Launched in July 2024, the start-up focuses on using natural ingredients and botanicals used in Asian traditional medicines to improve the mood of users.
Claiming to be the first mood-focused functional snack brand in South East Asia (SEA), hue aims to stand out with its unique product formats — Chew (gummies with liquid filling), Burst (soft chewy pearls with liquid filling), and Pop (popping boba with liquid filling).
“Once you bite into it, the filling will burst [in the mouth]. We want to create a full product experience beyond taste, so it’s a multi-layer thing — first, you see the vibrant colour, then you smell its flavour, and finally you taste the flavour and texture of both the outer shell and inner filling, all of which are meant to make the user feel good.
“We don’t want to go the supplement route, where people swallow pills every day without emotional connection. There is science that shows the act of chewing itself gives a satisfying feeling. We want our products to be something that people enjoy and look forward to eating daily,” Cheng Liang Qi, Business Development Director of hue, told NutraIngredients-Asia.
The brand is targeting the younger generation, whom it says actively cares about mental wellness and erasing the stigma around it, as well as the more mature working crowd.
“We categorise our products by ‘mood’. Hue means colour, so we use different colours to connotate the different moods one may experience throughout a day. Currently, each product format is available in four moods, which we have done a lot of research on, such as hormonal associations, by partnering with laboratories and institutions around the region.
“Our tagline is ‘the gift of moods’. This is the positioning that we are going for — for people to share the love, and give good moods to their friends and loved ones.”
hue believes that it is creating a new category in the functional snacks space, which would require “a lot of education” for both consumers and retailers.
The brand recently participated in the FHA-Food & Beverage 2025 trade show in Singapore, where it received interest from international buyers who shared that many people are moving away from traditional snacks and even supplements that are “over claimed”.
“They said that conventional snacks such as candies are gradually on the decline, so they are now going for no-sugar versions or functional snacks, and we match their needs.
“In fact, we have had retailers like Guardian approaching us and saying, ‘Your product is very unique, as it’s neither a supplement nor a pure snack. And the packaging has very nice colours, so we’d put you at the top of the shelf to attract people into the store’.”
Mood boosters
The four moods in hue’s line-up are namely Uplifting, Energising, Calming, and Fulfilling.
Uplifting contains tiger milk mushroom (Lignosus rhinocerus) and gac fruit, and comes in apple yoghurt flavour. It serves to help uplift mood and overall emotional wellness.
Often referred to as “fruit from heaven”, tiger milk mushroom is a traditional herbal medicine with a long history of use in South East Asia and China. It is prized for its health benefits, including improving immunity, energy, and respiratory health.
“Our research uncovered an overall uplift in mood and energy levels from increased gene expression of catecholamines and dopamine levels in brain tissue, with potential to enhance pleasure, raise reward anticipation, boost motivation, and improve cognition while reducing depressive-like behaviours.”
Formulated with moringa leaf and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), Calming has a blueberry earl grey flavour and claims to support mind relaxation to manage anxiety.
Moringa is a valued part of Ayurvedic medicine for its various therapeutic effects, such as immunity boosting, wound healing, blood sugar control, and improving digestion.
hue’s research also observed that moringa possesses anxiety-reducing properties due to an elevated gene expression of serotonin (the “happy hormone”) to promote feelings of relaxation and happiness.
Additionally, Energising comes in melon flavour and contains wild Alaskan fish oil to support energy levels and cognitive performance, and boost mental alertness; and Fulfilling comprises black carrot leaf and PhytoCann BPTM, and is available in sea salt pistachio flavour, targeting at enhancing overall emotional wellness.
Expansion plans
Currently, hue is solely available online via TikTok Shop, Shopee, and the brand’s website.
Since its soft launch, the firm has been gathering feedback on the formats and flavours in preparation for the release of a full suite of products, including a savoury product, by July this year.
It also hopes to expand beyond Singapore, with entry into Malaysia and Taiwan on the horizon.
“We normally go via a partnership model. There will be a local outfit set up to handle the operations and branding etc. to penetrate into these new markets, and the products will still be branded under hue.
“Our partners believe in the same approach towards wellness, natural ingredients, and functional snacks rather than sinful snacks and supplements that don’t have emotional connection,” Cheng shared.
