20 CATEGORY INSIGHT 14 REPORT SWEETENERS Taking a Closer Look Today’s consumers are demanding products with less sugar — but all of the taste — and are looking to purchase and consume more natural, simple products. These trends, along with growing concerns of rising obesity rates (especially among children), have put a spotlight on sweeteners used in food and drink applications. 1900 Averill Road, Geneva, IL 60134 630.578.8600 | www.fona.com A CLOSER LOOK AT SWEETENERS “It’s now more customers. We asked her to walk us limited-edition Pepsi Throwback soda important than ever for through the basics of several different sweetened with cane sugar instead types of sweeteners and the unique of HFCS would become a permanent product developers to flavoring characteristics of each. Here’s offering. what she had to say: understand the options Flavoring suggestion: Clean for sweeteners available SUGAR/SUCROSE: sweetness profile makes it There are several different types of This traditional sweetener system applicable across a broad range for their products and sweeteners to choose from when remains the gold standard for of flavors. the taste and flavor developing new products, and now, sweetness today. It is applicable across as more inventive multi-sweetener a wide range of applications, providing AGAVE SYRUP & BROWN RICE SYRUP: impact of those choices.” blends are being used in food and a broad sweetness intensity curve and With the rising trend of natural drink applications, it’s not unusual to full mouthfeel. products, nutritive sweeteners such see three or four different sweeteners as agave and brown rice syrups, Flavoring suggestion: Excellent in a single product. have gained popularity. The biggest with all types of flavors. advantage for these two syrups is Contributor This added complexity means it’s their low glycemic indices do not Trina Murray, now more important than ever for HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP (HFCS): produce the same insulin spike Beverage HFCS is created through enzymatic Scientist product developers to understand associated with sucrose. These Trina Murray the options for sweeteners available processing of corn syrup to increase sweeteners are not without their works primarily for their products and the taste and the fructose content, making it disadvantages, however. Strong flavor with tea, flavor impact of those choices. It can sweeter. The result is a product similar characteristics, cost challenges, and coffee and juice projects, building be a sticky situation for consumers and in sweetness to sucrose. HFCS is very overall level of sweetness delivered relationships with customers and developers alike to sort through all of stable, but lacks some of the body/ may limit their feasibility. helping meet their flavor needs. Trina this variety. mouthfeel that sucrose provides. In the has additional experience working 1970’s, HFCS largely replaced sucrose Flavoring suggestion: Because of with dairy and performance nutrition. FONA International Beverage Scientist as the sweetener for carbonated soft agave’s grassy and slightly bitter She is also a member of our Flavor Trina Murray understands how drinks because of its cost effectiveness, flavor profile, choose flavors with University® faculty. Trina has a B.S. but recent consumer interest in natural difficult selecting and flavoring with less green notes. For example, a in chemistry and microbiology from has led some soft drink manufacturers University College Cork, Ireland. sweeteners can be. She works with ripe strawberry flavor rather than a variety of sweeteners as she helps to revert back to sugar. This spring, a green strawberry flavor. develop flavor solutions for beverage for example, Pepsi announced that its A CLOSER LOOK AT SWEETENERS (continued) most other HIS. Ace K can withstand It is pH and heat stable, allowing it Flavor suggestion: The licorice/ high temperatures, but delivers a to be used in baked and fried foods, anise note of stevia is less metallic off-taste in some applications. in addition to beverages and other products. Sucralose has a delayed aparent when used in flavors like Flavor suggestion: Works well sweetness onset, which lingers cola, rootbeer and ginger. with fruit flavors, as it enhances significantly longer than other HIS. This the flavor profile, increasing makes it compatible with functional SACCHARIN: mouthfeel. beverages which often have lingering Three hundred times sweeter than bitter off-notes. The lasting sweetness sugar, and able to withstand heat, it ASPARTAME: of sucralose helps mask these is the largest volume, lowest cost HIS Aspartame is also about 200 times characteristics. used in the world. In 1977 there was sweeter than sugar. It breaks down a cancer scare with saccharin, but in HIGH INTENSITY SWEETENERS (HIS): Flavor suggestion: Citrus type Consumers want the taste of sugar in heat, so it’s not well-suited for 2000 National Institutes of Health flavors work well because the without the calories, and this is a applications that are exposed to high said it should be removed from list difficult challenge for application levels of heat over a long period of acidity helps reduce the powdery of carcinogens. A bit of a stigma still scientists, as most HIS do not deliver time. Products containing aspartame sweet linger. remains, however, so saccharin is not the whole package of sweetness, time carry warnings on the label because very widely used in the U.S. except as a intensity, and mouthfeel. some people can’t digest the amino STEVIA: packet sweetener. acid phenylalanine contained in this Extracted from the leaves of the Flavor suggestion: Works well high intensity sweetener. S. rebiana plant, stevia is the first with fruit flavors, as it enhances natural high-intensity sweetener. the flavor profile, increasing Flavor suggestion: Best-suited It is approximately 250-300 times mouthfeel. for fruit and cola flavors because sweeter than sucrose. Stevia extracts aspartame has a relatively clean have a lingering licorice or metallic ACESULFAME POTASSIUM SALT (ACE K): profile. flavor associated with them. This Approximately 200 times sweeter than is challenging from an application sugar, Ace K has an upfront sweetness SUCRALOSE: perspective, as these off-notes can which dissipates fairly quickly. Because Sucralose is a chlorinated sugar (sugar compete with the flavor system that of this attribute, it is most commonly is altered so three chlorine atoms is being applied. Masking flavors have used in combination with other replace three hydroxyl groups) and is been developed to help cover these sweeteners, providing the upfront about 600 times sweeter than sucrose. off-notes. sweetness profile that is lacking in MASKING SWEETENERS Here’s a look at how food and beverage scientists mask the top off-notes associated with sweeteners. OFF-NOTE MASKING SUGGESTION Bitter Flavors with an inherent bitterness, such as grapefruit. Metallic Cola or fruit type flavors. Anise Notes Root beer, cola or spice type flavors. Powdery Sweetness Citrus type flavors with higher Linger acidity to help cut the lingering sweetness. EXPERTISE YOU CAN TRUST Let FONA’s flavor and product development experts help you find the solution that works best for your particular product while working through the unique set of characteristics and challenges presented. We understand how to integrate the complexities of flavor with your brand development, technical requirements and regulatory needs to deliver a complete taste solution. CONTACT OUR SALES SERVICE DEPARTMENT at 630.578.8600 to request a flavor sample or visit www.fona.com..