Market Trends of Mexico Food Sweetener Industry
Rising Trend of Clean Label and Plant-based Ingredients
The low-sugar, naturally sweet, plant-based ingredients witnessed a growing demand in the market, with monk fruit and stevia being two high-intensity plant-based sweeteners approved by FDA GRAS. Also, the demand for clean-label or natural food products is rising in Mexico, owing to the growing consumer awareness about the negative health effects of artificial ingredients. According to the International Diabetes Federation, 16.9% of the population in Mexico suffered from diabetes as of 2022.
Consumers demand clean labels on products to gain knowledge about the product that they are about to consume. The inclination toward identifying the ingredients present in food and beverage has fueled the growth of the clean-label ingredients market. Consumers are ready to pay a premium price for naturally sourced ingredients. Growing health consciousness among consumers has led them to grow cautious over the high consumption of sugar. As per Gabinete de Comunicación Estratégica, last year, 40% of Mexicans preferred eating healthy/healthy diet, and 1.7% of the people avoided drinking soft drinks. Sugar can be replaced or is claimed to be replaced by healthier clean-sounding alternatives, such as stevia, to cater to the demand of consumers seeking clean-label/plant-based sweeteners.
Major Application of Sweeteners in Beverages
There is a high demand for sweeteners from the beverage industry, and aspartame and sucralose are some of the popular sweeteners that are used as sugar substitutes in soft drinks, especially in carbonated beverages. According to INEGI (The National Institute of Statistics and Geography), the sales value of soft drinks and other non-alcoholic beverages in Mexico in July 2022 was MXN 24,752 million.
Furthermore, diet cokes are getting popular among youth and the working population across Mexico, where diet cokes are made with sugar substitutes, such as sugar alcohols and high-intensity sweeteners, which in turn, is propelling the market's growth gradually. Moreover, the amount of sugar can also be reduced without changing the taste and appearance, thereby encouraging beverage manufacturers to substitute sugar with low-calorie sweeteners. The reduced cost of production and better economy of scale are also fueling the growth of sweeteners. New product innovations, such as beverages with the incorporation of stevia, are also attracting the attention of consumers who are seeking natural ingredients in their products.
