German retailer Rewe has announced that Billa, Merkur and Adeg have launched a joint initiative that will raise consumer awareness of the conscious use of sugar.
From May 17 to June 30, customers of Billa, Merkur and Adeg can vote on the “sweet” taste and sugar content of a private label chocolate pudding online. The pudding comes in four variations of 85 grams each - the original recipe, -20%, -30% and -40% sugar.
The event will see approximately 400,000 sample sets be available across the three retailers. The goal is to be able to introduce a product that best combines conscious nutrition with pleasure for as many customers as possible. By the end of July at the latest, the voting winner will be on the shelves.
Losing Touch
As modern lifestyle has changed and resulted in more people eating outside of the home, people have lost track of which ingredients they consume on a daily basis, such as sugar.
Haraszti said, "We can not and do not want to patronise our customers with their diet. However, we want to provide with enjoyable incentives for a conscious diet and a new taste sensation, which allow our customers to decide for themselves.”
In addition to the online poll for the pudding, the three retail groups will also increase awareness of reduced-sugar and ‘no added sugar’ products. There will also be another survey where consumers will be asked what products they would want a sugar reduced variant of.
Rewe is hoping to reduce the sugar content of over 200 products. New products will have particular attention paid to their salt and sugar contents.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Aidan O'Sullivan. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
