GUMMY PRODUCTION AND INNOVATION
GUMMIES GET FUNCTIONAL
As functional ingredients move deeper into confectionery, manufacturers are balancing efficacy, formulation complexity and production efficiency with the taste and texture consumers still expect.
G
ummies, once synonymous with brightly coloured treats and impulse purchases, are now being asked to deliver
something more: functional ingredients, credible benefits and a convenient route into consumers’ everyday health routines, without losing the taste and texture that made the format successful in the first place. That shift is changing the brief for
manufacturers. Consumers are taking a more proactive approach to health and wellbeing, but they are not necessarily prepared to sacrifice enjoyment in pursuit of it. Instead, the expectation is increasingly that products should deliver both. Cargill’s TrendTracker research reflects this more intentional approach to food, with consumers seeking products that align with their health goals while still providing satisfying sensory experiences. Interest continues to build around areas including digestive health,
immunity, energy and overall wellbeing. Few formats are better placed to bridge those two worlds than the gummy. Unlike tablets or capsules, gummies offer familiarity, flavour and texture, while their convenience makes them easy to incorporate into an established daily routine. But that accessibility comes with a more complicated formulation challenge: consumers may be embracing gummies as a delivery system for functional ingredients while simultaneously scrutinising what goes into them. “Consumers are increasingly looking for
products that support their health goals without sacrificing enjoyment,” says Manuel Meggiloaro, Application Specialist at Cargill. “Functional gummies are particularly well positioned to meet these evolving expectations because they combine a familiar and enjoyable format with the convenience consumers are looking for.” Sugar sits at the centre of that tension.
While consumers may want the indulgent experience associated with confectionery, Cargill’s TrendTracker data identifies sugar as the ingredient consumers are most likely to avoid. For manufacturers, reducing or removing it is far from a straightforward substitution. Sugar contributes to much more than sweetness in a gummy, playing an important role in structure, texture, shelf life and overall sensory performance. The challenge, therefore, is to take
something that consumers increasingly associate with wellness and make it behave like premium confectionery. Cargill’s Health & Nutrition application
experts have explored that challenge through a plant-based, sugar-free, pectin- based gummy concept incorporating EpiCor®, a dried yeast fermentate produced by Saccharomyces cerevisiae**. The concept was developed around the growing interest in digestive and immune wellness, while
24 • KENNEDY’S CONFECTION • AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2026
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