Why is healthier food and drink reformulation so challenging?

New research from the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) and Argon & Co, published in ‘Operational realities of healthier product innovation’, surveyed 16 UK food and drink manufacturers. Every large manufacturer that answered had invested at least £100,000 in healthier innovation, and three had spent between £5 million and £10 million in 2025 alone.

The commitment is clear, but results are harder to come by: 69% of respondents had products that failed to reach launch, and only 13% said healthier innovation had a consistent positive impact on profitability. So, what is making healthier reformulation so complex?

One ingredient… but several jobs

Production costs in food and drink manufacturing have been steadily climbing for years. Energy, labour and ingredients have all become more expensive. Margins have tightened as a result, and every ingredient in a recipe now has to justify its cost.

That leaves little room for nice-to-haves or ingredients that are not absolutely necessary. Manufacturers have spent years streamlining their recipes, and most of the ingredients that remain are expected to do more than one job, often covering what would once have taken two. The clean recipe trend has pushed this further, as brand owners work to cut the total number of ingredients on the pack.

 So, when a formulator reduces or removes one ingredient, multiple functions can go with it. Sugar is the obvious example. In a biscuit, it sweetens, but it also adds bulk, controls moisture, helps the surface brown in the oven and gives the bite its familiar crunch. Reduce or remove it, and the dough handles differently, the colours appear different when baked, and the finished biscuit may soften faster on the shelf. Fat works in a similar way. It binds, carries flavour, creates a smooth mouthfeel and shapes the texture of everything from pastry to chocolate. Lower-fat product versions often taste thinner and feel drier unless something else fills the gap.

 Adding ingredients brings its own complications. Extra protein can make a snack bar harder and chewier as it ages, and some proteins bring flavour off-notes. Fibre meanwhile can absorb water, change how a dough behaves and alter mouthfeel. A nutritionally fortified snack still has to be something people enjoy eating at a price they are willing to pay.

 The checklist after the recipe

Even a recipe that works in the development kitchen has more hurdles to clear. Is the replacement ingredient available in volume, at consistent quality and a workable cost? Does the product still qualify for specific health and nutrition claims the brand wants to make? How will the label change? Will it run on existing equipment and hold its quality for the full shelf life?

The FDF report describes one manufacturer that had to install a new dust-extraction system after a lower-sugar recipe caused unexpected problems on the line. Another put the cost of a single round of consumer testing at up to £120,000.

When shoppers say no

All of that development work counts for little if shoppers don’t buy the product again.

The report found that 63% of respondents had seen reduced consumer acceptance of products reformulated for healthier nutritional profiles. In a case study shared by Mondelēz International, Cadbury Dairy Milk 30% Less Sugar took three years and more than 20 scientists to develop. Sales started well, then declined, and the product was eventually withdrawn in 2023.

People buy familiar products for familiar reasons. Change too much, and they move on, sometimes to a less healthy alternative.

A better way to approach reformulation

Manufacturers can reduce the risks of reformulation by:

• Setting clear objectives. Decide early which nutritional target is the priority and which product qualities cannot change.

• Understanding ingredient functionality first. Map what each ingredient does before removing or replacing it, so knock-on effects show up clearly and early.

• Talking to suppliers sooner. Ingredient suppliers see how different solutions perform across many applications and can suggest options an in-house development team may not have tried.

• Testing in real conditions. Trial at production scale, across the full shelf life and with real consumers, before committing to launch.

At ACI Group, we work with manufacturers at that early stage, helping them understand which ingredients are available, how they behave and the trade-offs each option brings. 

A healthier reformulation succeeds when it improves the product’s nutritional profile without losing the qualities that made people choose it in the first place. To talk through options for your next reformulation project, get in touch with the ACI team.