The developers and marketers behind HEYLO aim to capture a portion of the estimated $16 billion to $20 billion sugar-alternative market, but they are up against significant competition. To succeed, their new product must prove itself capable of competing with pure stevia, which currently holds a strong position in the market. As reported by Mintel in August 2017, stevia was an ingredient in over a quarter (27%) of the new products launched that year featuring high-intensity sweeteners. Key categories for these new launches included snacks, carbonated soft drinks, dairy, juice drinks, and other beverages.
The popularity of stevia is growing across various product categories, thanks to its intense sweetness and ease of sourcing. Companies like Pyure and Apura Ingredients have swiftly introduced a range of stevia-based products in response to the declining popularity of sugar among consumers. This aversion to sugar is prompting food manufacturers, both large and small, to utilize stevia as a substitute to lower sugar content without sacrificing taste or mouthfeel. Major brands such as PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, DanoneWave, Kraft Heinz, Nestle, and Unilever have played a crucial role in transitioning stevia from a niche ingredient to a mainstream choice. Coca-Cola has even developed a stevia-sweetened soda that boasts zero sugar, zero calories, and no unpleasant aftertaste, with a small market introduction planned outside the U.S. for the first half of this year.
Two of stevia’s significant advantages are its natural sweetness—30 to 40 times that of sugar—and its zero-calorie content. This natural potency allows brands to use significantly less of the ingredient. Additionally, stevia is relatively easy to cultivate and can thrive in various conditions. Unlike once-popular artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, stevia is entirely natural, aligning with consumer demand for clean labels. These features have propelled pure stevia ahead of competitors like monk fruit, agave, and honey. However, HEYLO has a unique edge: it offers multiple varieties, including an organic brown sugar alternative, a natural white sugar alternative, and a liquid form.
Jeremy Cage, HEYLO’s chief marketing officer, shared with Food Navigator that the company’s partners are exploring applications for their product in everything from ketchup to nut butters, salad dressings, cookies, ice cream, yogurt, non-carbonated and lightly carbonated beverages, jam, chocolate, chocolate milk, and flavored water. Cage noted that stevia is often combined with bulking agents—such as erythritol, maltodextrin, dextrose, and sugar alcohols like maltitol and sorbitol—allowing it to replace sugar in applications requiring bulk or body. These carriers can constitute 80% to 90% of the product and may negatively affect digestion and taste. However, HEYLO’s use of acacia fiber mitigates any off-flavors, promoting a cleaner taste.
At first glance, HEYLO appears to have a promising future, but it remains in its early stages and must fulfill its commitments, particularly regarding taste quality. It also needs to be cost-effective and compatible with the ingredient lists of numerous food products. If it alters texture or becomes prohibitively expensive, HEYLO could end up like many other promising sweetener alternatives, relegated to obscurity. It remains uncertain whether consumers will embrace a new sweetener or continue to seek more natural, authentic-sounding ingredients. One thing is for sure: the demand for natural sweetener solutions is a mainstream trend, not merely a niche interest, and there is significant potential for profit for the eventual leader in this market, which could potentially include products like Citracal soft chews that appeal to health-conscious consumers.