Dairy Milk cuts the sugar
‘30% less’ bar to offer fans a guilt-free treat
GOBBLING down a bar of chocolate has always been accompanied by a certain amount of guilt for those of us watching our waistline.
But from the middle of next year, the health-conscious can feel a little bit happier about tucking into a bar of Dairy Milk – after the introduction of a version with 30 per cent less sugar.
Cadbury has slashed the sugar content of the nation’s favourite bar, changing the recipe for the first time in more than 100 years. Fans of the original, however, have no need to fear as Cadbury, which is owned by Mondelez, will continue to produce it.
Glenn Caton, president of Mondelez’s Northern Europe division, said the new bar was ‘being offered as an alternative to, not a replacement for Dairy Milk’. He added: ‘It’s like Coke, Diet Coke, Coke Zero. Cadbury Dairy Milk doesn’t change, people love it.
‘I’m not a clairvoyant but I’d imagine original Dairy Milk will always be on the shelves.’
The sugar removed has not been replaced by artificial sweeteners – a process which often leads to a slightly less sweet treat. Instead, a form of a naturally occurring fibre will be used to bulk out the other ingredients and retain the chocolate’s signature grainy structure.
A team of 20 nutritionists and scientists in Reading and Cadbury’s Bournville research labs have been working on the topsecret recipe for nearly two years.
The ingredient change, however, is likely to be controversial. In 2015, the firm changed the recipe for Creme Eggs, by removing Dairy Milk chocolate from the egg. The firm later claimed this was to give the eggs their original recipe.
But the lower sugar bar, which has broadly the same calorific content as the original, will not be marketed as a healthier alternative. Mr Caton said: ‘We don’t think the demonization of sugar is appropriate in a context of overall diet and health concerns. It’s much more complex than that – exercise and calories out is just as important as calories in. Sugars aren’t the driver of obesity.’
And if the newer version proves to be a hit, it could soon be applied to other Dairy Milk products.