The move follows a growing trend of food and drink firms reformulating their products to contain less sugar in light of the government’s childhood obesity plan and the 2018 tax on sugary drinks.
Sugar levels in the yogurts will be reduced to 9.9g per 100g – which would be below the average for flavoured yogurts – said Yoplait.
Petit Filous big pots will also be reformulated, with sugar levels expected to fall to 8.4g per pot. The level of vitamin D in the yogurts will increase from 25% to 50% of nutrient reference value.
Less sweet taste
Marketing director Richard Williams claimed that Yoplait had been reducing the sugar in its products for the past 10 years, so that customers would become more accustomed to a less sweet taste.
“However, we know our work is not yet done, and we are continuing to work hard to explore further ways to reduce sugar even more,” added Williams.
“At the same time [we must ensure] our products not only taste great but also maintain our goodness guarantee of using 100% naturally sourced ingredients and no artificial sweeteners.”
The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) told FoodManufature.co.uk Yoplait’s reformulations were the latest development in a long running trend.
“For many years now, food and drink manufacturers have been removing salt, fat and sugar from recipes while ensuring that consumers continue to love the taste of their favourite products,” said FDF corporate affairs director Tim Rycroft.
‘Costly and time consuming’
“Getting reformulation right is often costly and time-consuming but our industry is committed to doing the right thing.”
This month also saw retailers Tesco and Waitrose reformulate their products in a bid to offer consumers healthier choices.
Tesco reduced the sugar content in all of its own-label soft drinks to less than 5g per 100ml, a move welcomed by Diabetes UK ceo Chris Askew.
Waitrose made a similar move, choosing to lower the sugar content of its own-label breakfast cereals.
A total 27 of Waitrose’s cereals had their average sugar content cut by 15%, with some products – such as bran flakes – falling by 30%.