Graciana is a Senior Regional Consumer Insights Analyst for Latin America at Mintel. She is responsible for developing research plans, analyzing consumer and market data, writing research reports on how consumer trends are evolving in the region and presenting insights to clients.
Brazil is among the top producers of chocolate in the world and has one of the world’s highest number of chocolate consumers. Three-quarters of Brazilian consumers say they have consumed chocolate in the last three months and a quarter of Brazilian consumers buy chocolate as a snack between meals.
Source: Soul Good
However, changing lifestyles, diets and health concerns are influencing the consumption and perception of chocolate. Brazilian chocolatier, Kopenhagen, has launched a new line of lactose-free and gluten-free chocolates with no added sugar called Soul Good that aims to engage the health and fitness community. This extension into health products and clean label category seems to be a smart move to engage the health and fitness community.
Besides having no added sugar, gluten or lactose, the new range of products are high in fiber and contain no artificial sweeteners. The Soul Good range aims to position itself as a clean label with a packaging design that is easy to read and aims to communicate transparency and trustworthiness. With two in five consumers saying they have tried new sweets and desserts because they were healthier than traditional sweets and desserts, Soul Good is bound to be a hit.
What we’ve seen
Other brands are tapping into their health-conscious consumers:
Kindly Leave Out The Sugar: Kind Snacks hosted an interactive pop-up where consumers could see the amount of hidden sugar and sweeteners in popular snacks, including many of Kind’s competitors.
Bedtime Indulgence: A new ice cream brand called NightFood is designed to be sleep-friendly.
Natural Glaze: Dunkin’ Chile has announced it will only use natural colorants in its products.
What we think
Chocolate has a lot in its favor pertaining to health claims and its main component, cacao, is high in antioxidants and minerals. However, chocolate has received bad press for its high fat and sugar content. With so many consumers embracing fitness, chocolate can be rediscovered as it can offer an energy boost highly sought before or after a workout. Many confectionery brands have sugar-free ranges for people with health issues, such as diabetes, but few brands have something for those looking for natural, indulging offerings that can support active lifestyles. Confectionery brands in Latin America have an opportunity to engage health and fitness consumers by branching out with locally sourced products that rely on few natural ingredients, like organic cacao and cane sugar as these can be great before or after workout snacks.