report excerpt - healthfocus€¦ · this summary section attempts to crystallize some global views...

NAVIGATING THE WORLD OF SWEETENERSUnderstanding Shopper Attitudes Towards

Sugar and Sweeteners Around the World HealthFocus International 2018 Global Topic Report

REPORT EXCERPT

HealthFocus® International 2018 Global Sweetener Report | 2

BACKGROUND

Concern about sugar and other sweeteners continues to be an issue for

shoppers. This 2018 report from HealthFocus International takes a deeper

look at this topic globally, regionally and across 22 individual countries to

help companies better understand shopper concerns and attitudes—

allowing them to connect more powerfully with their targets and bring

market solutions faster and more profitably.

The report also sizes the sugar and artificial sweetener markets by grouping

respondents based on their usage and level of concern. This allows for

relative sizing of key shopper groups from Rejectors, Concerned, Avoiders, and Acceptors of both sugar and artificial sweeteners.


MARKETS COVERED

NORTH

AMERICAUSA

Canada

LATIN

AMERICABrazil

Mexico

Argentina

Colombia

EUROPEFrance

Germany

Russia

UK

WEST ASIA Saudi Arabia

Turkey

SOUTH ASIA India

Pakistan

EAST ASIA

PACIFICAustralia

China

Indonesia

Japan

Philippines

South Korea

Thailand

Vietnam


SUGAR REDUCTION IS TOP OF MIND

Addressing sugar content is critical for improving the health perception of products.

Nearly 95% of global shoppers believe that reducing sugar makes foods and beverages

seem at least somewhat healthier—and over half of shoppers believe it makes them seem

a lot healthier.

Global shoppers have become increasingly focused on reducing sugar, yet many don’t

prefer alternative options—and conflicting attitudes make sweeteners a challenging topic

without a one-size-fits-all solution.

There is a lot of variation within the different markets, and these differences are not just

based on attitudes but probably also due to labeling requirements and the degree of

awareness for various sweeteners. This summary section attempts to crystallize some

global views and opportunities. However, individual markets of interest should be explored

in the Detailed Findings by Region and Country section of the report.


MAJOR SHIFTS IN SUGAR REDUCTION

Globally, sugar reduction has become a top priority in food

and beverage selection, and this trend is clearly on the rise

with nearly 55% of shoppers saying that reducing sugar has

become more important in their diet over the last year.

Reducing sugar is top of mind for shoppers, and they are

looking for sugar information on labels.

Sugar ranks as the #1 entity shoppers want to see

information for on the front of food packages—just above

calories and far ahead of other perceived negatives such

as fat & sodium.

*Global Total

54%

42%

40%

39%

37%

Reducing sugar

Natural foods/beverages

Adding fiber

Eating clean

Avoiding preservatives

Top 5 dietary trendsWhich of the following have become more

important in your diet over the last year?


When attempting to cut back on sugar—

shoppers want to reduce, rather than replace

with alternative sweeteners or other flavors.

LIGHTER INDULGENCE

*Global Total (Base: Respondents who say reducing sugar

has become more important in their diet over the last year)

REDUCE VS REPLACE

What are you doing to

reduce sugar in your diet?

RED

UC

E

5 out of 10Choosing foods/beverages

that are less sweet

4 out of 10Choosing unsweet

foods/beverages

REP

LAC

E

2 out of 10Consuming more foods/beverages

with non-sugar sweeteners

2 out of 10Choosing foods/beverages that

substitute other flavors for sugar


OPPORTUNITIES FOR PERSONALIZATION

Nearly half of global shoppers always/usually add something to their

foods/beverages to make them more customized to their taste—and 44%

customize foods/beverages to make them more nutritious or healthier.

Since shoppers are reducing sugar consumption primarily by selecting less sweet

or unsweet foods and beverages—they have the option to adjust the sweetness

of products to fit their individual taste (e.g., sweetening their own cereal, adding

berries or honey to yogurt, using water enhancing drops, etc.).

So there are opportunities to address shoppers’ desire for personalization and

allow them options for customizing products to their preferred level of sweetness.

Finding the right fit for shoppers is clearly a challenge as tastes vary and shoppers

prefer not only different levels of sweetness but they also have distinct

preferences regarding the different types of sweeteners.


