While almost three in 10 (28%) users of sugar and sweeteners in Germany believe stevia is good for their health, new research from Mintel reveals more education is needed by stevia brands if usage is to increase. Indeed, latest research from Mintel finds there remains a core group of consumers who do not know if stevia is healthy (29%) or say it is neither good nor bad for their health (31%).
It seems stevia in Germany is benefiting from positive perceptions amongst some consumers in regards its naturalness and healthfulness. Indeed, when asked which sugar and sweeteners products are good for health, stevia (28%) fares well with German consumers, outperforming agave (27%), raw sugar (15%), brown sugar (15%), as well other high intensity sweeteners including saccharin (4%) and aspartame (2%). Only honey (68%) and maple syrup (33%) have better health perceptions, likely to be due to consumers’ high level of familiarity with these products.
Indeed, natural alternatives to sugar are gaining stronger interest in Germany, with nearly four in 10 (38%) Germans indicating an interest in seeing more naturally sweetened diet products, a figure which rises to as many as 42% of 16-24 year olds. But while almost three in 10 (28%) users of sugar and sweeteners perceive stevia as good for their health, over one in 10 (13%) perceive stevia as bad for their health.
Katya Witham, senior food and drink German analyst at Mintel, said: “As obesity creeps up on the nation, stevia’s plant-based origin makes it an attractive sweetener for health conscious German consumers. But lack of familiarity with stevia indicates that more educational efforts are required from the German food and drink industry to drive usage, which is then set to present considerable future opportunities for the stevia market”.