Chocolatier Hu, which promises “no weird ingredients,” is riding the better-for-you wave, as the market for healthier snacks expands.
The snack brand, short for Get Back to Human, started as Hu Kitchen in New York City in 2012 by Jason Karp, his wife, Jessica Karp, and her brother Jordan Brown.
The three co-founders operated Hu Kitchen until the beginning of the COVID pandemic in March 2020. Although their brick-and-mortar restaurants closed, Hu’s CPG chocolate business lives on and continues to grow under Mondelēz International, which purchased the startup food company in January 2021.
Hu chocolate, marketed as a paleo-friendly alternative to traditional chocolate, has attracted health-conscious consumers through its use of simple ingredients.
The company distinguishes itself from other brands by using coconut sugar instead of refined cane sugar, and Hu’s chocolate is free of emulsifiers, soy lecithin, palm oil and non-cocoa vegetable fats. Most of their products are also dairy-free.
The company’s clean-label formulations dovetail with better-for-you chocolate trends driving dark chocolate sales and products with higher cocoa content, according to data analytics firm Imarc Group.
Confectionery trends: Balancing better-for-you trends and indulgence
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Hu’s latest bullseye
Hu chocolate grew further with a nationwide expansion at Target in late April with its Cashew Butter + Pure Vanilla Bean and Creamy Coconut Dark Chocolate Bites.
“We ran Hu’s chocolate business out of my apartment for the first several years, so going from that to a nationwide rollout in Target still feels pretty surreal,” Brown said, noting that the expansion “reflects how much consumer demand for better-for-you indulgence has evolved and proliferated.”
Brown, who now serves as a board member at Hu, noted the popularity of the company’s bite-sized format is driven by consumers in search of products that feel indulgent, nostalgic and aligned with their values.
“Most people love chocolate, and Hu delivers in a host of ways. Certainly, the momentum behind better-for-you chocolate is getting a huge boost from a broader shift in consumer expectations from brands,” he said. “People are paying far closer attention to ingredient simplicity, sourcing, and overall product quality. That said, they still want to indulge, and consumers no longer see quality and taste as mutually exclusive.”
No longer niche
Better-for-you chocolate varieties are becoming increasingly mainstream, according to Brown, who added that Hu is seeing stronger loyalty from existing consumers and those entering the category.
Demanding better, and fewer, ingredients is “no longer niche, even in traditionally indulgent categories like confection,” he added.
“Everybody is looking at ingredient lists these days,” he said.
Paying for luxury
Consumers are in search of better-for-you indulgence, and they’re willing to pay more for a healthier snack, according to Brown.
Hu has never wanted its customers to choose between indulgence and intention, he said, adding that “nobody here is interested in making a better-for-you chocolate that tastes like punishment.”
“We’re seeing that shoppers are becoming more selective about where they’re willing to compromise,” he said. “Increasingly, consumers view premium, better-for-you products not as an occasional niche purchase, but as part of their everyday lifestyle.”
