Puratos Unveils ‘Beyond Clean Label’ Ingredient Innovation at IDDBA 2026

Puratos is set to showcase what it describes as the next stage of bakery innovation at IDDBA 2026, arguing that clean label has evolved from a market differentiator into a baseline expectation among consumers.

At Booth 1617, the bakery ingredients supplier will present its “beyond clean label” strategy, focusing on how ingredient transparency can be leveraged to strengthen consumer appeal through three key areas: power ingredients, indulgence and sustainability.

According to Puratos, clean label principles have guided its product development efforts for more than a decade, with a focus on simplifying formulations while maintaining performance in industrial production environments. As clean label products become increasingly common across bakery categories, the company believes competitive advantage now lies in delivering additional consumer benefits beyond ingredient transparency alone.

“Clean label has become the starting point, not the final destination,” said Sloan Bennett, Senior Customer Marketing Manager at Puratos. “Consumers don’t wake up thinking about ingredient lists. They think about how food makes them feel. Our role is to translate those expectations into solutions that deliver on taste, nutrition and responsibility all at once.”

The company cited findings from its Taste Tomorrow consumer research programme, which indicate that while transparency remains important, taste, texture and visual appeal continue to drive purchasing decisions in bakery categories. As a result, manufacturers are increasingly challenged to deliver cleaner formulations without compromising sensory performance.

At the event, Puratos will demonstrate how its strategy is applied across several product and ingredient categories.

The “power ingredients” segment will focus on sourdough, grains and natural fermentation technologies. Supported by the company’s Sourdough Institute in Belgium, solutions including Sapore sourdoughs and Softgrain ingredients are designed to enhance flavour, texture and shelf life while meeting demand for recognisable ingredient declarations.

The indulgence pillar will highlight clean-label mixes, glazes and fillings developed to maintain eating quality and visual appeal while supporting simplified formulations. Puratos said the approach aims to help bakers meet consumer expectations for taste and softness despite growing scrutiny of ingredient lists.

Sustainability will be represented through initiatives such as the company’s Cacao-Trace programme, which links responsible cocoa sourcing with farmer support and chocolate quality improvements. Puratos said the programme reflects increasing consumer interest in transparency throughout the supply chain, extending beyond the ingredient panel itself.

The company will also use IDDBA 2026 to introduce two new product innovations. ProteinPro Strength is a high-protein mix developed for bagels and hoagies, targeting growing consumer demand for protein-enriched bakery products while maintaining taste and texture characteristics. Vör Cashew Fillings, meanwhile, are positioned as plant-based fillings that use cashew as a base ingredient to support simplified labelling while delivering functionality and indulgence in sweet applications.

According to Puratos, both launches reflect a broader industry trend toward integrated product development, where formulation, processing requirements and end-product functionality are considered together to ensure performance throughout production and retail bakery operations.

The presentation builds on the company’s clean label-focused activities at IBIE 2025 and reinforces its view that ingredient transparency is now a foundation upon which broader innovation strategies must be built.