The rising cost of Erythritol is becoming a major problem in our keto world. Why? Because it is the most popular sugar alcohol used as a sweetener in the world. Today I’m going to look at why Erythritol is spiking in price and how this sweet addition to our daily lifestyle is beginning to overtake Stevia as the number one sugar substitute in the world. Especially in the keto space.
THE POPULARITY OF ERYTHRITOL
Sugar alcohol Erythritol (ih-rith-ri-tawl) has many of the benefits of plant-based sweeteners but has a much smoother aftertaste making it a popular choice in desserts. It has zero calories, registers at about 70% of the sweetness of sugar, does not affect the blood sugar, and comes with none of the tooth decay associated with sugar.
Erythritol is a popular choice in the sugar alcohol world for the above reasons and has very few side effects. It’s primarily absorbed by the small intestine and passed through the body mainly unchanged. Other popular alcohol-based sweeteners such as maltitol make it to the large intestine which can cause stomach upset.
WHY WE’RE WRITING ABOUT THE COST OF ERYTHRITOL?
While doing some research for a product by the No Sugar Company their website points to problems they’re having with Erythritol pricing rising at a rate cutting into their bottom line. This makes it difficult to keep pricing the same. Let’s face it, keto treats are expensive as is due to the quality ingredients, if the preferred sweetener gets out of control, we won’t be able to afford to eat.
Erythritol production started in Japan in the 90s and has been approved for human consumption in over 60 countries. Since that time keto and low carb diets have seen a major increase. Also, there is a new awareness of sugar’s toxic effect for those suffering from things like diabetes and illness associated with foods high on the glycemic index.
IS THE COST OF ERYTHRITOL RISING DUE TO SHORTAGE?
Based on what I just said you could chalk this up to simple economics. Supply and demand. If there is more demand than supply the price tends to go up. Simple right? Not so much.
The demand has been steadily growing since the 90s and companies have had no issue from a production standpoint. Costs stayed within normal inflation and the world was a happy place. Even through COVID based shortages everything flowed well. Then the wheels fell off.
In 2021 the cost of erythritol doubled. Let me say that again… doubled. This is after COVID and the global supply crash. Production facilities claim the demand became so great within that one year they had to cancel many global contracts and basically supply the highest bidder. The funny part is we can’t really find out who that highest bidder is.
WITH THE COST OF ERYTHRITOL RISING WHERE IS IT GOING?
The next question is: where is all this erythritol going if companies have upped production? I can’t seem to find out. I’m not a business researcher, but I was a reporter for many years and quite good at getting to the bottom of a story. However, this one is a big unsolvable.
One industry expert told Food Navigator the unease of the ability to get Erythritol and the rising cost has created a “dumpster fire” for those needing it. When we on a consumer standpoint must pay six to seven times the cost of sugar for a sweetener that betters our life, that too creates a “dumpster fire.”
IS IT A CONSPIRACY?
There are two ways to look at this issue and neither are easy. Is this a masterful conspiracy from “Big Sugar” that is hoarding all the erythritol to price alternative foods out of the market? There is really no evidence to support that except chocolate giant Hersey has released statements saying they have a constant and steady supply. However, they did switch over to erythritol for their zero sugar products in 2016.
As I’m not really into conspiracy theories I will fall back on simple economics. Supply and demand. Obviously, the demand has grown to the point companies can’t keep up. But instead of throwing our hands in the air and getting mad we should be using this data preach the lesson it’s teaching us.
The world is ready for a change. If a sugar alternative is exploding to the point where private companies can’t keep up’ the tide is obviously shifting. I’m not saying the cost of erythritol exploding is a good thing, but it does show the climate is right to show the world a new healthy lifestyle. We just need the right people to listen.
We can’t seem to change the food guide based on obvious medical data so maybe appealing to the money side of government will make the difference. Unfortunately, it often does. I guarantee if sugar alternatives became the staple of our diets the cost would bottom out just like sugar.
I’m off the change the world now. Bill
