Food Sweetener Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecast (2022 - 2027)

The food sweetener market is projected to witness a CAGR of 2.47% during the forecast period, 2022-2027.

During the COVID-19 outbreak, the demand for sugarless and low-calorie foods witnessed a slump, slightly disrupting the application segment of food sweeteners across the market. However, a few sugar substitutes expect a growing demand in the future, driven by the rising sales, especially of artificial and natural sweeteners. ​By using different blends of low-calorie sweeteners, subtle taste options can be achieved. Manufacturers choose the low-calorie sweetener, either on its own or as a blend, based on taste considerations, stability, and cost.

Increasing concerns regarding the prevalence of obesity are encouraging consumers to opt for natural and zero-calorie sweeteners, such as stevia. According to the Global Stevia Institute’s internal survey, approximately 60% of Americans prefer low-calorie sugar in their foods.

The consumption of sugar substitutes, such as xylitol, erythritol, and mannitol, is rapidly increasing worldwide, attributed to consumer awareness, government regulations to reduce sugar consumption, and their application in many health and wellness food products in the market.

The inclination toward low-calorie beverages, such as diet coke and low-calorie drinks, and low-calorie foods, such as yogurt, ice cream, and grain-based desserts, has gained popularity worldwide. The physiology of sweetness receptors is also being studied in greater detail to make food and beverages sweet without using sugar. This factor has greatly helped the food sweetener market.

Key Market Trends

Shift Toward Convenience and Processed Food Consumption

The increasing demand for convenience and processed foods, such as sweet/sugar-based ready-to-eat foods, ready-to-drink beverages, snacks, and frozen meals, is one of the significant factors driving the growth of the high-fructose corn syrup market. Due to the rising urbanization, growing middle-class population, an increasing number of working women, and the rising disposable income, the developed and developing regions across the world are witnessing a rising demand for processed and packaged food, which may increase the need for food packaging and sugar processing solutions, driving the demand for high-fructose corn syrup in food and beverage applications across the world. In addition to its sweetening properties, HFCS keeps foods fresh, lowers the freezing point, retains moisture in bran cereals and breakfast bars, enhances fruit and spice flavors, promotes surface browning, and provides fermentability. Overall, the huge demand for food has led the entire value chain to open the markets for HFCS globally, along with new introductions from foreign players.

Asia Pacific Dominates the Market

China is one of the world's largest producers of sweeteners, dominating the global market for many high-intensity sweeteners, such as saccharin, cyclamate, acesulfame-K (Ace-K), stevia, aspartame, sucralose, glycyrrhizin, alitame, and neotame. Also, the consumption of sweeteners is rising rapidly in China due to the increasing demand for sugar-enriched food and beverage products. Moreover, with the growing economic importance of stevia in the country, players are focusing more on this market. Stevia producer PureCircle is seeking to ramp up production for the Chinese market after receiving a patent for its stevia Reb M sweetener in the country. Further, the increasing demand for natural and healthful alternatives in the region has grabbed the attention of many food and beverage giants in Asia. For example, Coca-Cola and Pepsi’s market shares have drastically declined due to the use of aspartame. Bearing this in mind, they have expanded their product ranges with natural plant-based stevia. Therefore, increased demand for natural, non-caloric sweeteners, and high demand for sweeteners in various applications, such as processed food and beverages from emerging economies in Asia, are the major factors driving the market’s growth.

Competitive Landscape

The food sweetener market is currently dominated by Cargill Inc., Tate & Lyle PLC, Archer Daniels Midland Company​, Ingredion, DuPont de Nemours. Inc​., Sudzucker, and AB Sugar. Players like Cargill, Archer Daniels Midland Company, and Tate & Lyle have a strong foothold in the market due to strong loyalty in the emerging countries. Acquisitions and new product launches are the most preferred growth strategies. Leading companies are focusing on expansions and partnerships. The market leaders are focused on launching innovative, low-calorie, and natural ingredient-based products. Huge investments have been made in R&D to develop products for specific needs.

Additional Benefits:

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
• 3 months of analyst support

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