Natural sweetness: Strauss Group unveils chocolate bar with 30 percent less sugar

20 Sep 2019 --- At a time when sugar reduction remains hot under the industry spotlight, Israeli manufacturer Strauss Group has unveiled a refined sweet milk chocolate bar made with 30 percent less sugar using extracts of unique raw material. Sugar in the product is replaced by two main components: dietary fiber (17 percent) and ground tiger nut flour (5 percent). The recipe enables the retention of sweetness while preserving the chocolate’s creamy texture, notes the company, and comes following two years of R&D.

Strauss Group has successfully produced an extract of tiger nut tubers (Cyperus esculentus), a natural source of sweetness. The tiger nut has its roots in Spain and is integrated into the local food culture of the country, as well as in South America.

Tiger nuts are a natural source of sweetness utilized by Strauss Group.Rich in vitamins, minerals and non-water-soluble dietary fiber, the tubers contain fats similar to olive oil. It also has a high content of resistant probiotic starch serving as food and a substrate to gut-friendly bacteria, the company notes. Tiger nuts have a slightly sweet taste, hence in a complex development process, their sweetness offered significant potential in sugar reduction while preserving the familiar taste of chocolate.

“I applaud this international breakthrough in the field of chocolate, a product with a long-standing traditional recipe. Strauss will continue to work to improve its products by reviewing the recipes and providing technological solutions for their improvement,” says Eyal Dror, CEO of Strauss Israel.

Overall, Strauss operates 30 production sites in over 20 countries including Brazil, which is a key market for its coffee products; and the US, where it operates in the category of refrigerated fresh dips and spreads, including hummus. 

Strauss has strategic and financial collaborations with leading global players such as Danone, PepsiCo, Haier and Virgin. The Group's non GAAP 2018 sales were approximately NIS 8.5 billion (US$2.4 billion) (including partnerships sales), of which international operations accounted for approximately 50 percent.

Innovating around sugar reductionSugar-reduced chocolate by Strauss Group.
Aligning with consumer demand for low- and no-sugar versions of products, solutions in sugar reduction have proliferated across industry this year. Sugar reduction remains high on the agenda for brands and suppliers, with sugar taxes that came into force in different countries spurring industry to reformulate below specified brix levels. As such, manufacturers are encouraged to adapt NPD using less sugar, while still meeting high expectations regarding naturalness, indulgence and sensory attributes.

In this space, Nestlé has created a unique new chocolate made entirely from the cocoa fruit, using only the beans and pulp as ingredients. The new chocolate was developed using a “natural approach” and patented technique which does not require adding any refined sugar.

In June, Israeli food-tech company DouxMatok secured US$22 million in a series B funding round for its sugar reduction solution that enables a reduction of “sugar with sugar.” By increasing the efficiency of sugar delivery to the tongue’s sweet taste receptors, the technology allows food products to be made with 40 percent less sugar without compromising taste, mouthfeel or texture.

Last April, Layn, a producer of plant-based sweeteners, flavors and botanicals, launched Lovia, a solution that integrates monk fruit mogrosides with specific steviol glycosides to enable more profound sugar reduction with a sugar-like taste.

Earlier this year, Israel-based Gat Foods also unveiled Fruitlift – an innovative fruit-based formulation containing natural plant fibers that is available in a wide range of flavors. The base additive can be used as a natural fruity flavoring or blended neutrally into a cereal brand’s signature flavor.

In March 2018, Nestlé also debuted a chocolate bar that contains 30 percent less sugar in the UK and Ireland as Nestlé. The product utilizes a unique sugar reduction technique that was hailed as a breakthrough due to the way it “restructures” sugar. Researchers from the Swiss giant pioneered the “Milkybar Wowsomes” range, describing this as the first chocolate bar in the world to use Nestlé’s innovative sugar reduction technique.

By Benjamin Ferrer