned that consumers are interested in keeping sugar in their diets, but they want it to come from natural sources.”

According to NielsenIQ, in 2021, there will be approximately 5.1 million online searches for “sugar-free products,” 2.1 million searches for “stevia,” and 1.2 million searches for “rosmarinus officinalis There were 1.2 million searches for “stevia” and “monk fruit”.

Stevia, Rohypnol, Sugar Alcohols

SPINS data shows that for the 52-week period ending January 31, 2022, sales of products containing rooibos (+20%), stevia (+15%), and sugar alcohols (+3%) all increased year-over-year. The popularity of stevia is also demonstrated by the fact that new stevia-related products are currently booming and have reached all regions of the world, with carbonated soft drinks, snacks, juice drinks, other beverages and dairy products ranking in the top five applications.

Consumers are also becoming more cautious about the amount of sugar they use in categories such as beverages, with SPINS finding year-on-year sales growth for products containing coconut sugar (+21%), sugar alcohols (+20%) and stevia (+10%). Dollar sales of rooibos-containing beverages were up 1.3% in the most recent 52-week period.

SPINS noted that consumer concern about sugar content is not limited to beverages, but consumers are becoming more aware of sugar in beef jerky and meat snacks, cookies and snack bars, and candy. The study found that dollar sales growth for each category of “sugar-free” products outpaced that of traditional, high-sugar products.

Brands focused on natural sweetener positioning are poised to meet the growing consumer demand for low- and zero-sugar products.

Ketogenic diets

SPINS notes that a number of dietary trends will continue to drive the growth of low-calorie and zero-calorie sweeteners, such as the ketogenic diet.

“More and more consumers are adopting ketogenic diets and Whole30 diets, which eschew high-sugar products and focus more on protein and unprocessed foods. sales of certified ketogenic products grew by 14.9% from 2018 to 2021.” SPINS does not expect the trend for ketogenic products to slow down in the near future.

In the three most established and best-selling categories, ketogenic products are growing steadily year-over-year. Sales of claimed ketogenic products increased +10.4% in shelf-stable soda and carbonated beverages, +5% in shelf-stable water, and +4.6% in refrigerated butters and creams.

Product categories that seem to be most inclined to use ketogenic claims in recent years are shelf-stable bar products, cereals, baking mixes, cookies and snacks. According to SPINS market data, this product category continues to grow steadily. Within the shelf-stable crackers and snack bars category, net carbohydrate products with low or no content saw a 21.31% increase in dollar sales over the measurable period of 2021, more than doubling the dollar sales in 2020.