Finnish Valio creates milk chocolate of the future through artificial intelligence

Finnish manufacturer of dairy products, Valio, has harnessed Artificial Intelligence (AI) to create a “future-proofed” milk chocolate. This was announced through a press release on the company’s official website.

“The Bar’s” recipe is based on AI analysis of milk chocolate lovers’ thoughts, cravings, and tastes combined with over 1.5 million public milk chocolate related social media discussions. Valio created the futuristic concept together with local chocolate artists of Kultasuklaa company, meaning that Valio itself has not switched to chocolate manufacturing.

In Valio’s own words, the Bar fulfills people’s needs and showcases the taste of the future as it is a proof of concept of what the dairy company’s milk powder solution can do, and how the future of milk chocolate could look like.

According to Timo Pajari, Senior Vice President of Valio, pioneering in the dairy industry requires constant learning on how technology can be utilized in product development of dairy ingredients.

– The needs and preferences of global milk chocolate fans are changing. Growing awareness of health challenges affect the confectionery industry with governments around the world already starting to regulate sugar use and consumption. With our Valio Bettersweet™ solution the taste remains the same even though the amount of sugar is reduced, Pajari said.

Through the AI analysis, the company reached two main conclusions; no single favorite chocolate taste, filling, or size was detected, and consumers prefer to indulge in milk chocolate with a clean conscience. Further, they discovered a growing demand for natural, healthier chocolate products why the Bar contains 30% less sugar and is lactose-free.

– We see that future milk chocolate will contain less sugar and only natural ingredients, without compromising the familiar taste. The Bar concept showcases how our Bettersweet™ milk powder solution does exactly that, but also how we can utilize AI to create even better products to cater the changing needs and desires of customers. Wherever the chocolate landscapes of the future will develop, with Valio Bettersweet™ it’s always made better, Pajari said.

Valio Bettersweet™ is a milk powder solution that enables natural sugar reduction in any milk chocolate product by using the proteins in milk reducing the need for added sugar. Utilizing the solution, chocolate manufacturers can fully dispense with artificial sweeteners. The 30% sugar reduction is just the beginning, as Valio has solutions under development that can eliminate the amount of added sugar.

Valio calls itself the world’s most innovative dairy and food company, and its mission is to create wellbeing and taste sensations in a responsible way. 4.000 Finnish dairy farmers own Valio through cooperatives and the concept of improving the wellbeing of people is its guiding principle. Valio products are available for consumers in 60 countries and the company has 350 patents for innovations around the world.

For further information visit Valio’s website: https://www.valio.com/news/would-you-take-a-bite-over-a-million-cravings-were-analyzed-by-ai-to-create-the-future-proofed-milk-chocolate-to-please-all/