How to naturally reduce sugar in RTD milk and plant-based drinks with no impact on taste or texture.

Plant-based drinks are really taking on the mainstream. Over the last couple of years the quality of the products has increased massively – with an extensive choice now presented to consumers.

Take a look down supermarket aisles and you’ll see a whole selection of options: oat, soy, almond and coconut to name a few of the most popular. Then within each of these categories there is a further selection of eye-catching brands and flavours to try.

Traditional milk products shelf space is now being reduced as the alternative plant-based drinks grow in popularity.

What’s the issue with sugar in milk and plant-based drinks?

Many of the big brands in the plant-based sector like Oatly and Minor Figures do great work presenting no added sugar options in their core milk range. The main issue comes with the flavoured drinks and the plant-based milk options presented in coffee shops. Most of these products often have heaps of added sugar.

The issue looks to become a bigger headache with the rise of premium RTD products hitting the market. This area is spearheaded by the RTD coffee market that has grown 20% over 2020. With RTD premium drinks comes the need for powerful flavours and indulgence, all of which sugar is the go-to ingredient.

The issue isn’t just exclusive to plant-based drinks, as traditional RTD milk beverages also suffer from the same high sugar levels.

Consumers demand a healthier option

Milk and plant-based drink manufacturers can’t ignore the calls for lowering sugar content. Nearly half (46%) of consumers are concerned about the level of sugar in food and drink as an FSA survey found.

This is especially true in the plant-based sector, where a major appeal of the products is their added health benefits.

Natural flavourings can boost sweetness

The team at I.T.S. has developed a solution that will help dramatically reduce sugar in not just plant-based drinks, but also traditional milk drinks. We use natural flavourings to boost and enhance the sweetness in the applications.

Our new product, SweetLITE Body not only boosts sweetness but also enhances mouthfeel to make up for the lack of depth sugar provides to the mouthfeel of a drink.

We’ve proven to reduce sugar content by up to 50% in milk and plant-based drinks. The best part is the ingredient is 100% natural and declared as a natural flavouring on the packaging.

Get in touch to request a sample of our sugar reduction solutions.