With life taking a drastically different turn this past year, beverages have provided consumers with the chance to indulge as some of their other favorite indulgences were stripped away. Yet, conditions keeping health in-focus have kept better-for-you trends in the mix.

By integrating wellness flavors into their applications, beverage brands can underscore their focus on targeted nutrition categories such as immunity, brain health, aging and digestion.

Sweet innovations

Health and functionality isn’t the only attribute driving beverage innovations. Brands continue to focus efforts on sugar reduction. In fact, the International Food Information Council (IFIC) 2020 Food and Health Survey found that 74% of respondents are trying to limit or avoid sugar in their diets altogether, she adds.

For example, energy drink brands are cutting sugar by adding vitamins and are utilizing water in these beverages to appeal to more of a clean-label focus. Juice brands are also addressing consumer concern over sugar content by committing to natural sweeteners and cleaner recipes.

The most common issues that natural and zero-calorie sweeteners face are delayed sweetness, lingering sweetness, and a bitter, metallic, licorice, or herbal off-taste.

Consumers associate natural flavors with improved health and wellness, and improved health and wellness is now at the top of everyone’s minds because of the pandemic.

Source: https://www.bevindustry.com/articles/94118-new-beverage-development-combines-familiar-novel-flavors