A sugar-free chocolate made with natural sweetener stevia received top honors as the most innovative confectionery product at the largest sweets fair in the world this week, signaling what experts say will become a wider, more popular trend in the chocolate industry.

At the 42nd annual International Sweets and Biscuits Fair in Cologne, Germany this week about 80 food journalists named Belgium-based Cavalier chocolates their favorite confectionery for the quality of the brand's stevia-sweetened chocolate. Overall, 112 products were entered for consideration.