Nestlé introduces Milkybar product with 30 percent less sugar

Product will hit shelves in the U.K., Ireland in coming weeks.

Nestlé has introduced Milkybar Wowsomes, the first chocolate using Nestlé’s restructured sugar designed to reduce its products’ sugar content by 30 percent.

Made with natural ingredients and no sweeteners, Milkybar Wowsomes will appear in the United Kingdom and Ireland in the coming weeks with the goal of meeting demand for better-for-you treats. Milk is the bar’s No. 1 ingredient, though it also has crispy oat cereal that serves as a source of fiber.

The sugar reduction comes thanks to a breakthrough Nestlé announced in 2016. Inspired by candy floss, the company created an aerated, porous sugar that dissolves more quickly in the mouth. This allows someone to perceive the same level of sweetness while consuming less sugar.

Nestlé teams in Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the Czech Republic took just over a year to turn the restructured sugar into a new product. Milkybar turned out to be a natural fit.

Launched in the United Kingdom in 1936, Milkybar is one of Nestlé’s most iconic chocolate brands. In 2007, it moved to all-natural ingredients. In 2017, milk became the main ingredient in the recipe. With the launch of Milkybar Wowsomes, the brand is offering an alternative with 30 percent less sugar.

Wowsomes will be available in single bars, multipacks and a stock-up bag with individually-wrapped pieces. It comes in two variants, white chocolate and a combined milk and white chocolate. While the sugar technology is the most obvious new development for the brand, this is also the first time in Milkybar’s history that it has contained both milk and white chocolate in the same bar.

Committed to advancing the nutrition and wholesomeness of its children’s confectionery, Nestlé says it plans to apply the sugar technology to other children’s chocolate brands. The goal is to reduce sugar content naturally while maintaining taste.

Nestlé began its sugar reduction initiative in 2000. Its first public commitment was to reduce sugars in a range of products by 10 percent between 2014 and 2016. Nestlé has pledged to further reduce the sugars in its products by 5 percent on average as part of a range of 2020 commitments.

Alyse Thompson has held many positions with BNP Media, first serving as an intern at Candy Industry Magazine in summer 2012. She joined Candy Industry's staff full time as associate editor in August 2016 after a few years at newspapers in West-Central Illinois, becoming managing editor in March 2019. Alyse has also served as managing editor of Cannabis Products Magazine since March 2019. She has bachelor’s degrees in journalism and Spanish from Western Illinois University.