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Global Trends

Download the Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate Trend report

Stay ahead of consumer tastes with our Trend report

We know how vital it is to anticipate industry trends and determine which recipe your consumers will love. Highlighting the key trends we have spotted with a focus on cocoa and chocolate ingredients, our Trend Report will provide a glimpse of the insights we have gathered to help you get a head-start on your next successful innovation.

Indulgent, premium, healthy, sustainable and clean

Because today’s consumers look far beyond just value for money when it comes to their food, we explore key trends around four themes that are shaping the global food industry: indulgent; premium; healthy; and sustainable and clean.

Indulgent

IndulgentToday’s consumer is looking for an ever-more indulgent experience, across flavour, texture and colour, inspiring new levels of creativity in sweet foods around the world.

In flavours, vegetable and chocolate combinations are becoming popular across a range of categories, for example kale flavour fillings in chocolate bars and chocolate featuring alongside beetroot in cakes.

Texture is also evolving towards more indulgence, with larger chocolate chunk inclusions as well as new combinations of textures such as crispy chocolate layers on top of creamy desserts.

Cocoa powder is increasingly being used to play with shades and add depth of colour.

Download our Indulgent trend focus sheet

Premium

PremiumDemand for premium products is at an all-time high, with provenance and origin being key among cocoa and chocolate products.

Besides specifying the origin of cocoa or chocolate, manufacturers increasingly highlight on the pack the country where the end-product was manufactured, answering consumers’ desire to buy local products. Inspiration from artisanal industry is also observed.

Processes behind the product are becoming more prominent on packaging – with details included such as ‘stone ground’ or ‘slow churned’ and even the conching-time of chocolate.

Download our Premium trend focus sheet

Healthy

HealthHow diet affects health and wellness is increasingly on consumers’ minds, leading them to avoid ingredients perceived as unhealthy, and look for foods perceived as healthy.

Besides the long standing trend for sugar reduction and gluten free, lactose free claims are increasingly being observed in cocoa and chocolate products, with milk alternatives such as coconut milk increasing in popularity.

Looking at ingredients seen as beneficial, the trend for protein is still booming and becoming mainstream, breaking free from the sports nutrition niche and focusing on satiety rather than sports recovery.

Download our Healthy trend focus sheet

Sustainable and clean

Sustainable and cleanWhere food comes from, how it is produced, and its true ethical and environmental cost, really matter to today’s consumer.

Certified chocolate products are becoming more popular and spreading their reach out from chocolate tablets into dairy, bakery, biscuits and ice cream.

Answering consumers’ demand for more transparency, clean and clear labelling is also more important than ever. In the quest to remove e-numbers, real fruits and plant extracts are being increasingly used to naturally colour products.

Download our Clean Label trend focus sheet

Turning trends into your next product hit

Going beyond these insights, Cargill is uniquely set up to help you bring products to market, quickly and efficiently. Through our unique T-model approach, we combine broad food knowledge with deep cocoa and chocolate expertise to translate the latest trends into innovative ingredients. In our application centres, products can be formulated or tested in the hands of our expert engineers, winning precious time to be first in the market.

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  • New Cargill report highlights key trends in cocoa and chocolate
  • Cargill insights help you create product success
  • Inspiration thanks to Cargill trends expertise
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