Obesity epidemic in developed markets opens new opportunities for sweeteners
Sugar reduction
in food and drinks is largely driven by weight control issues, with replacement
of sugar often used as a route to reducing calorie content. As a result,
soaring obesity rates around the world are a key growth factor in demand for
sweeteners.
The obesity
statistics are quite staggering, with the number of obese and overweight
consumers in Western countries already at alarming levels and expected to
continue to rise. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 1.6 billion
adults (aged 15+) were considered overweight in 2005 (under the definitions
laid down by the BMI calculator), of whom 400 million were considered obese.
Furthermore, about 20 million children under the age of five years were
considered overweight in 2005. By 2015 the WHO predicts that globally, 2.3
billion adults will be overweight and 700 million obese. If these predictions
are accurate, the trend is threatening to bankrupt already strained
international and national health services, so it is no surprise to find
governments and health organisations acting to stem the increase.
Levels of obesity
are particularly high in some of the world's most developed countries. For
example, in the US, 74% of the population were considered overweight in 2005,
of which 39% were classified as obese. This is the worst affected of the major
Western countries but there are many others in which over two-thirds of the
adult population are now considered to be overweight. The projected escalation
of the problem in the US is especially worrying as, by 2015, it is forecast
that 82% of the adult population will be overweight, with over half the
population (53%) classified as obese.
The global
obesity problem, often referred to as “globesity”, is not restricted to
industrialised societies, however. Since 2002, obesity rates have been growing
fastest in Asia-Pacific and Latin America as well as North America. While
annual growth in obesity levels is slowing in Latin America, it is still far
ahead of the other regions. Four of the "Obesity Top 10" countries
are now found in Latin America and four are in the Middle East.
Prevalence of diabetes explodes
Closely related
to the obesity epidemic is the rise in prevalence of diabetes. According to the
International Diabetes Federation (IDF), diabetes currently affects 246 million
people worldwide and is forecast to affect 380 million by 2025. Similarly, the
World Health Organisation (WHO) put prevalence at 171 million people back in
2000 and projected a number of 366 million by 2030, an increase of 2.6% per
annum over the 30-year period. Regional data from the WHO projects the fastest
increases in the Eastern Mediterranean (+3.5% per annum), African (+3.2%) and
Southeast Asian (+3.2%) regions over this period.
The IDF reports
that, in 2007, the five countries with the largest numbers of people with
diabetes were India (40.9 million), China (39.8 million), the US (19.2
million), Russia (9.6 million) and Germany (7.4 million). However, the highest
prevalence rates were found in the Middle East, totalling 19.5% in the UAE,
16.7% in Saudi Arabia, 15.2% in Bahrain and 14.4% in Kuwait.
Diabetes is also
the fourth leading cause of death by disease, with 3.8 million deaths each year
attributed to the disease and more still to diabetes-related disorders. For
2007, Euromonitor International reports 6.1 diabetes deaths per 100,000
inhabitants worldwide, a figure that is as high as 25.0 in North America, 23.5
in Latin America and 19.3 in Western Europe. The WHO predicts that deaths
related to diabetes could increase by more than 50% in the next 10 years unless
urgent action is taken.
Certainly, with
the already high prevalence of this disease on the increase, more and more
pressure is being placed on global health services, so it is no surprise to
find diabetes prevention and control at the forefront of health research and
consumer campaigns are a major focus of international projects to tackle the
problem.
Low GI concept evolving from diabetes concerns
Weight control
and management of a balanced diet that is high in fibre and low in saturated
fats and concentrated sweets are key messages in diabetes campaigning. More
specifically, interest has recently intensified in foods that are designated as
having a low GI (glycaemic index). The GI is a measure of the effects of
different carbohydrates on blood glucose levels. Carbohydrates that break down
slowly during digestion release glucose gradually into the bloodstream and are
defined as having a low GI. These types of foods offer significant health
benefits and their consumption is felt to equate to lower insulin demand and
better blood glucose control, making them ideal for diabetics.
From their roots
as diabetic foods, however, low-GI products have since evolved to attract a
wider audience, including those interested in weight control, as slow-release
carbohydrates leave the consumer feeling fuller for a more sustained period,
thus suppressing appetite for a longer amount of time. Low-GI products have
also been associated with the prevention of coronary heart disease, making them
attractive to yet another consumer group.
