Gum sales in Indonesia could freshen up by targeting kids

The Indonesian chewing gum market only accounts for a small fraction of the total sugar and gum confectionery market. According to Mintel Market Sizes, volume sales of chewing gum decreased by 30% between 2014 and 2015, with declines being registered across all sub-segments: regular, sugar-free and bubble gum.

Indonesians are not being enticed into the category, and innovation seems to be limited. Meanwhile, vying segments such as standard and power mints have seen a rise in new product development activity. On top of this, when comparing the proportion of new chewing gum launches across Asia Pacific’s (APAC) top five gum markets in 2016, Japan accounts for most of the launches with Indonesia coming in last. The gap between both markets suggests that there is potential for Indonesian gum producers to innovate more within the category.

ORAL HYGIENE SIGNIFIES POTENTIAL FOR MORE GUM INNOVATION AIMED AT CHILDREN

Poor oral hygiene is commonplace in Indonesia with dental caries affecting a considerable portion of the population. Some of the reasons behind poor oral health in Indonesia are lack of routine brushing, heavy tobacco usage, as well as poor dietary habits. Interestingly, most of the sufferers of poor dental health are children. In light of this issue, companies in the market are driving up initiatives to educate parents and their children about the importance of good oral health. Despite these efforts, more could still be done.

In Indonesia, the number of new gum launches specifically aimed at children has been negligible. Between 2015 and 2016, the number of launches with a demographic claim saw a decrease and even then, none of the products launched had any functional benefit. The majority of these products highlight the variety of flavours on pack and others just overtly target kids through the redemption of stickers and toys. That being said, launches of gum products with functional claims have also registered declines. This brings to light the potential for gum makers to launch more products targeted at children that provide functional benefits like bone health or remineralisation of teeth.

In other markets such as Japan, chewing gum products aimed at children differentiate themselves by calling attention to their functional benefits. For instance, Recaldent chewing gum from Japan is formulated with xylitol and uses casein phosphopeptides and amorphous calcium phosphate (CPP-ACP). Xylitol has proven health benefits in terms of oral health and CPP-APP helps with the remineralisation of teeth.

Chewing gum companies in Indonesia should look to get involved in launching campaigns aimed at promoting the effects of better oral health care through gum usage. Such campaigns could positively enforce to consumers the positive affects chewing gum has on their teeth and gums.

It is widely understood that in order to maintain good oral health, habits and routines need to be cultivated from a young age. As such, there is plenty of opportunity for chewing gum brands to promote the functional benefits of chewing gum among the country’s youngest consumers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Davina is a Food & Drink Analyst at Mintel and is also part of the Mintel Trends team. She specialises in delivering food and drink insights and trend observations within the South Asia region.