Mars Tackles Ultraprocessed Food Regulation, GLP-1 Effects on Consumption
Ultraprocessed food regulation and the effects of GLP-1 medications worry most food & beverage processors, and Mars Inc. is undoubtedly in the front lines.
Having just arrived from a company update on GLP-1s that morning, the subject was fresh in the mind of Andrew Clarke, global president of Mars Snacking, who spoke at this week’s Wall Street Journal Food Forum.
“We know that people on these medications are consuming hundreds of fewer calories per day,” said the Wall Street Journal reporter interviewing Clarke. “What has Mars learned about the habits of these consumers?”
“The penetration of GLP-1 in the U.S. is around about 12% at the moment; we expect that to increase to around 20%,” said Clarke. With the arrival of oral pills and the expiration of some patents, those numbers should increase, he said.
“We've done a lot of longitudinal analysis over cohorts of six months at a time, 60,000 consumers at a time, following that across two years to see those trends. What happens in terms of what they buy, what happens with their calories, do they stay on GLP-1, do they come off GLP-1?
“Actually, we see this as an opportunity. Rather than seeing these challenges as threats, how do we face into them and innovate? There are some really good positive trends. For example, our gum portfolio serves a maybe slightly unexpected need for consumers from dry mouth.” Same for the company’s mints.
“Consumers want smaller bites, nutritionally dense bites. So we're quite good at adjusting our portfolio in those senses,” he continued. “And we're seeing, of course, more fiber and more protein required. So we've got some great products in the portfolio there.”
And Mars’ recent commitment to being a global snack leader might be an asset, not a liability.
“If you look at what's really happening with GLP-1, yes, calories are coming down, but actually snacking occasions are going up,” Clarke continued. “There are less formal meal occasions. There's less eating out. 55% of consumers are snacking three or more times a day, and that's up 9% since 2021. So there's more snacking occasions. We just need to adapt the portfolio to what the consumer is looking for.”
On to the other elephant in most rooms, Clarke was asked if Mars would support a federal definition of ultraprocessed foods (UPFs).
“We would prefer a federal approach,” he said. “It's very complex for any business to have to deal state by state. So federal would be better. And helping the consumer as well, at the end of the day, to really understand both the science and the regulatory and what they can trust. It's highly confusing if it's state by state.”
A component of the UPF debate is the use of synthetic colors. “Mars made a commitment last year to roll out naturally colored versions of several different products this year, M&M, Skittles, others,” the moderator said. “Other companies have gone further and pledged to remove them altogether. Do you plan to remove artificial colors throughout your entire portfolio?”
Clarke answered, “We said that we will remove the FD&C colors in line with the time scale, so end of 2027 into '28. This is not straightforward, though. This is a big challenge. Back to Skittles and M&Ms, their proposition is based on multicolors, six colors at a minimum. And the research we've done [says] the consumer wants that rainbow of colors. Finding different solutions that are food safe in the quantities that we need … is no straightforward task.”
He was asked, “Are American consumers really going to settle for slightly duller versions of their favorite candies?”
“Well, our challenge to the R&D teams and the science teams is to make sure that you can't notice a difference,” Clarke answered. “But as you can imagine, that's not straightforward.”
A school nutrition director in the audience asked when “cleaner” versions of Pop-Tarts, meeting new federal requirements for subsidized meal programs, would arrive.
“I'm pleased to tell you that, literally in the last few weeks, we are now shipping the new version [of Pop-Tarts], which is FD&C approved with the non-artificial colors and the right fiber content. So that's good news.”
About the Author
Dave Fusaro
Editor in Chief
Dave Fusaro has served as editor in chief of Food Processing magazine since 2003. Dave has 30 years experience in food & beverage industry journalism and has won several national ASBPE writing awards for his Food Processing stories. Dave has been interviewed on CNN, quoted in national newspapers and he authored a 200-page market research report on the milk industry. Formerly an award-winning newspaper reporter who specialized in business writing, he holds a BA in journalism from Marquette University. Prior to joining Food Processing, Dave was Editor-In-Chief of Dairy Foods and was Managing Editor of Prepared Foods.