If fibre lacks sex appeal, it has no shortage of other redeeming features. Its benefits vary, but fibre is variously claimed to increase intestinal transit times, increase stool bulk, reduce 'bad' cholesterol, stimulate the growth of 'good' gut bacteria, keep blood glucose under control and even keep you feeling fuller for longer - and that's before you even consider its myriad technical properties.
But there are still communications challenges to overcome before fibre gets the credit it deserves, while uncertainty over which health claims will be allowed in Europe is also holding back progress.
On the plus side, however, there is now at least some legal clarity over what fibre is, with a new definition encompassing a swathe of 'fibre-like' ingredients including inulin and polydextrose now enshrined in EU legislation. Progress has also been made over standardising analytical methodology for fibre determination - something that has proved a bone of contention for years.
One thing not in dispute, however, is that most Europeans are not getting enough fibre, with UK consumers some of the worst offenders, notes Kellogg nutritionist Sara Collie. "Fibre is one true nutrient deficiency in the UK population, with 80% of people not consuming the required amount."
Whether they are as keen to do anything about it as some ingredients suppliers claim is a moot point, but attitudes are changing, she suggests: "Consumers used to have a single perception of fibre as brown, tasteless and only relevant to those who had a digestive problem. However, fibre is appearing in more and more foods that are also delivering taste and colours other than 'brown', therefore moving consumers on from previous associations of fibre."
While fibre might be undergoing something of an image makeover, however, terms such as 'wholegrain' tend to resonate more strongly with consumers in the UK, says Cereal Partners UK health & nutrition manager Melanie Billows: "While all our products are a source of fibre, we prefer to talk of the benefits of wholegrain, which keeps important nutrients such as fibre plus vitamins and minerals."
Kavan Ranasinghe from healthy and functional ingredients distributor DKSH agrees. "Just talking about fibre is not very sexy. We are seeing lots of interest in soluble fibres like beta-glucans, but that's because of their specific health benefits rather than people talking about fibre per se."
Likewise, Beneo Orafti's fibres inulin and oligofructose are showing double-digit growth, says marketing boss Tim van der Shraelen, but consumers are more interested in what they do than what they are: "people aren't ingredient-oriented; they want to hear about digestive health or whatever the benefit is, not about 'fibre'.
Generic claims about fibre could in any case be scuppered by the Nutrition and Health Claims Regulation, predicts Unilever senior scientist Dr David Mela. "The effects are highly dependent on the level and exact specification of the fibres and the food matrix. Not all fibres are the same, so I hope the European Food Safety Authority will exercise real caution in this area as it assesses health claims applications."
That said, the amount of caution EFSA has already shown over claims is not doing much for confidence levels in the trade right now, with many customers holding back on NPD projects until there is clarity over claims, says Sensus scientific and regulatory affairs boss Dr Diederick Meyer. "I'm confident claims about the prebiotic effects of inulin and oligofructose will be approved, but this Regulation has cast a bit of a gloomy cloud over the market."
Nicky Gillett, nutrition and health manager at Allied Bakeries, says clarity over health claims could provide fresh impetus. "There may be opportunities to use claims in a way that helps increase consumer understanding and prompt further emphasis as a purchase driver. The ability to tell consumers why they need fibre, rather than just how much a product contains, would be a major step forward."
Regulatory blues notwithstanding, most suppliers are upbeat about their prospects, however. Tate & Lyle, which makes polydextrose and Promitor resistant starches and soluble glucofibres, reckons the only way is up: "Fibre has got it all: technical benefits, sugar and fat reduction, nutrition claims and health claims."
In many cases of course, consumers are unwittingly enjoying the benefits of fibre without actually realising it. Inulin and oligofructose, for example, are most widely used for calorie reduction and fat/sugar replacement - and increasingly for prebiotic, satiety and calcium absorption claims - in addition to fibre enrichment.
Polydextrose - another soluble fibre - has also traditionally been more associated with sugar/fat replacement and calorie reduction, although it has "reinvented itself" in recent years and is now embraced by manufacturers interested in making low-glycaemic index (low GI), prebiotic and general fibre enrichment claims as well, says Michael Bond business director, functional fibres, at Danisco. On a practical level, Danisco's Litesse polydextrose has enjoyed double-digit-growth partly because it is so easy to use, adds Bond. "It's clear in a solution, colourless, virtually tasteless and stable."
