The irony of the market is that one of the sectors that has innovated the most at Christmas in recent years is also one of the most traditional: the nougat sector. Perhaps we could debate whether all of his new creations should be called ‘nougat’; However, what is undeniable is that manufacturers have decided to get rid of prejudices by trying new tastes. In the last few years, tablets with shocking flavors such as black beer, plankton, french fries, ham, pine, popcorn or strawberry with gin have rolled off the production lines. And this is very long and first of all among various etc.

Interestingly, the headaches this Christmas are caused by one of its most traditional ingredients: cocoa.

unlimited nougat. Gone are the days when there were only a handful of nougat flavors on supermarket shelves. Sweet lovers are lucky today. In an apparent effort to refresh their image and seasonally adjust demand, nougat producers have made an (almost) 180-degree turn in their strategy. And this largely involved combining its traditional offering with new launches, innovating with flavors far from the traditional variety, and seeking alliances with recognizable names and brands in the industry, from multinationals (Lay’s, Chupa-Chups, or Donuts) to chefs like Dabid Muñoz. or Albert Adrià.

An ongoing obsession. The industry’s passion for crazy flavors is not new. In fact, interest in “various nougats” in Spain dates back at least to the 19th century, or even the 18th century, when it began to be explored with meat varieties. But last Christmas the catalog expanded with options like potato nougat, pine, Chupa-Chups, Donettes, popcorn, chocolate with churros, ham… And that’s among a long list that continues to grow.

El Almendro and Estrella Galicia recently joined forces to expand their catalog with black beer nougat. It may be shocking, but it’s just one example of the race to stand out in a market that’s becoming increasingly competitive with more supply. Vicens also boasts of having a nougat with its Damm beer, El Almendro has supplemented its offer with other new products such as Donettes nougat or “Monopoly” nougat, and tablets with various flavors such as saffron rice, plankton have been released. Fair apple or Cocoa, which reflects the interest in other branches of the industry as the Christmas dessert becomes more widespread.

Cocoa spoils the party. Ironically, it was another, much more traditional ingredient that disrupted the industry this year: cocoa. And that’s because of its cost. Immersed in the spiral of searching for new flavors, nougat producers encountered another spiral: rising chocolate prices due to the worst “cocoa crisis” in recent years. We’ve talked to you about this many times over the past few months, but now, at Christmas, it’s one of the times of greatest demand and it’s become even more important.

A few days ago, Delaviuda’s manager, Isabel Sánchez, said in an interview: Country He said “the industry is doing everything possible” to ensure that the impact of the increase in cocoa prices on end consumers is “minimal” and warned: “If producers had not taken a role, we are talking about a minimum increase of 50% for all products”.

“It will fall a little bit”. This statement comes from Manuel Sánchez, executive chairman of the DosHermanos nougat, who in a conversation with Europa Press warns about the foreseeable impact of the increase in cocoa costs. “Chocolate will drop a little this year due to the price, because it has really increased a lot. It is noticeable, but it is a temporary situation, and I predict that next year it will stabilize again and return to normal sales.” To be more precise, Europa Press details that chocolate nougat has skyrocketed by “30 to 40%” due to the cost of cocoa.

bitter note. The increase in chocolate prices comes at a particularly sweet time for the industry, which believes it will have a good Christmas after many campaigns that have been overshadowed by inflation. “There is a lot of optimism,” Rubén Moreno, secretary general of the Spanish Ducel Association (Produlce), admitted to Efe last week.

Although the group admits that it is too early to share exact figures, it expects turnover to grow by around 4%, with a balanced development between sales volume and value. Chocolate products were once again given a negative rating due to the “historically high levels” of raw material costs.

Note this: redflation. Producers aren’t the only ones sharing their feelings and predictions for Christmas 2024. Facua published a report in early November in which it warned of another incident this Christmas: redflationwhich is a combination of “discount” and “inflation” and represents another form of rising commodity prices. Instead of revising prices upwards, manufacturers maintain their sales rates by reducing the size and quantity of the product they sell. Result: same price, but for less product.

Facua’s warning focused on Christmas desserts, with particular emphasis on those made with chocolate. For example, the association referenced a chocolate nougat from the Suchard march. According to their data, the price of the tablet available in most stores in 2023 was 3.99 euros and contained 260 grams. This year the price is the same, but 230 gr. “The price per kilo increased by 13 percent, although the majority of consumers did not notice the 30 gram decrease at first glance.”

Cocoa under the spotlight. The key to the complex scenario that nougat producers will face this Christmas is the ever-rising price of chocolate. That same week, private platform Investing.com warned that cocoa futures in New York were at historic highs, easily surpassing $12,000 a tonne, due to concerns about production in Ivory Coast.

Service charts like Trading Economics or Investing graphically reflect this development, with prices below $5,000 just a year ago. Reasons: a significant gap between demand and production, decline in stock and harvest due to rains, and diseases caused by diseases such as “black broad beans”. phytophthora. One of the keys to the rally in cocoa futures this year is actually weak harvests in West Africa.

Pictures | Wikipedia and Tetiana Bykovets (Unsplash)

in Xataka | Nougat, which was the ugly duckling of Christmas in 2008, has now become the star dish. This is how the industry turned