Growing concerns about increasing rates of obesity and related diseases such as diabetes have bolstered the need for new sweetener solutions. From 2009 to 2010, 35.7 percent of U.S. adults were obese, according to data released in January by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta.
Efforts to lower the calorie counts in beverages have helped spark a number of innovations from many facets of the industry, including equipment manufacturers. As more beverage-makers look to take down the calories in their products through sweetener blend formulations, suppliers of processing automation equipment also are working to develop equipment to handle these new formats.
GLG Life Tech Corp.’s newly formed subsidiary AN0C Stevia Solutions launched a new zero-calorie product line, AN0C Dream Sweetener, which is based on GLG’s BlendSure products. AN0C Stevia Solutions focuses on providing naturally sweetened zero- and reduced-calorie food and beverage formulations outside of mainland China, where it markets products under the AN0C brand name.
After launching acai-infused energy drinks 28Black and 28White in Germany in 2008, Calidris 28 AG has launched the products in the United States. 28Black and 28White are lightly carbonated, all-natural and do not include taurine, artificial flavors or preservatives.
Some parents and pet-owners have devised methods to hide medicine or supplements within the food and beverages consumed by their children and animals. These inventive methods parallel the behind-the-scenes work of flavor companies that collaborate with beverage-makers to increase the palatability of a new sweetener or functional formula.
Established brands continue to lead the drink mix category, although some varieties did experience contraction in the last year. The overall drink mix category grew 1.6 percent for more than $609.7 million in sales for the 52 weeks ending May 15 in U.S. supermarkets, drug stores, gas and convenience stores and mass merchandise outlets, excluding Wal-Mart, according to SymphonyIRI Group, Chicago. Fruit drink mixes made up a majority of the category with $590 million in sales, which represents a 1.6 percent growth.
