Inventory of the market and application of natural sugar substitute monk fruit

Monk fruit is emerging in the North American market

In a North American consumer survey conducted by newhope, consumers were surveyed on their views on sucrose and agave, allulose, aspartame, erythritol, monk fruit, saccharin, stevia, sucralose, xylose, Awareness of nine major sweeteners such as sugar alcohols. The results show that the sweeteners with high consumer awareness are ranked in order: stevia, agave, aspartame, sucralose, monk fruit, saccharin, and xylose. Sugar alcohols, erythritol, allulose. Among the sweeteners that consumers consider natural, agave (67%), monk fruit (61%), stevia (46%), sucralose (19%), and allulose (16%) rank top 5. Among the sweeteners that consumers think are artificial, the rankings are aspartame (61%), saccharin (51%), sucralose (48%), xylitol (42%), and erythrose. Alcohol (34%), Stevia (33%). It can be seen that North American consumers have a high degree of awareness of monk fruit, and the vast majority of consumers believe that monk fruit is natural, higher than steviol glycosides, which are also natural sweeteners.

Consumers' high awareness of Luo Han Guo sweetener comes from its advantages in clean labeling. Luo Han Guo is generally added to food and beverages in the form of Luo Han Guo extract, Luo Han Guo powder, Luo Han Guo juice, etc., and can be directly labeled as "Luo Han Guo/ Monk fruit/monk fruit extract, as a natural raw material in food, is not subject to restrictions on the amount of addition. Therefore, monk fruit has a high usage rate in organic natural food and beverages in North America. SPINS data shows that the use of monk fruit in clean-label foods and beverages in the U.S. market increased by 15.7% in 2020.

The global monk fruit market was US$396.34 million in 2019 and is expected to reach US$532.17 million by 2026, with a compound annual growth rate of approximately 4.3%. In the North American market, the market growth rate of Luo Han Guo has been above 20% for two consecutive years. SPINS data shows that the growth rate of Luo Han Guo in the North American market will reach 20% in 2021. The most commonly used categories are protein supplements/meal replacements, frozen desserts, and nutrition bars and gels; the fastest growing categories are yogurt, main dishes, and desserts.

Health benefits of monk fruit

Mogroside is the main source of the sweetness of Luo Han Guo. Its sweetness is about 200 times that of sucrose, but it has no aftertaste and has a pure taste. It can optimize the taste of other sugar substitutes. More importantly, mogroside has been proven to lower blood sugar. This sweetener is a triterpenoid compound that does not affect blood sugar. Instead, it can stimulate pancreatic beta cells to secrete insulin and improve the function of damaged cells. Studies have shown that Luo Han Guo extract can reduce oxidative stress and blood sugar levels, while increasing the content of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and has a positive regulatory effect on diabetic patients. Unlike artificial sweeteners, mogroside has also been found to have prebiotic properties, which can promote the increase of beneficial bacteria and play a positive role in maintaining intestinal health.

Market application and development prospects of Luo Han Guo

In addition to being widely used in organic food and beverages, monk fruit is also a commonly used sweetener in keto-friendly products. Its compounding with other sweeteners also has broad prospects. Combining it with stevia can improve the cost performance, compounding it with sugar alcohols such as erythritol will give it a better taste, and compounding it with functional dietary fiber such as inulin can promote intestinal health. In addition, compounding with functional monosaccharides/oligosaccharides such as psicose and trehalose can not only further enhance the taste, but is also very suitable for adding to baked goods.

Overall, monk fruit, as a natural, healthy, clean-label sweetener with obvious advantages, has established a firm foothold in the North American market and has broad application prospects. As consumer demand for healthy food continues to increase, monk fruit is expected to continue to gain a larger market share in the future.