Despite a spike in sugar-induced health problem and widespread attempts by healthcare providers to vilify the sweet stuff, confectionery is more popular than ever.
And, like the undulating form of taffy on a puller, the global sugar confectionery market is ever-changing. The market was valued at $65.11 billion in 2015 and will reach $78.31 billion by 2020, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 3.76%.
Now, we’ve written our fair share of health-centric pieces discussing the ramifications of eating too much sugar. But like a wisp of cotton candy caught in a breeze, our whims have drifted back to sugar’s favor.
And also it’s almost Friday and writing about candy seems appropriate.
Segmentation of global sugar confectionery market by product type 2015
Source: Technavio
The sugar confectionery market refers to all candy that isn’t chocolate. The market is segmented into hard boiled sweets, caramels and toffees, gummies and jellies, medicated confectionery (stuff like Halls), mints and others, so it’s a pretty wide range of products. The top vendors in the market are Ferrara Candy, HARIBO, Mondelez International, Nestle, Perfetti Van Melle and Wrigley.
You might not recognize all these names, but you know their products. Even if you’ve pulled up your socks and gotten your act together, heath-wise, there is still a gluttonous child in all of us that can recognize Sour Patch Kids, Butterfingers, Mentos, and Airheads from a mile away.
For better or worse, we can expect to see more sugar-free candies on the horizon
According to a recent report from Technavio, the threat of obesity, diabetes and other sugar-related ailments doesn’t provide enough impetus for us to turn our backs on the products listed above.
Instead, consumers are clamoring for sugar-free confectionery. This demand is expected to create a shift in the market from 2015 to 2020, with more vendors developing sugar-free candies. Some European countries are already ahead of the game, with sugar-free sweets accounting for one-third of confectionery sales in France and Spain, in 2010.