Global shoppers have a clearly negative view of artificial sweeteners;

however, opinions are largely neutral when it comes to specific types

of sweeteners. When respondents were asked to rate different types

of sweeteners as good, bad or neutral—19 of the 24 sweeteners

surveyed were rated as “neither good nor bad” by most shoppers.

Neutral opinions are likely due to low awareness of the many different

sweetener options available and a lack of understanding when it

comes to the benefits associated with specific types of sweeteners.

The only sweeteners to receive predominantly positive ratings were

honey and fruit juices, while the only sweetener to be rated

negatively by the majority of shoppers was artificial sweeteners.

NOT ALL SWEETENERS ARE EQUAL

Top 5: “Good” Sweeteners

Honey 81%

Fruit juices 61%

Maple syrup 39%

Coconut palm sugar 37%

Stevia 30%

Top 5: “Bad” Sweeteners

Artificial sweeteners 52%

Sweet’N Low/Saccharine 35%

Aspartame/Equal 34%

Cyclamate 32%

Sugar 30%

*Global Total


Global shoppers are equally concerned about sugar and artificial sweeteners; however, opinions are

mixed when it comes to sugar, and shoppers seem

more interested in reduction rather than complete

avoidance. While shoppers are actively trying to

reduce consumption, only 30% classify sugar as a

“bad” sweetener compared to over half of shoppers

who rate artificial sweeteners as bad.

Not only are sugar opinions mixed globally, but they

vary drastically by market. Sugar is rated as a “good”

sweetener by far more shoppers in West and South

Asia. Four out of 10 shoppers in these regions rate

sugar as good compared to just 26% globally.

On the other hand, Latin America and Europe stand

out with a much more negative view of sugar. Four

out of 10 Latin American shoppers and 36% of European shoppers rated sugar as a “bad”

sweetener compared to only 30% globally.

SUGAR OPINIONS ARE MIXED

26%

44%

30%

Good sweetener

Neither good nor bad

Bad sweetener

Sugar RatingGlobal Total


Honey stands out as the top sweetener globally—

fulfilling many core needs for shoppers such as

natural, recognizable and clean.

67% of global shoppers believe it is important on a

food ingredient label that most of the ingredients

are things they recognize and would use at home—

and half of global shoppers say they always/usually

choose foods/beverages because they contain

only ingredients they recognize.

While shoppers are seeing many sweeteners on

labels with names they don’t recognize or can’t

pronounce—honey provides them with a familiar

ingredient that they know and trust.

HONEY’S HEALTH HALO

81%

16%

3%

Good sweetener

Neither good nor bad

Bad sweetener

Honey RatingGlobal Total


SWEETENERS & CLEAN LABELING

With so many sweeteners ranking in the neutral category, sweeteners

clearly present a problem for brands trying to fit in with the macro trend

of clean eating. Shoppers only expressed notable positive ratings when

it came to recognizable sweeteners like honey, fruit juices, maple syrup

and coconut palm sugar—while less recognized sweeteners like allulose,

Reb-A, steviol glycosides, and Erythritol were rated as neutral by more

than 65% of shoppers.

Balancing these two major trends—sugar reduction and clean eating—

is a clear problem area for shoppers as they have a strong desire to

reduce sugar, but many alternative sweeteners do not fit their

requirements for natural and recognizable.

Even natural alternative sweetener options like Stevia don’t have the

same mass appeal because shoppers want natural and recognizable

ingredients—which is why whole food ingredients like honey have such

wide-spread appeal.


SIZING THE SUGAR MARKETS

In order to more closely define the size of each different group in terms of sugar, shoppers

have been grouped based on their use and concern. Groups are defined as:

No opinion/not concerned

about sugar +

usage is the same or has

increased over last 2 years

Sugar

Acceptors

Sugar use has decreased

over last 2 years

Sugar

Avoiders

Doesn’t use sugar

Sugar

Rejectors

Extremely/very/somewhat

concerned about sugar +



Sugar

Concerned


WHERE MARKETS ARE HIGHER THAN AVERAGE

When comparing individual markets to the global average, Sugar Concerned shoppers are

more likely to be found in the West Asia and South Asia regions. Higher than average Concerned

is one way to estimate where there may be more Sugar Rejectors at some point. Sugar Avoiders

are more prominent in Latin America, while Sugar Acceptors are more common in Europe.

