Will just one Cornetto be enough? Ice creams are shrunk to hit calorie cap
MAGNUMS and Cornettos are to shrink in size in order to bring them into line with healthy eating guidelines.
Unilever, the consumer goods company, will also cut down Ben & Jerry’s single serving tubs, which will be reduced by a third in volume but with only a quarter off the price, the trade journal The Grocer reported.
Other ice cream products to be trimmed down include the Chocolate Feast, which is losing 2ml, and the Magnum Almond, which will drop from 110ml to 100ml.
The 274-calorie Magnum Infinity Chocolate and Cornetto Choc ’N’ Ball will be scrapped.
The changes are expected to take effect in the spring as part of the company’s sustainable living strategy, which includes a 250-calorie cap for single serving ice creams.
Noel Clarke, Unilever UK and Ireland’s executive director of brand building, said: “We have introduced this 250-calorie cap to help make it easier for our consumers to make informed and healthier choices when enjoying their favourite ice creams as part of a balanced lifestyle.”
The company is likely to face criticism for increasing the relative price of its products in the name of a health drive. However, Mr Clarke said shoppers would “appreciate” the company’s goals and “buy more” if necessary.
Yesterday Kellogg’s said that it would reduce the amount of sugar in its products after suffering a £6 million sales slump. Sugar levels in Frosties and Coco Pops are among the highest in cereals sold in Britain at 37 per cent and 35 per cent respectively.
The company would not specify how much sugar would be cut from each product, but said it would remove 723 tons from all its cereals in 2016. The two brands have suffered a combined sales loss of £5.8 million, with Coco Pops falling £3.7 million and Frosties down £2.1 million, industry experts said.
The UK cereals market took a hit in the backlash against sugar last year, with sales down £71 million. Kellogg’s is the latest in a series of retailers and supermarkets to cut sugar from their products as the Government attempts to control obesity.
Coca-Cola and Pepsi have reportedly vowed to cut sugar consumption by a fifth. This month Waitrose announced plans to cut nearly two tons of sugar from its own-label cereals.
David Cameron said he had not ruled out introducing a sugar tax, and the NHS has said it will impose its own “sugar tax” on food sold in hospitals and health centres. A Kellogg’s spokesman told The Grocer it had more testing to do and some “technical barriers to overcome”.
In 2004 it launched Reduced Sugar Frosties with 25 per cent sugar, but scrapped it after disappointing sales.
Gareth Maguire, Kellogg’s commercial director for cereals, said: “That was a sugar reduction too soon. Consumers were not ready for it. We think the situation has now changed.”