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Nestlé UK & Ireland cuts 2.6 billion teaspoons of sugar and more than 60 billion calories in just three years

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female scientist in a lab coat looking into a microscope 
 
  • 7.4% sugar reduction already achieved across Nestlé’s confectionery portfolio towards 10% pledge
     
  • Sanpellegrino is the latest brand to improve its recipe with a 40% sugar reduction in sparkling fruit based beverages


Click here to download the "Nestlé UK & Ireland: Contributing to a healthier future, 2018" report.

 

 

The amount of sugar in Nestlé’s UK and Irish products has been reduced by more than 2.6 billion teaspoons since 2015 thanks to an ongoing, intensive programme of innovation and reformulation.

A report, issued today by Nestlé, reveals that more than 60 billion calories have also been removed from Nestlé UK & Ireland’s portfolio in the same time period.

Last March, Nestlé announced that it had pledged to cut sugar across its confectionery portfolio by 10% by the end of 2018 and has already hit a reduction of 7.4% as of today.

Elsewhere, Nestlé breakfast cereals is also working hard to reduce average sugar by 10% across its portfolio by the end of the year while Nestlé Waters has, today, announced that Sanpellegrino sparkling fruit based beverages will see a 40% reduction in sugar in the coming months.

Two years of hard work behind the Sanpellegrino reformulation has meant that, following an initial 10% reduction of the total sugar content in 2015, the latest recipes will contain approximately 40% less sugar. The change, incorporating stevia to replace a proportion of the original added sugar, has been carefully managed to ensure that the unmistakeable taste remains and thorough taste tests have resulted in very positive feedback.

Stefano Agostini, CEO of Nestlé UK & Ireland said:

 

“Our work towards these achievements is actually as much about taste as it is about reducing sugar and calories. It is not as simple as just removing sugar from a product, the skill is in making that product taste just as good or, ideally, better. We have an unrivalled research and development network across the globe that makes this possible.

“People love our food and drink and our confectionery, cereals, ice creams and other products are enjoyed as part of a balanced, healthy diet by people all across the world. What we can do, through research and development, is improve them in both taste and nutrition over time.

“Sanpellegrino is very close to my heart, I was its President and CEO for 10 years and I love the brand. I can tell you that the reduced sugar fruit based drinks announced today taste every bit as good as the ones they are replacing and that is thanks to the hard work of our experts.”

Nestlé UK & Ireland’s report on the improvements made to its product portfolio carries commentary from senior leaders within its business as well as focusing on some of the biggest examples of reformulation to reduce sugar and calories in its famous brands over the last three years including KitKat, Milkybar, Cheerios and the latest changes to Sanpellegrino.

These developments are just the latest in Nestlé’s long history of reformulation and initiatives designed to improve products and contribute to a healthier future.

 

 ENDS

For more information, contact the Nestlé UK press office on 020 8667 6005
or alternatively email [email protected]

 

 

Notes to Editors:

  • The sugar and calorie reductions have been calculated over the last three years using the values from relevant businesses on an annualised basis. Tonnes of sugar removed are calculated as total sugars, not added sugar.
  • Nestlé UK and Ireland businesses included in the sugar reductions programmes and report comprise Nestlé Confectionery, Nestlé Food, Nestlé Beverages, Nestlé Waters, Cereal Partners UK, Lactalis Nestlé Chilled Dairy, Froneri.
  • Last year we announced that Nestlé confectionery was reducing sugar across its portfolio by 10%. That figure is already at 7.4%.  https://www.nestle.co.uk/media/pressreleases/stepping-up-to-the-sugar-challengeuk
  • Since our announcement last year we have added extra milk and cocoa to KitKat, made milk the number one ingredient in Milkybar and introduced 30% less sugar versions of Rowntree’s Randoms and Rowntree’s Fruit Pastilles.
     -   KitKat - https://www.nestle.co.uk/media/pressreleases/kitkataddsextra
     -   Milkybar - https://www.nestle.co.uk/media/pressreleases/milkybar_puts_milk_first
     -   Rowntree’s - https://www.nestle.co.uk/media/pressreleases/rowntrees-less-sugar-range
  • Last year, Nestlé cereals announced it would further reduce average sugar by 10% across its portfolio. https://www.nestle.co.uk/media/pressreleases/nestl-breakfast-cereals-to-reduce-a-further-10-of-sugar-by-end-of-2018
  • Providing clear nutritional information and guidance to help consumers make informed choices has been part of Nestlé’s products for a long time. We have displayed the full set of GDAs on our products in UK and Ireland since 2006 and adopted the UK Government’s colour coded front of pack labelling scheme on our wholly owned products when it was introduced in 2013.
  • Nestlé confectionery is in the process of rolling out a reclose function for multi-serve products and has introduced portion guidance information on all packs, to visually help consumers recognise responsible portion sizes.
  • Since 2014, all single serve confectionery products contain 250 calories or less per serving.
  • All of our confectionery products contain no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives. Even where we reduced sugars, we have stayed true to our commitment and have not used artificial sweeteners to reduce sugars or calories.
  • Sanpellegrino Sparkling Fruit Beverages started with a homemade, traditional recipe for delicious and thirst-quenching Aranciata. Since its inspiration in 1932, Sanpellegrino has produced its very own Sanpellegrino Aranciata, holding true to its authentic Italian origins and prepared with carefully selected ingredients of the utmost quality.
  • The brand offers a wide range of refreshing, citrus-based beverages including: Aranciata, Aranciata Rossa, Limonata, Pompelmo, Melograno e Arancia and Limone e Menta.
  • All leading supermarkets and independents stock Sanpellegrino Fruit Beverages, including, but not limited to; Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, ASDA, Morrisons, Co-Operative and Ocado, as well as many independent cafés and restaurants.