Recent patents that deliver sugar reduction without sacrificing taste include biotechnology solutions, sugar substitute blends and sweet taste enhancers.
Neha Srivastava, Senior Patent Analyst – Food & Drink and Beauty & Personal Care
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- What you need to know
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WHAT CONSUMERS WANT AND WHY
- Consumers view low-sugar choices as part of a healthy lifestyle
- Consumers prefer natural, gradual and straightforward sugar-reduction techniques
- Graph 1: consumers’ preferred approaches by food or drink brands to support healthier choices, 2024
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PRODUCT INNOVATION TRENDS
- The prevalence of claims linked to sugar reduction varies by category
- Graph 2: % of launches with selected claims related to sugar reduction, by selected food and drink categories, 2020-25
- Sugar and other carbohydrate sweeteners dominate food and drink launches across regions
- Graph 3: % of food and drink launches (excluding alcoholic drinks) with different sugar and additive sweetener ingredient groups, by region, 2020-25
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THE PATENT LANDSCAPE
- Sugar reduction innovation has surged recently, driven by market and regulatory pressures
- Graph 4: patents related to sugar reduction in food and drinks, published each year, 2015-25
- China leads sugar reduction innovation, followed by South Korea and Japan
- Food and beverage giants, biotech firms and academia are driving sugar reduction innovation
- Graph 5: top 10 organisations with granted patents for sugar reduction in food and drinks, 2025
- Leverage biotechnology to reduce sugar
- Revolutionise sugar reduction with biotechnology
- Harness precision fermentation to produce sugar substitutes
- Biotechnologies reduce intrinsic sugars in juice
- Innovators are exploring next-generation sugar-reduction technologies that use yeasts and enzymes
- Recent patented techniques deliver sugar reduction without sacrificing sweetness or flavour
- Trailblazing filtration techniques and peptides redefine sugar reduction in the food & drink category
- Explore sugar substitute combinations
- Producers combine natural and artificial non-nutritive sweeteners
- Graph 6: % of drink launches with an artificial non-nutritive sweetener that also contain a natural non-nutritive sweetener, 2020-24
- Unlock the perfect mix of taste, functionality and nutrition
- Graph 7: % of launches with a sugar-reduction claim* and a bulk sweetener that also contain a non-nutritive sweetener or a soluble fibre, by category, 2020-25
- Producers use blends of sugar substitutes to deliver the perfect product
- Scientists innovate new sugar substitute combinations that effectively reduce sugar
- Fibre-rich sugar substitutes reduce blood sugar spikes and boost gut health
- Low-GI sweeteners support sugar reduction and healthy blood glucose management
- Use sweet taste enhancers to reduce sugar
- Use sweet taste enhancers to craft healthier – but indulgent – low-sugar foods
- Discover sweet taste enhancers that support sugar reduction
- Innovators pioneer safe and healthy sweet taste enhancers
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KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Key takeaways
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APPENDIX
- Research methodology
- Key patent examples for sugar reduction
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