Many of the
mainstream polyol sweeteners now available make claims regarding their lower GI
compared with glucose, with lactitol and xylitol said to have particularly low
indices of less than 10 (where glucose is 100).
Dental health is another focus for sugar reduction
Dental care is
another aspect impacting international demand for sugar-free foods. Many
products containing polyol sweeteners now feature tooth-friendly claims and, in
Europe, there is even a non-profit organisation that allows a 'Happy Tooth'
logo to be used on sugar-free confectionery and oral care products made with
sweeteners. Consumer recognition of the 'Happy Tooth' logo is increasing all
the time and this is a key promotional tool for suppliers of sugar-free products.
Euromonitor
International's data on dental care shows that, worldwide, the average number
of teeth missing, filled or decayed in children aged 12 is 1.5. This rises to
2.7 in Eastern Europe and 2.3 in the Asia-Pacific region. While sugar-free
chewing gum is widely available in Eastern Europe, the region is yet to really
adopt other sugar-free confectionery products but this could well be a target
for the future considering the higher level of dental problems among children
in this part of the world.
Added convenience from tailored solutions and blends
As sweetening
technology has advanced, the market has benefited from increasing availability
of tailored solutions for specific products. These often combine both polyols
and high-intensity sweeteners to achieve the optimum sweetening profile for
different foods and drinks. The added convenience of these sweetening systems
cannot be underestimated as it has made life a lot easier for innovators and
has opened up new opportunities for sweeteners in categories in which they had
been under-utilised.
In fact, this
trend has been so influential in the use of sweeteners that there are now
relatively few products available that use only one sweetening ingredient and
it is actually more commonplace for manufacturers to choose specific blends
designed either by ingredients companies or by their own product formulators.
Innovation in natural sweeteners is opening new doors
With naturalness
becoming increasingly important throughout the international food and drink
industry, it is no surprise to find high levels of research and development
being undertaken in the natural sweeteners category. Stevia extract is at the
forefront of this trend, with the world's top two soft drinks manufacturers
planning the development of new products with stevia-derived sweeteners. In
fact, PepsiCo has already introduced a soft drink using the PureVia stevia
sweetener from Whole Earth Sweetener Co (a subsidiary of Merisant). As stevia extracts
are not yet approved for use as sweeteners in North America, the company has
initially launched its SoBe Life with PureVia beverage in the Peruvian market,
but this development, combined with Coca-Cola's alliance with Cargill for the
development of the Truvia-branded stevia-derived sweeteners, signifies the
level of interest there is in such ingredients.
Stevia is not
the only natural ingredient attracting attention, with a number of other plant
extracts with potential sweetening applications also being researched. For
example, Natur Research Ingredients of the US has developed a new sweetener
derived from brazzein, while Germany's Nutrinova (manufacturer of acesulfame-K)
has recently teamed up with the Biotechnology Research and Information Network
(BRAIN) with a view to developing new natural sweeteners and sweetness
enhancers for food and drinks.
The support of
major suppliers for more natural sweeteners, both with existing variants and in
the discovery of new varieties, is set to open many new doors for food and
drinks manufacturers in the coming years. These developments will allow the
removal of sugar and addition of sweetening agents without any of the risk
involved in possible adverse publicity or consumer backlash, which continues to
impact to some extent the use of chemical sweeteners.
Additional properties add value to polyols
Although most of
the high-intensity sweeteners serve one purpose and one purpose only, ie adding
sweetness, the polyols sector encompasses a number of ingredients that offer
additional properties, either in terms of product formulation or added health
value. For example, sorbitol is widely used as a humectant as well as a
sweetener, while other ingredients can impact texture, enhance flavour or
extend shelf life as well as adding sweetness. There are even sugar replacers
that are not sweet in themselves (eg polydextrose) but which are used in
combination with other sweeteners to add the bulk lost by the removal of sugar
or to add fibre.
The prebiotic
nature of many of the major polyol varieties has become a major selling point
in recent times as the potential of prebiotics as functional food ingredients
is increasingly recognised. Sweeteners can also help to mask some of the bitter
flavours sometimes associated with certain functional food ingredients, giving
them a further place in health food development.
For more insight
into key trends within sweeteners, read Euromonitor International's report,
Global Sweeteners – Tailoring Solutions to Consumer Needs, published in October
2008, or contact John Madden, Ingredients Industry Manager at Euromonitor
International, on john.madden@euromonitor.com
