Wild unveils new low-calorie soft drink formula

Wild said it had used its new 'less sugar' concept to produce a solution for fizzy drinks that contained 30-40 per cent less sugar and calories than regular fizzy soft drinks, yet without the need for artificial sweeteners.

"Through a technological adjustment of the raw materials allowing for a well-balanced sweet-sour ratio, these drinks taste refreshingly fruity, less sweet and pleasantly mild,"​ said Wild in a statement.

The firm said that some of the best flavours trialled were blood orange, pink grapefruit and passionfruit.

Christina Heinbockel, spokesperson for Wild, said the new solution would help soft drinks makers target growing demand for diet products. She added that the development also gave producers the chance to attract the many consumers who want to be more healthy but do not like the taste of artificial sweeteners.

Wild claims that low-calorie, fizzy soft drinks had grown six per cent in Europe last year and now have a market share of 13 per cent in this segment.

The major soft drinks firms, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Cadbury Schweppes, have all tried to push and improve their diet drinks ranges in both North America and Western Europe.

Such products have increasingly held up the carbonated drinks category as consumer health trends continue to dent sales of sugar-laced regular varieties.

Heinbockel said that cost savings for firms using the new Wild solution would vary depending on the amount and type of fruit juice used in the beverage.

She was unable to give away too much about the technology, but said the solution was created by altering the levels of different raw materials. The make-up of the solution changes depending on what fruit juice is used.

For more information see the Wild website​.