*World Health Organization, “The Challenge of Obesity – Quick Statistics.”
www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/noncommunicable-diseases/obesity/data-and-statistics
Sugar reduction is an ongoing consumer trend that has been around for years. Excessive sugar consumption is one of the reasons of obesity and associated with several other health problems such as high blood pressure and diabetes.*
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than half of adult men and women are overweight, with one in five considered as “obese”. There are also some valuable findings about children, as stated by the WHO statistics, one in three 11-year-old kids are considered as obese. The World Health Organization (WHO) also suggests that the overall sugar intake should be less than 10% of the total energy consumption.**
**World Health Organization, “Guideline: Sugars intake for adults and children.”
www.who.int/nutrition/publications/guidelines/sugars_intake/en
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than half of adult men and women are overweight, with one in five considered as “obese”. There are also some valuable findings about children, as stated by the WHO statistics, one in three 11-year-old kids are considered as obese. The World Health Organization (WHO) also suggests that the overall sugar intake should be less than 10% of the total energy consumption.**
**World Health Organization, “Guideline: Sugars intake for adults and children.”
www.who.int/nutrition/publications/guidelines/sugars_intake/en
Sugar is heavily scrutinized by consumers
Even though sugar consumption is referred as “unhealthy”, the daily intake of sugar by consumers are still visible across countries, as sugar has been used to enhance product functionality, provide taste and sweetness, also ensuring food safety. As the term “sugar reduction” has been around for years and now has grown into a macro trend, consumers are in pursuit of a healthy diet for replacing their daily sugar/calorie intake.
“Reducing sugar in my diet has become more important to me in the past year”
Total META: 44% vs Global: 55%
SAUDI ARABIA, UAE, OMAN, QATAR
Excise Tax Law.
Sweetened beverages are subjected to tax.
Sweetened beverages are subjected to tax.
SOUTH AFRICA
Effective on 2018.
Based on sugar content in sugar- sweetened beverages
Based on sugar content in sugar- sweetened beverages
TURKEY
The government signed a protocol with F&B industry stakeholders for gradual sugar reduction
A changing regulatory landscape in sugar reduction
In the META region, i.e. Middle East, Turkey, and Africa, as obesity rates increase and government intervention plans intensify, sugar taxes have been implemented in certain countries
Consumers opt for less sweet
According to the HealthFocus International, consumers are most likely to prefer reducing their overall sugar intake by “not consuming” food and beverages that are sweet, but not by preferring diets with alternative replacements for sugar as a sweetener. This research indicates that consumers are not fond of the current solutions that they are offered for replacing sugar, or simply not aware of the replacement options within the market.
of META consumers prefer products that taste less sweet than they used to
vs. Global 67%
Not all sweeteners are equal to consumers
3 in 5 META consumers believe that natural sweeteners are healthier alternatives to sugar
vs. Global: 55%
of META consumers say that “no artificial sweeteners” is an extremely / very important statement on labels
vs. Global: 55%
Product launches with sugar claims META, 2012 - 2022
- 2012
- 2022
No Added Sugar
Sugar Free
Low Sugar
Reduced Sugar
Source: Innova database, 2022. All categories excluding clinical nutrition, supplements, pot food and sugar and sweeteners.