Demand for Naturally-sweet rises

15-Oct-2014 - Last updated on 16-Oct-2014 at 07:11 GMT

Related tags Sugar

More consumers are calling for naturally-sweet products

Artificial sweeteners, such as aspartame, are worse for health than sugar, more than a third of consumers responding to a new survey believe.

The survey, carried out by the sensory testing firm Marketing Sciences, also showed that nearly three quarters (72%) of the 2,031 consumers asked wanted manufacturers to do more to drive down the sugar content of food.

Most consumers (40%) said they would be more interested in low-calorie products if they were made using ‘natural’ sweeteners, such as stevia.

“Our research indicates that artificial sweeteners are becoming less popular with consumers as they are seen as worse for your health than sugar,” Dr Debbie Parker, associate director and sensory scientist at the firm said.

Consumer rejection

Consumer rejection of artificial sweeteners could be troublesome for UK food and drink manufacturers, following increased pressure to reduce sugar content.

Fizzy drinks manufacturers have been targeted in particular. Dr Alison Tedstone, Public Health England’s chief nutritionist, said they must work harder to lower the sugar content of their products.

A third of average adolescents’ calories were coming from soft drinks, she said at the launch of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition’s report earlier this year.

Coca-Cola has already started to experiment with natural sweeteners in its products and launched its stevia-sweetened Coca-Cola Life in August.

No calorie panacea

However, Helen Munday, the company’s director of regulatory affairs, said stevia was no calorie panacea and could be used only to lower calories, as there were problems with its taste.

“It’s still very useful, but it’s not the end of reformulation and calorie reduction,” she claimed.

Manufacturers should seek other natural alternatives to replace artificial sweeteners, said Parker.

“Food companies are increasingly experimenting with adding naturally sweet products, such as honey, agave syrups and fruit to foods to help make them sweeter,” she added.

Consumers believed they were better for their health than both artificial sweeteners and sugar, said Parker.

Meanwhile, consumer health concerns about the artificial sweetener aspartame were dismissed by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) at the end of 2013.

Aspartame posed no threat to consumers at current recommended levels of consumption, according to the EFSA’s risk assessment.