25 Feb 2015 US confectionery to get even cleaner

But a few days after Nestlé USA committed to removing artificial colours and flavours from its confectionery products, rival Hershey said it intends to remove GM ingredients from Hershey’s Milk Chocolate and Kisses by the end of the year.

The company will swap GM sugar beet to cane sugar and will switch to a non-GM soy lecithin for the brands as it pledges to shift to “simple ingredients”.

It will also remove emulsifier polyglycerol polyricinoleate (PGPR) and artificial vanillin in the products.

PGPR (E 476) reduces the viscosity of chocolate. PGPR supplier Palsgaard reported last year that it saw increased interest in the ingredient as it could partially replace cocoa butter and offset rising prices. However, it warned that an e-number could be “a show stopper”.

Hershey said in a statement: “We are specifically looking to formulate new products and transition existing products to deliver on no artificial flavours, no synthetic colours, no high fructose corn-syrup and to be gluten-free.”

Jeff Beckman, director of corporate communications at Hershey, told ConfectioneryNews. “We are looking closely at every ingredient in our products and how we describe them. We will strive for simplicity with all of our ingredients, but we may not achieve it with every product.”

Beckman said the shift to ‘simple ingredients’ could take a number of years, but said Hershey would provide updates on its progress.

The company said it would initially cost more to source these ingredients, but pledged to maintain consumer prices. Last year, the company increased wholesale prices 8% globally in response to rising cocoa, dairy and nut prices.

“No other action is planned at this time,” it said in a Q&A on its simple ingredients policy.

Mars confident artificial dyes are safe

Meanwhile, the other big confectionery player, Mars, says it is exploring natural alternatives but sees no safety concerns with artificial colours and flavours. It has been under much consumer activist pressure to remove synthetic colours, a move acceded to in Europe for its famous M&Ms, but not in the US.

A Mars spokesperson says the company was continuing to explore possibilities of using more naturally sourced colors in future – see this press announcement.

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