Rethinking Cocoa in a High-Cost Environment
With food costs running nearly double the 20-year average, consumer concerns about food affordability remain high in the U.S.1 For chocolate applications in particular, sharp increases in cocoa prices have intensified pressure on brands to lower or maintain pricing to stay competitive. In response, companies are turning to cost-effective cocoa solutions while emphasizing transparency and value.
Manage Rising Cocoa Costs Without Sacrificing Quality
Butter Buds® helps brands address this challenge head-on by improving the quality of cocoa-based products while minimizing added cost.
Our Cocoa Butter Buds® is a rich ingredient that adds decadent, longer-lasting cocoa fat notes to any food or beverage where cocoa powder is used—enabling reduced cocoa powder usage alongside alternative ingredients. Made from a natural ingredient sourced from real cocoa butter, Cocoa Butter Buds® supports clean label goals while managing costs and maintaining a high-quality product.
Functionality That Elevates Better-for-You Sweets and Snacks
As demand grows for healthier sweets and confectionery snacks, Cocoa Butter Buds® delivers added functionality by masking off-notes and providing a rich, fatty mouthfeel that consumers crave. These performance benefits, coupled with meaningful cocoa cost savings, have driven strong Cocoa Butter Buds® adoption in nutrition-focused applications.
A Better Way to Achieve Rich, Chocolate Decadence
Cocoa Butter Buds® is unique in its ability to deliver complete chocolate flavor while preserving texture and nutritional integrity. The following examples showcase Cocoa Butter Buds® in action, demonstrating how its functional and cost-saving benefits come to life across real-world applications.
Instant Hot Chocolate Powder
Cocoa Butter Buds® reduced cocoa powder usage from 10% to 8%, while rounding out sweetness and restoring the perception of cocoa bitter notes.
Chocolate Frosting
A combination of Cocoa Butter Buds® with other Butter Buds® ingredients—Buttermilk Buds® and Butter Buds-Ghee®—demonstrates how a 30-40% reduction in cocoa powder can be achieved while maintaining real chocolate flavor.
Request a sample of Cocoa Butter Buds® or get in touch with our experts.
Sources
1 Mintel, Consumers & the Economic Outlook (Winter) – US – 2025
