New Study – Lack of Calorie Reduction in Baked Goods and Breakfast Cereals with Sugars Claims in Canada

A new study by Wang et al. published in Frontiers in Nutrition examines the use of sugars-related nutrient content claims in baked goods and breakfast cereals in Canada. The Mintel Global New Product Database was used to analyze sugars reduction strategies and their impact on calorie and macronutrient content in these products. 

Baked goods and breakfast cereals were selected as two major sources of grains in the diet and as foods where sugars play versatile functional roles, creating technical challenges to achieve sugars reduction. As a result, these are important food categories to assess sugars reformulation trends and strategies. This cross-sectional analysis focused on sugars-related nutrient content claims with respect to changes in energy and nutrient composition, and the list of ingredients, to better understand reformulation outcomes and to track market trends in the future.

Key Findings: 

• Despite reductions in sugars, there was no significant difference in average Calorie content between products with sugars claims and non-reformulated reference products (see examples below). 
  • 49% of “no added sugars” products, 27% of "sugar-free" products, and 23% of "lower/reduced in sugar" products had higher Calories than their reference products. 
  • “Unsweetened" baking ingredients had significantly more Calories, mainly due to higher fat content. 
• To maintain taste, texture, and structure, sugar alcohols, dietary fibres, non-nutritive sweeteners and starch were commonly used as substitutes for added sugars in claim products. 

Key Takeaways: 

• Sugars claims may potentially be misleading to consumers, as they expect these products to be lower in Calories. 
• Food manufacturers are encouraged to reformulate products to have an improved overall nutrition profile rather than focusing solely on sugars reduction. 
• Enhancing consumer education on the entire food package, including the List of Ingredients and Nutrition Facts table, can help individuals to better understand the complete nutrition profile of food products and make informed food choices aligned with their dietary needs and preferences.  

Read the study here: 

• Wang, YF, et al. Disconnection between sugars reduction and calorie reduction in baked goods and breakfast cereals with sugars-related nutrient content claims in the Canadian marketplace. Front Nutr. 2025; doi: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1539695

Study findings were previously presented as research posters at health professional conferences: 

• Dietitians of Canada National Conference (May 25-26, 2023; Montreal, QC) 
• Canadian Nutrition Society Annual Conference (May 6-7, 2023; Quebec City, QC)

Also see: 

• Reading Food Labels: New Changes to Sugars-Related Claims 
• CSI Webpage: Nutrition Labelling and Claims