The rising number of lifestyle diseases such as diabetes and obesity, coupled with a growing consumer inclination towards healthy lifestyles, are driving the demand for no- or low-calorie food products and, in consequence, the growth of the global alternative sweetener market. The beverage market is primarily responsible for the growth, and the rising awareness of health as well as government regulations on nutritional labelling of beverages could drive the adoption of alternative sweeteners across different beverages.
As an example, in December 2022, Singapore implemented the Nutri-Grade labels on prepackaged drinks to indicate the sugar and saturated fat content in beverages, and the label is color-coded from grade A to D clearly on the packaging. Indirectly, it has impacted consumer purchasing decision on beverages as they start to look more seriously at the labelling and evaluate the product based on the grading.
According to the latest report by Frost & Sullivan, the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region dominated the global alternative sweeteners market by volume in 2022 due to a dramatic increase in fast-food consumption and growth in the fast-food industry in APAC. However, North America dominated the alternative sweeteners market by revenue due to the high prices of alternative sweeteners, to a certain extent due to its heavily reliant on imports from China.
Alternative Sweeteners in this study include low-intensity sweeteners (LIS) like Erythritol and Sorbitol as well as high-intensity sweeteners (HIS) like Aspartame, Stevia (Reb A), Sucralose and Monk Fruit which are many times sweeter than sugar thereby needing only a small volume to sweeten a product.
By definition, alternative sweeteners are alternatives to sugar or sucrose that contain zero or extremely low amounts of carbohydrates.
Frost & Sullivan estimated the Alternative Sweetener market to be worth US$5.1 billion in 2023 with a CAGR of 4.4% from 2020 to 2030. HIS is expected to command 56.2% share of the market with LIS holding the remainding 43.8%. The penetration of HIS in the F&B industry will expand during the forecast period owing to their zero-calorie advantages and high sweetness profile.
The high-intensity sweetener (HIS) market will continue to be dominated by stevia which commands almost 42% share of the HIS market in 2023. It is followed by sucralose, Acesulfame-K and Aspartame. (see Chart 1.0)
Stevia seems to have the largest market as about 150 countries including the US, Canada, the EU, China, India, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan, Malaysia, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Colombia, Peru, and South Africa have approved the use of stevia in food and beverage products. The sweetener is seeing higher penetration in the beverage, dairy, bakery, and frozen dessert categories. For instance, stevia-based ice creams are soft, scoopable, and not icy, unlike other sweetener-based desserts.
Acesulfame-K, on the other hand, is widely popular due to its ability to retain its sweetness at a wide range of temperatures and in many food-processing conditions. It has many applications in products such as baked goods, chocolates, dairy products, desserts, and beverages.
The Asia Pacific (APAC) is the 3rd most important region for HIS contributing US$641.4 million in revenue, behind North America (US$1.089 billion) and Europe (US$736.3 billion) in 2023. However, APAC is projected to be the fastest growing region for HIS with a CAGR of 5.5%.
