Chocolate Buyer 2025

17 specialityfoodmagazine.com INDULGENCE EllenManning explores the history and opportunities within the confectionery sphere WHAT’S NEXT FOR INDULGENCE? seen as a demonstration of wealth, he told Confectionery & Chocolate Buyer , with Queen Elizabeth often having sugar banquets entirely consisting of sugar. “Everything was sugar, including the cutlery and crockery. And she’d be eating sugar plums, candied fruits, that kind of thing.” Confectionery, in part, was the result of needing to mix expensive sugar with other ingredients to make a more affordable treat, explains Buttery. But later, as Europe started producing more sugar it became less expensive, making it accessible to the masses, and heralding the launch of some of our best-known big-name brands, from Rowntree’s to Cadbury and Fry, as well as the likes of Mars in the US. From there, it’s no secret that confectionery became big business, no longer symbolising wealth but instead meaning comfort and indulgence. Even in the Boer War at the turn of the 20th Century, Buttery notes that Queen Victoria ordered Cadbury to send boxes of chocolates to soldiers at Christmas, explaining: “It wasn’t just a treat, it was a taste of home.” Present Fast forward over 100 years, and during the Covid lockdowns, artisan confectioners and chocolatiers noticed that same desire to lift people’s spirits by sending them something sweet. It’s something James Bridger of Hastings-based Coastal Cocoa noticed and says still hasn’t stopped – just now people have gone back to buying in person rather than online. Bridger started out focusing on truffles and bonbons, but soon realised that when it comes to indulgence, people don’t always need it to T here aren’t many people who don’t love a sweet treat. From chocolate to cakes, sweets and other sugar-laced goods, the confectionery market is a multi-billion pound global business. According to market research firm IBISWorld, the UK chocolate and confectionery market was worth £3.8bn in 2022. Our love of indulgent edible goods dates back centuries, and despite concerns that the cost-of-living crisis could see people cut back on their sweet treats, it’s likely that many of us will continue to turn to confectionery to get us through the tough times. Past The idea of sweet stuff as a treat dates right back to medieval times, explains Dr Neil Buttery, food historian and author of The Dark History of Sugar. From the early days when sugar arrived in the UK, confectionery and sweet treats became commonplace at the dinner tables of kings and lords. As well as being tasty, sugar was often be innovative. “In the chocolate world we all tend to focus a lot on innovation and coming up with things that are a little bit wild and out there. But I’ve got to say it’s the classics that pay the bills. We do try to innovate and come up with a new flavour each month to keep things interesting, but it’s those staples that people come back for again and again. Bars are a little bit less interesting to make but the truth is, people love chocolate bars. When you’re immersed in the chocolate world they may seem a little boring and traditional, but actually they’re classics for a good reason.” The oldies may be the more favoured, but that doesn’t stop people experimenting, says Albert Chau, general manager of London-based Fifth Dimension Chocolates. “Flavour-wise, we’re seeing an increasing trend with COMMENTATORS DR NEIL BUTTERY FOOD HISTORIAN ROSIE GINDAY MISS MACAROON ALBERT CHAU FIFTH DIMENSION CHOCOLATES JENNIFER EARLE CHOCOLATE ECSTASY TOURS JAMES BRIDGER COASTAL COCOA ANDREAS DIAKOU THE FINE HARVEST Changes in consumer preference are never just about flavour and taste