FERMENTED INGREDIENTS


created via algae fermentation and suitable for wide range of applications, including hard candies.


WITHIN A FEW COMMERCIAL CYCLES, CONFECTIONERY


AISLES COULD FEATURE CLIMATE-FRIENDLY CHOCOLATE BARS, EGG-FREE MACARONS, AND DAIRY-FREE CUPCAKES – ALL INDISTINGUISHABLE FROM THEIR LEGACY COUNTERPARTS


Beyond cocoa Record high cocoa prices, deforestation scrutiny and childlabour scandals are pushing confectioners to look beyond the cocoa pod. While cocoa-free innovation in plant-based and cell-cultured space is more advanced, some early-stage players – including Seminal Biosicences – are engineering yeast strains to produce cocoa butter. Besides cocoabutter there is great interest in animalfree dairy fats, which give buttercream and ganache their indulgent melt and aroma. Milk fat is chemically intricate, yet microbes can be coaxed to reproduce the very same profile. Startup Yali Bio produces a variety of highly functional and differentiated dairy fats that can be used to substitute plant-based butter, milk and other dairy ingredients. Similarly, Australia’s Nourish Ingredients is developing dairy fats that can provide enhancements to non-dairy categories such as bakery and confectionery that traditionally rely on dairy lipids.


can access animalfree proteins already scaling toward industrial volumes.


Replacing sugar When it comes to replacing traditional sugar, fermentation also has lot to offer. Steviol glycosides, rare sugars and high-potency sweet proteins, for example. They are ideal targets because they are needed at very low inclusion levels yet require complex plant extractions in their native form. Sweegen is using engineered microbes to produce Brazzein, a calorie-free sweetener that is 500-2000 times sweeter than sugar and has excellent heat stability. Meanwhile Cargill and DSM have established a joint venture to produce steviol glycosides Reb M and Reb D through fermentation. Regulatory bans and retailer pledges


for ‘syntheticfree’ labels are accelerating the switch to natural dyes, which meet the sweet spot of high value and low inclusion rate that favours fermentation. Chromologics is developing a natural red food colour to replace synthetics such as Red40. Compared to existing natural


Remaining hurdles Cost is still the biggest hurdle and fermentation derived ingredients generally cost more than their commodity counterparts. But those premiums are already edging down as microbes are re-engineered for higher productivity, downstream steps become more efficient, and larger fermenters come online. At the same time traditional ingredients are becoming less attractive as egg prices continue to climb in some regions, and cocoa markets remain volatile. That widening squeeze makes every incremental cost reduction on novel ingredients more powerful. Regulatory approvals and clear labelling are still needed to win consumer trust, but confectionery manufacturers who help shape these solutions now will be first in line when fermentation hits cost parity and will be the first to capture the sustainability upside Within a few commercial cycles,


Floor Buitelaar is Managing Partner at Bright Green Partners, a consulting firm that specialises in AgriFood tech and is the owner of FoodTech platform: Food Tech Experts (FTE).


colours like betanin and carmine, the fermentation derived product has good pH and temperature stability, and great sustainability profile. Meanwhile, Givaudan has commercialised a natural blue colour,


confectionery aisles could feature climate- friendly chocolate bars, egg-free macarons, and dairy-free cupcakes – all indistinguishable from their legacy counterparts. The winners will be brands that treat fermentation not as a niche vegan play but as a core manufacturing upgrade. Food producers that engage early with ingredient innovators and startup/scaleups to codevelop formulations, build sensory data, and derisk regulatory pathways will be best placed to ride the cost curve downward and adopt novel ingredients in their portfolio.


JULY 2025 • KENNEDY’S CONFECTION • 17


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44