Chewing gum that changes flavour to detect disease
Today I post about an advanced use of chewing gum. I attach a link to the article which describes the research that it is being conducted, within the EU frame, about the use of chewing gum for an early detection of some oral diseases.
This type of reasearch can lead to other interesting and useful applications in the future!
Optimistic forecast for chewing gum 01/06/2015
After some years of not-so-good figures for the gum market, it is good to see that some relevant players with optimistic views.
In the article published last 20th March (link) by confectionery news.com, the VicePresident of global consumer and industry affairs of Hershey says that the reason (or maybe one of the reasons!) for the weak performance of gum in the US market has been the excess of references, a range of offer which is too broad. Once this element has been identified, the producers (according to him) will be able to take the necessary action and reverse the trend, hopefully returning to positive figures.
The article shows some interesting figures of the US market and Euromonitor data (which seems to be not as optimistic as Hershey’s VP…)
XYLITOL IN CHEWING GUM 01/04/2015
I leave you here a link to the article published in confectionerynews.com where you can see the discussion about the validity of the claim about the value of xylitol as oral care agent.
The article does not deal only about chewing gum. It mentions other products with xylitol (lozenges, toothpaste, …). The conclusion is that the effect is not as proven and clear as other studies suggest. Well… it is always good a bit of discussion and debate…
Daeyoung Foods – Korea 02/03/2015
This korean company (www.deayoungfoods.co.kr) might not be one of the big players in the country (Like Lotte, Haiti, Orion,…) but their product is outstanding.
They had a booth in ISM and I had the pleasure to talk to Mr Rhee. They produce other products than gum, but … their chewing gum portfolio is really interesting!
Most of the products are xylitol based, aligned with what the market demands in that part of the world. But the company gives them a very nice final touch which differentiates them from the competition. See this photo that I took from the “Rainbow gum”. Isn’t it an appealing way to present the dragees? When I see this, the rest of sugarfree gums risk to look too boring.
The range of gums is completed with other “not-so-common” types of gum: Tube gum, gum in cubes (I talked about this type of presentation in my previous post) and also functional gum, with three different products:
“No sleep Gum” containing guaraná
Vitamin Gum, with vitamins A, B, C, D and E
Polyphenol gum, with antioxidant properties
and Aloe Gum which contains, of course, Aloe Vera.
Daeyoung Foods also exports to a number of countries and has been growing in the last years.
ASCOM – Germany 26/02/2015
The German company Ascom (www.ascomgum.com), based in Walldorf, introduced a new line of innovative products last ISM. This goes under the umbrella of “Go Yellow”. The first products launched are 2 types of gum cubes (“super sour” and “cotton candy” flavors) and one type of gum globe/lentil (peppermint flavor). They are all presented in flip-top boxes and using characters from “The Simpsons”. The pieces have a light coating with powder which enhances the initial impact.
I always liked the presentation in cube and wonder why it is not more extensive. The most well-know example is the Ice-Cube by Icebreakers (Hershey) and I am happy to see more companies launching this format.
Stabilised Menthol Plus – Tastetech (UK) 25/02/2015
I refer today to the advertised launching from the company Tastetech, in Bristol – UK.
The company says that their product “stabilized menthol plus” is a fine menthol powder which offers the following benefits:
1- Saves up to 50% of your menthol costs
2- Contains 95% menthol
3- Gives you 5 fold more impact
4- Is a free flowing powder
5- It is resistant to recrystallization
6- It is easy to dose
and (this is the reason to include it here) it is suitable for chewing gum.
It can be used to replace the larger menthol crystals that are used by the industry. Other menthol in powder in the market contain a much lower amount of pure menthol because a large percentage of carrier (starch or gum acacia) is used.
Drive Gum – Italy 12/02/2015
In ISM I met Mr Nazareno Mario Ciccarello, CEO and CoFounder of the company Functional Gum s.r.l. in Italy, which were presenting their “DRIVE GUM”.
I mentioned this product in a previous post, but now I can update the information. It is a chewing gum in form of coated dragees and presented in blister pack (with 10 pieces per pack). The gum contains caffeine and claims “Energy + concentration” due to the fact of combining the well-know effect of caffeine on the body and also the studies that show that the action of chewing also helps to improve alertness. It comes with mint flavour. Its retail price is from 1,99 to 2,50 Eur per pack. It is sugarer, gluten free and claims the reduced calorie intake compared energy drinks (which could have the same effect on alertness). The company also advertises the convenience of using chewing gum for this purpose and, I would add, in general as a vector to include a functional ingredient.
I leave you with one image of the product and the link to their web:
ISM 2015 11/02/2015
Back from this year’s ISM (and Prosweets) exhibition in Cologne / Germany.
I repeat myself when I say that this fair seems smaller and smaller every year, so I will not insist on this. It is still an impressive show and a very interesting meeting point for the confectionery industry. I have seen a few novelties (not many because most the companies I visited were not really presenting anything new) which i will be talking about during next posts.
Fiesta – Spanish company for sale 28/01/2015
Sad news are that the Spanish company “FIESTA” is for sale. After some years of financial difficulties, the company, located near Madrid, has a tag price of around 20 Million Euros.
The same is expected to take place in July and will be organized in two parts: The sale and distribution of sweets, and the factory itself. The first business has an estimated value of 12 M Eur but the initial sale price will be 5 times the EBITDA for 2015. The company estimates that the EBITDA for 2014 will be 1,2 M Eur, so if the forecast for 2015 is the same, then the value will be 6 M Eur (half of the estimated value of the business). Regarding the building itself, it has a value of 8 M Eur but it will come out for sale for 6,7 M Eur. 50 companies have already shown interest. The company has now 140 employees and has suffered a deep restructuration process during last years and months.
You can read more about this in this link (only in Spanish) from Alimarket, who provides the info mentioned above.
The company is well-known in the Spanish market for their lollipop with a bubble gum center named “Kojak”. It has also an active export activity.
Chewing Gum Consultant 