Healthy chocolate set for ‘twice the growth’ as regular chocolate – Euromonitor | Progresiv
Functional, organic and reduced-sugar chocolate is expected to grow at twice the speed of regular chocolate, according to the latest forecast from Euromonitor. 
The healthy chocolate category is set to grow at almost double the rate in terms retail value and volume consumption as chocolate confectionery up until 2021.
The global market is set to expand in size by a compound annual rate of 2.6%, compared to 1.3% for traditional chocolate.
The findings are good news for brands like Doisy & Dam, which makes chocolate bars fortified with superfood ingredients like hemp seeds and goji berries.
Euromonitor also found that year-on-year growth was higher in soft drinks with a health and wellness claim than conventional soft drinks in 2016.
It expects healthier soft drinks – such as natural colas and premium mixers – to outperform the mainstream soft drinks segment in terms of year-on-year growth for the duration of the period up to 2021.
It also predicts that healthier packaged foods will outperform the wider packaged foods market until at least 2020.
Ewa Hudson, head of health and wellness for Euromonitor International, said: “The days in which free-from-gluten, -lactose or -dairy products were consumed only by those with intolerances are gone. Growth in organic and free-from food sales has boomed in 2016 as consumers are reading labels more carefully than ever, seeking natural ingredients and looking for foods that represent a ‘guilt-free’ purchase.
“Before the free-from boom, gluten- and lactose-free options were the opposite of convenience, meaning consumers were forced to either avoid or prepare almost every meal from scratch. Now, convenience has found its way into free-from and with that, growth opportunities abound. Organic is also in sync with the natural and clean label trend, and so unlikely to fall out of favour with consumers in the foreseeable future.”
A report from The Canadian Celiac Association and Allergen Control Group last month predicted that demand for free-from products would ‘rise dramatically’ in the coming years, as consumers increasingly turn to free-from foods for health and lifestyle reasons. The category is no longer the preserve of coeliacs, the research suggested. Hudson continued: “Health and wellness continues to outperform the wider packaged food and soft drinks industries. Free-from and organic foods and beverages will continue to contribute to the global health and wellness industry, which is on the way to hit a record high of 833 billion dollars by 2021.” (www.foodbev.com)
