RESEARCH ORGANIC MARKET | EMERGING TRENDS

Emerging Confectionery Market Trends

Vreeland & Associates tracks emerging trends in the confectionery industry. The company  utilizes its extensive contacts with company senior officials, access to sales & marketing databases, and participation at conferences and trade shows.  Excerpts of Vreeland market trend reports printed in leading publications are posted below. These documents are provided in PDF format. You must have Adobe Acrobat Reader (free) to view them.  Full-text copies of these reports are available upon request.

Chocolate Spa Treatments
NYC Chocolate Show Review 2007
Functional Candy Market: 2007
Chocolate-Flavored Tea Review
Wine & Chocolate Review
Green Tea Flavored Confections
Spicy "Retro Aztec" Drinking Chocolate
Artisan Drinking Chocolate
Single Origin Chocolate
 

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Chocolate Spa Treatments
If Milton Hershey were alive today, he would be amazed at how his chocolate products have evolved. The maker of the Hershey Kiss --- which celebrated its 100th birthday last year --- would find spa patrons at his historic Hershey Hotel gleefully bobbling like marshmallows in bubbling vats of whipped cocoa.  Read how getting dipped can keep you fit, an article originally published in the International Spa Association's journal, The Pulse.
Full story: Chocolate Spa Treatments

NYC Chocolate Show Review
Exotic flavors, Starbucks-inspired coffee infusions, edible art and single origins reign at the 2007 NYC Chocolate Show.  Opium chocolate anyone? Read this in-depth show review.
Full story: Chocolate Show Review

Chocolate-Flavored Tea Review
Chocolate-flavored teas are a marriage between two healthy products; a concept of indulging without the calories. Originally published in the Spring 2007 issue of Tea Experience Digest magazine, this article describes the trend and lists suppliers.  
Full story: Chocolate-Flavored Tea Review (2,307 KB)

Green Tea Flavored Confections
Green tea (matcha) is a major flavor trend for premium confections. Read how this trend developed in Japan, was refined in France, and now has delicious derivatives in the U.S.  
Full story: Green Tea Flavored Confections (821 KB)

Spicy "Retro Aztec" Drinking Chocolate
The newest thing in drinking chocolate is also the oldest, thanks to a group of creative chocolatiers who are drawing from ancient Aztec and Mayan recipes to create an aromatic, pungent taste that's more jungle than drawing room.  Best of all, these new "retro Aztec" hot chocolates are readily available in select shops and online. 
Full story: Retro Aztec Drinking Chocolate (3,919 KB)

Artisan Drinking Chocolates
Drinking chocolate is hot! Made with rich, thick melted chocolate shavings, drinking chocolate has become a fashionable and sophisticated indulgence. Enterprising baristas have introduced chocolate beverages guaranteed to warm the heart. And who could fault Montezuma, who reportedly consumed 50 cups a day as his royal love potion #9?
Full story: Artisan Drinking Chocolate (477 KB)

Single Origin Chocolate
Which country grows the best cacao and who is making the best chocolate from these beans? Originally published in Pastry Arts & Design, this ground-breaking article answers both questions and includes eye-catching illustrations of the winning chocolate bars.  Full story: Single Origin (2739 KB)

Functional Candy Market: 2007
This commentary and analysis by Curtis Vreeland is included in the Nutrition Business Journal''s annual issue on functional foods.  NBJ's 31-page issue is available to non-subscribers for $249. Click here to order.

Excerpt from the article:
The precipitous contraction of the diet food market, caused by the collapse of the Atkins diet fad, has finally run its course. Sales of functional and diet confections for the most part have increased. In 2006, total sales of functional confections increased 1.8% to $1.5 billion, underperforming the 2.3% growth in the total confectionery market.  However, this modest increase reversed the prior year's 6.7% decline in functional confectionery sales.

Wine & Chocolate Review
So you already have been converted to the heavenly pairing of wine and chocolate. But there are a million types of chocolate and wine out there. How do you know what to choose? Can you really pair chocolate with Zinfandel?  The San Francisco Chocolate Factory has made this process easier by creating a set of specially blended chocolates to go with a half dozen wines. This review was originally published in the Spring 2007 issue of the New England Wine Gazette. Full story: Wine & Chocolate (70 KB)