At National Starch, which makes Hi Maize resistant starch - a highly versatile prebiotic fibre, there has been strong growth in bakery, where its 'invisibility' means it can be added to white bread undetected, although it is also growing in cakes, biscuits, cereals, pasta and pizza bases where firms want to improve the nutritional profile of their products or make technical improvements.
But communication strategies vary, says Pauline Taggart at National Starch: "In Hispanic markets, where there is a high incidence of diabetes, the 'controlling blood sugar peaks' message works well, while Nordic countries like to talk about a balance of fibres for digestive health."
Syral, which markets a prebiotic soluble fibre from sucrose under the Actilight brand, is also seeing strong demand from customers in dairy, cereals, confectionery and bakery who are impressed by the results they can achieve at low doses. "You can get prebiotic effects with 2.5g a day. But you can eat 10g without digestive problems."
Roquette sells the Nutriose range of fibres, which are completely soluble in water, have a neutral taste and remain stable at a low pH, unlike inulin. The firm is seeing strong demand for applications from sugar replacement in bakery and confectionery to fibre enrichment in beverages and white bread - where Nutriose can boost fibre content without compromising taste or appearance, says marketing boss Emily Lauwaert. "It is also very well tolerated."
Communicating the benefits of fibre
At Warburtons there has been a concerted effort to talk more about fibre, says regulatory expert Jill Charlton. However, more specialised products such as the 'Fibre Boost' loaf (which has 50% more fibre than a wholemeal loaf) and the 'Healthy Inside' loaf (which has added prebiotic fibre) are more niche, she says."We've also worked hard to make sure high fibre doesn't affect eating quality by adding molasses and malt flour as well if we are adding wheat fibre. But it's hard to decide what messaging to use as I'm not sure consumers really distinguish between wholemeal, wholegrain, wheat germ, multigrain etc."
Jordans Cereals product development manager Kirsten Hoskisson, meanwhile, has been focusing on making fibre "light eating and tasty, so we've launched a high-fibre muesli that isn't hard work for people by using toasted rye flakes, wheat flakes, oats and barley, plus apples, apricots and dates. We've looked at making prebiotic, low-Gi or satiety claims based on fibre, but decided this didn't fit in with our brand"
Talking technical
But health claims are not the be all and end all, says Lars Erik Hansson, business manager for Nordic Sugar's sugar beet-based fibre Fibrex, which contains two-thirds insoluble fibre and one third soluble fibre. In fact, many firms are primarily interested in the technical benefits of fibre, he says.
"The focus for Fibrex historically has been on moisture retention and fibre enrichment in bakery, but more recently, we have also had success in foods such as frozen burgers because it prevents shrinkage as the product is cooking - it stops water and juice exiting. We also have customers using it in cereals as it reinforces flakes and prevents them breaking up into the crumbs you end up leaving at the bottom of the pack."
S Black development technologist Jon Arzberger is also evangelical about fibre's technical benefits. "You can use wheat or citrus fibre in crackers and crisp breads to stop them shattering, or to increase hydration in pasta fillings, or to reduce breakage in dry pasta. Fibre also makes cheese easier to grate and slice and increases yield and succulence in meats and sausages due to its liquid-holding properties."
Adding fibre to coatings on chicken or potato products also stops fat migrating into the filling and helps produce a crisper, dryer product, he says. It can also have clean-label benefits: "Adding 'vegetable fibre' to your ingredients list instead of carrageenan, HPMC [hydroxypropylmethylcellulose] or phosphates is much more consumer-friendly."
There is also growing interest in adding fibre to sauces to prevent oil collecting on the top, he adds. "You don't want to buy a jar of pesto with an oil slick on the top." For products like brioche, oat fibre can also give extra butteriness/egginess as well as improving moisture retention, while apple fibre can give cakes a richer, moister look, he says. But more education is needed: "If you just go in and talk about adding fibre to a sauce, manufacturers are not very interested, but as soon as they see what it can do from a technical viewpoint, they change their minds." FIHN