The demand for foods that not only taste good but also promote health continues to grow. Döhler's range includes a wide spectrum of ingredients that can be used to make confectionery, baked goods and snacks that strengthen the immune system and intestinal health.

Once again in 2023, many people have set themselves the goal of following a healthier, more balanced diet. Most consumers expect more from food and beverages than just naturalness and good taste: They want the right diet which has a positive effect on their long-term health and general well-being. Demand is constantly rising for products that support certain vital functions or aspects of health, such as the immune system, gut and heart health, or cognitive performance. There has also been a drop in consumption of animal products, with more and more consumers choosing plant-based options.

The ideal combination of appearance, scent, taste and mouthfeel remains a crucial factor in successful, healthy and natural food. The first impression that consumers get of a product is the colour. It triggers associations, expectations and emotions, thus influencing the purchasing decision by affecting the consumer’s perception of the product’s naturalness, flavour and sweetness. Oil-dispersed colouring concentrates enable the creation of end applications that evoke exactly these emotions. Thanks to the homogeneous distribution of the concentrates in the end application, pralines, coatings, fillings and fat-based glazes and decorations can all be coloured evenly and intensively.

Doehler’s oil-dispersed colouring concentrates are also free of emulsifiers. On this basis, the colours can be mixed in any ratio required, in order to achieve the “perfect” shade for individual customer requirements. High-performance glazes and polishes give the products the desired shine and surface.

Less sugar, full taste: Consumers are looking for low-sugar and sugar-free products that support their healthy lifestyle while also being enjoyable and indulgent. Producers are therefore working on new, optimized recipes that contain less sugar and offer a balanced taste profile.

Yet, even 30 % less sugar in a product means that its taste needs to be compensated. But simply replacing the sugar with sweetener is not enough: The entire taste profile needs to be harmonized and balanced in terms of sweetness, mouthfeel, body sensation and the experience of freshness. With its extensive portfolio of taste modulation products, Doehler offers contemporary sweetening, flavour and clean label solutions, plus all-in-one solutions for healthy products with an outstanding sensory profile. The company is aided in this by its modular system of different natural flavour solutions with regard to sweetness, masking, mouthfeel, taste enhancement and multi-sensory profile for food that promises full indulgence and comprehensively meets consumers’ quality expectations.

Pure, authentic, fresh and delicious – that is what food and beverages should taste like. The demand is growing for natural products that are processed as little as possible, have good nutritional value and provide a fresh, authentic taste. With its extensive portfolio of natural fruit and vegetable ingredients, Doehler offers a huge number of options for meeting exactly these requirements.

Infused fruits and infused vegetables are versatile products that give foods a fresh, juicy fruit taste. They can be used for a broad range of applications, particularly in the baked goods and ice cream segments. Infused fruits and vegetables have enormous benefits for the baked goods industry in particular, as they remain significantly more stable when baked than air-dried fruits and have a better nutritional value than candied fruits.

As well as retaining the natural fruit structure and natural taste in an outstanding way, they can also achieve a concentrated taste and colour effect thanks to enrichment with named fruit juice concentrates, flavours and colour concentrates. Infused fruits and vegetables are also ideal for clean label positioning.

Consumers expect far more from food and beverages than just naturalness and a good taste: 60 % of consumers worldwide are proactively looking for products that improve their health. Alongside foods and beverages with balanced macronutritional values regarding their sugar, fat, or protein content, consumers are increasingly looking for products that boost aspects of their health, such as the immune system, gut health, or the body’s energy resources. Natural products, rich in phytoactive substances, are excellent at catering to these needs. Minimal processing retains the valuable ingredients of the “Natural SuperHeroes”.

Consumer awareness and demand for functional foods that promote gut health is increasing all the time. With its comprehensive portfolio of phytoactive and natural “GutHealth-Heroes” ingredients, Doehler offers the basis for developing numerous foods that support exactly this positioning. One example is the Gut-HealthHeroe Baobab, a 100 % organic fruit powder made from the baobab fruit, which grows in Africa and is extracted sustainably. Naturally dried, the powder is rich in micronutrients and soluble fibres. It promotes the targeted growth of good gut bacteria, thus supporting gut health.

Probiotic bacteria can maintain or restore a balanced microbiome and thus have a positive impact on various physiological functions, such as inhibiting the growth of pathogenic bacteria in the gut. These numerous health benefits also positively affect the modulation of the body’s immune system. The positive properties of probiotics are therefore not limited to the gut, but boost general health.

Combining probiotics with fruit granules is an innovative form of consumption. Colourful crunchies, for example, offer an authentic fruit taste and contain live probiotic cultures. The granulates can also be easily processed into numerous foods such as cereal bars.