Whole new ball game: Double-ball lollipops to be a hit in Asia, says Baker Perkins

The firm has developed a one-shot technology for depositing double-ball lollipops on its ServoForm range of depositors.  

‘Improved’ mouth-feel​

Baker Perkins spokesperson Keith Graham claimed that the double-ball lollipops had an improved mouthfeel than single-ball counterparts.

“It fits the shape of the standard mouth better than a single-ball product does,"​ he told ConfectioneryNews.

“It’s a brand new thing. There are one or two around making them in Asia using our technology.”​

“You could previously make the shape with some other technologies but what you couldn’t do is make the top and bottom different.”​

He said that you could have different combinations of flavors such as sweet and sour and use a variety of flavors for a single product.

Interest from Asia​

Graham suggested that the Asian market could take to the concept.

“Asia is a good market for hard candy at the moment and the interest is in products that are truly novel.”​

But could such a shape work in the more mature North American or European markets?

“There’s no reason why it shouldn’t work elsewhere, it’s just that Asian markets tend to accept new candy products a bit more readily than in developed countries who tend to stick to what they know,” ​said Graham.

Cost implications​

He said machinery costs for the double-ball shape were on par with the single-ball machine, but would be slightly more if a double head depositor was required to create stripes.

Graham added that while most lollipops were 12-15 g, there was no reason why a double-ball couldn’t be smaller to save on ingredients costs while keeping the novel shape.

Baker Perkins claimed in a release that depositing offered greater quality and production flexibility, with lower production costs, than traditional methods such as die forming, starch mogul or cut-and-wrap.