It's safe to say Unreal is well-versed in better-for-you treats: its dye-free lineup includes milk chocolate gems, dark chocolate peanut butter cups, caramel peanut nougat bars, and coconut bars, and more. All of its products are also Fair Trade certified and soy-free. 

We recently touched base with Alison Whritenour, chief commercial officer, Unreal, to talk about some current trends in the BFY candy category.

Liz Parker Kuhn: What are some consumer trends/behaviors in the BFY candy category? Feel free to talk about flavors, ingredients, nutrition profiles, buying/consumption occasions, etc.

Alison Whritenour: One of the recent trends we’ve seen rise to the surface is nostalgia. People are craving the chocolate snacks they loved growing up, but they now expect them to be made better. That insight directly fuels our innovation pipeline: We reimagine iconic favorites like peanut butter cups and chocolate gems with simple ingredients, no artificial dyes, and mind-blowing taste. This allows us to capture the consumer’s desire for nostalgia, then surprise and delight them by delivering a better-for-you product that tastes even more delicious than the snacks they grew up with.

LPK: How does your company work to keep up with current consumer interests? What about keeping your finger on the pulse of emerging consumer taste trends?

AW: We rely on a variety of sources for our consumer insights. We love to hear directly from our consumer herself through social listening and tuning into the conversations happening online, plus we gather insights directly from our retail partners about what’s trending in store. We also collect macro-level category research to keep an eye on what’s coming next – from formats and flavors to ingredients and snacking occasions. 

LPK: Any notable innovations in BFY candy that you are seeing?

AW: We’re seeing a ton of innovation from both BFY brands and conventional candy brands, especially around making classic chocolate snacks that look and feel as fun as the originals but without any excess sugar or artificial dyes. This philosophy has been our driving force at Unreal since day one. We were founded with a mission to unjunk the world, starting with chocolate, so we’ve always used natural ingredients like radish, spirulina, turmeric, and beets to create vibrant, craveable colors that make our products look deliciously irresistible without using artificial dyes or additives.

We’ve also seen a more recent trend where some brands are replacing chocolate and cocoa ingredients with chocolate flavoring due to rising cocoa prices. While we understand the strain that rising prices can put on a company, this is something we’ll just never do. Using real, sustainably-sourced ingredients is the only way we’ll ever make our products. Our consumers deserve the best, without compromises, and it’s our responsibility to deliver on that promise.

Our ultimate vision is a world where all food is 100% real. So, with chocolate as our starting point, we’re leading this shift in category innovation by staying true to our core brand promises: simple ingredients, way less sugar, and nothing artificial while never compromising on taste. Because “better-for-you” only matters if it tastes better, too!

LPK: Do you have any recent or upcoming BFY candy launches to share? Anything upcoming in 2026?

AW: We’ve got some exciting things in the works for 2026, including upgrades to even more of the classics you know and love with (of course) better-for-you ingredients. These upcoming innovations are all about expanding Unreal into new formats, new moments, and new aisles while continuing to modernize the chocolate category with snackable options that consumers can feel good about enjoying every day.

Unreal has recently introduced grab-and-go sizes of its Chocolate Pretzels and Chocolate Almonds. The treats are lower in sugar, chocolate-covered, and gluten-free. As with all of Unreal's products, they are also naturally colored (100% dye-free), Fair Trade certified, and soy-free. 

Related: Unreal reveals dye-free Halloween candy lineup