Sugar Concerned(Global Total: 45%)

Saudi Arabia: 69%Turkey: 56%

Pakistan: 53%Japan: 53%China: 51%India: 51%

Indonesia: 48%

Sugar Acceptors(Global Total: 11%)

Pakistan: 25%Japan: 22%Russia: 22%France: 19%

Germany: 17%UK: 16%

Sugar Avoiders/Rejectors(Global Total: 45%)

Colombia: 63%Argentina: 56%

Brazil: 57%Mexico: 53%

Thailand: 52%

Higher than average sugar markets vs. Global TotalMarkets noted have a group sizing >5 percentage points vs. Global Total


SIZING THE ARTIFICIAL SWEETENER MARKETS

In order to more closely define the size of each different group in terms of artificial sweeteners,

shoppers have been grouped based on their use and concern. Groups are defined as:

No opinion/not concerned

about artificial sweeteners +



Artificial

Acceptors

Artificial sweetener

use has decreased

over last 2 years

Artificial

Avoiders

Doesn’t use

artificial sweeteners

Artificial

Rejectors

Extremely/very/somewhat concerned

about artificial sweeteners +



Artificial

Concerned


WHERE MARKETS ARE HIGHER THAN AVERAGE

All markets are more likely to reject artificial sweeteners than sugar, however; there are a few

markets that are slightly more accepting of artificial sweeteners. Over 15% of shoppers in Japan,

UK and Pakistan fall into the Artificial Acceptors group, compared to only 9% of global shoppers.

Artificial Concerned(Global Total: 45%)

Saudi Arabia: 63%Turkey: 52%China: 49%

Pakistan: 47%Vietnam: 45%

Artificial Acceptors(Global Total: 9%)

Pakistan: 21%UK: 20%

Japan: 16%Canada: 15%

Germany: 15%

Artificial Avoiders/Rejectors(Global Total: 45%)

Russia: 74%Colombia: 71%Indonesia: 62%Philippines: 60%

USA: 59%Mexico: 58%

Higher than average artificial sweetener markets vs. Global TotalMarkets noted have a group sizing >5 percentage points vs. Global Total


REJECTOR/AVOIDER/CONCERNED

SUGAR

AR

TIFIC

IAL S

WEETE

NER

S

REJEC

TOR

/AV

OID

ER

/CO

NC

ER

NED

Axes cross at median values

WHICH BECOMES THE PRIORITY: ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS VS. SUGAR

Higher negativity

for artificial sweeteners

Lower negativity

for both

Higher negativity

for sugar

Higher negativity

for both

While the strong majority of shoppers are not accepting of both sugar and artificial sweeteners, the following charts

show which countries are more focused on avoidance/rejection/concern of artificial sweeteners vs. sugar.


North America

Latin America

Europe

West Asia

South Asia

East Asia Pacific

80%

85%

90%

95%

100%

80% 85% 90% 95% 100%


SUGAR

AR

TIFIC

IAL S

WEETE

NER

S

REJEC

TOR

/AV

OID

ER

/CO

NC

ER

NED

SUGAR AND ARTIFICIAL SWEETENER NEGATIVITY BY REGION

Axes cross at median values

Higher negativity

for artificial sweeteners

Higher negativity

for sugar

Higher negativity

for both

Lower negativity

for both


USA

Canada

Mexico

Brazil

Colombia

Argentina

France

Germany

UK

Russia

TurkeySaudi Arabia

India

Pakistan

Australia

China

Japan

Thailand

VietnamIndonesia

Philippines

South Korea

75%

80%

85%

90%

95%

100%

70% 75% 80% 85% 90% 95% 100%


SUGAR

AR

TIFIC

IAL S

WEETE

NER

S

REJEC

TOR

/AV

OID

ER

/CO

NC

ER

NED

SUGAR AND ARTIFICIAL SWEETENER NEGATIVITY BY COUNTRY

North America Latin America Europe West Asia South Asia East Asia Pacific

For more information, please contact:

HealthFocus International

+1 727-821-7499

[email protected]

report excerpt - healthfocus€¦ · this summary section attempts to crystallize some global views...

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