When it comes to trends influencing the beverage market, consumers’ preferences for various sweeteners is being expressed through their drink purchases.

Natural sweeteners are looking to deliver sweet solutions while accommodating consumer demands for less sugar content.

As consumers become increasingly aware of their sugar intake, beverage-makers must deliver drinks that are sweet with natural sweeteners.

Aspartame-sweetened foods and beverages are safe, according to a definitive new finding issued jointly by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The WHO and FAO Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) reviewed decades of high-quality evidence and real-world consumption data, establishing an Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) at which aspartame can be safely consumed daily over the course of an entire lifetime.

A true influencer for today’s beverage formulations is sweeteners as more consumers are looking at sugar content and sources when making purchasing decisions.

U.S. honey demand reached an all-time high, according to the latest Sugar and Sweeteners Outlook report published by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). In a special article on the U.S. honey market, record-setting consumption of honey and made-with-honey products totaled 618 million pounds in 2021. The previous record was 596 million pounds in 2017.

With health and wellness driving consumer purchases, beverage-makers are finding clean label and non-GMO a growing priority for today’s shoppers.

Ingredient company Kerry released the first organic-certified sweet modulator for the U.S. beverage market: Tastesense Sweet Organic Certified.