Why will fruit juices sold in supermarkets soon be less sweet?

The fruit juice section will undergo a big change in terms of composition. An agreement was in fact concluded on Tuesday January 30 concerning the labeling of certain breakfast products between the Council and the European Parliament. This European regulation mainly concerns three types of products: pure juices, juices from concentrate and nectars.

In order to better work the composition of fruit juices, the two institutions voted for new regulations which aim to classify fruit juices according to their sugar levels. Three categories are provided to differentiate each type of drink: on the one hand “reduced sugar fruit juices”, on the other “reduced sugar fruit juices based on concentrate” and finally “fruit juices with concentrated reduced sugar”. But what does this standard consist of? Find out what to remember about this novelty that affects the world of fruit juice.

Behind this new regulation (the first in 12 years in the sector), lies a desire by the public authorities to limit sugar consumption among French people. Indeed, to fight against obesity, diabetes and even cardiovascular diseases, it is important to limit your sugar consumption.

If sweeteners are banned to preserve the fruit juice designation, producers will now be able to use other alternatives to compensate for the lack of sweet taste. Various methods are in fact considered: addition of coconut water, membrane filtration or even yeast fermentation, all of these technologies are innovative but have a certain cost.

Fortunately, this work on the composition side will allow so-called “light” products to be better rated by Nutriscore, explains Emmanuel Vasseneix, president of the professional organization for the fruit juice and nectars sector.

To show this change, a modified label will be placed on the products. Instead of reading “no added sugar”, we can find the words “contains only naturally present sugars”. This new standard is similar to what is already done for jams.