Major chocolate, candy companies agree to cut calories in sweets sold in US
Five major candy and chocolate companies have jointly agreed and committed to cut calories in many of their products sold in the US, marking a rare example of cooperation in a competitive industry and testament to the rising consumer distaste for sugar.
The US is the world’s largest consumer of sweeteners and obesity, diabetes and heart disease rank among leading health concerns in the country.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) overhauled packaged foods labeling last year and required all manufacturers to list added sugars on labels by 2018.
Companies including Mars Chocolate North America LLC, Nestle USA, WM Wrigley Jr Co and Lindt & Spruengli, said they had committed to ensuring that half of their individually wrapped products sold in the US contain no more than 200 calories within the next five years.
“There’s going to be less sugar and less calories in the food that consumers are going to be eating,” said Larry Soler, president and chief executive for Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA).
The commitment by the group of companies, which includes clearly stating the calorie count on 90% of their best-selling products, will be monitored for five years by PHA and the Hudson Institute, a Washington-based think tank.
“They want to make sure that they meet the consumers where the consumers want to be met,” said John Downs, National Confectioners Association president and chief executive.
The companies, which include the makers of M&M’s and Jaw Busters, could cut calories by reducing package sizing or reformulating recipes, as well as launching new products.
Confectionery pricing was not part of the commitment, Soler said.
Nestle, the maker of Butter finger and Crunch, said in December it had devised a new technology that has the potential to reduce sugar in some of its confectionery products by up to 40% without affecting the taste.
Mars Chocolate North America has launched its Snickers Crisper, a package of two 100-calorie pieces that feature crisped rice.
At present, over 60% of the companies’ individually wrapped products contain less than 250 calories each.
Soda companies, such as Coca-Cola and PepsiCo Inc, have also targeted consumers who want lower calorie drinks by offering products in smaller cans. The firms make larger margins on those sales than for sodas sold in traditional-sized cans.
Consumers have already cut down on candy. The volume of US retail sales of packaged confectionery declined 1.9% to 2.47 million tons in 2016 from 2011, while sales of savory snacks rose 9.5% to 4.26 million tons, Euromonitor International data shows.
Euromonitor forecasts that confectionery sales will rise to 2.5 million tons by 2021, however.
Retailers are adapting to changing consumer preferences. CVS Pharmacy, for instance, announced a new store design last month to drive growth in sales of what it described as “healthier choices” in candy, snacks and other foods.
Hershey Co was not part of the commitment by candy makers to cut calories. But the firm has branched out from its mainstream chocolate brands over the past two years, buying jerky maker Krave Pure Foods Inc and Barkthins Snacking Chocolate, made of dark chocolate that contains less sugar than milk chocolate.
