From stevia to monk fruit, oats, agave nectar and coconut palm sugar. In the second of our spring special editions, we look at what’s next for natural sweeteners.
PepsiCo UK and Britvic claim to have 'won the race' to launch the first UK soft drink containing stevia extract by formulating the high intensity sweetener within a functional water range from the end of April.
Calls for increased taxation and tighter regulation of sugar, to bring it into line with alcohol and cigarettes, have been branded ineffective, flawed, and naive, by academic experts and industry in Europe.
Naturex has just received novel foods approval in China for its flavour masking system, Talin. President and chief executive of the botanicals group, Jacques Dikansky, revealed the news and discussed the integration of Burgundy when we caught up with...
Tetra Pak has launched an upgrade for its Tetra Albrix sugar dissolving unit that it has claimed lowers costs and reduces energy consumption on previous versions.
Small molecules that modulate the human sweet taste receptor could help to provide zero-calorie foods and drinks that have "the true taste of sugar", say industry scientists.
The EU is set to abolish the system of sugar production quotas for the bloc as well as guaranteed minimum prices from 2016, according to a Brussels source.
The first products using sustainable sugarcane under a new certification scheme are about to hit the market after the initial batch was purchased by The Coca-Cola Company’s bottling system.
Drinking two sugary beverages a day for four weeks is enough to dull sensitivity to the sweet taste and lead to a “viscous cycle” of consumption, claims a new UK study from Bangor University.
Stevia supplier PureCircle has developed a natural flavor modifier that enhances the sweetness of stevia, sugar and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) to allow larger calorie reductions, the company has said.
Domino Foods, Wild Flavors and Sunwin International have entered a collaborative agreement to produce naturally-derived sweeteners and sweetening systems, the companies have said.
Soaring sugar prices have inspired Tate & Lyle to develop new beverage prototypes under its Optimize platform, which replace as much as 45 per cent of the sugar with blend of sweeteners but without impairing taste.
A raft of new food and drink products containing an intense natural sweetener from monk fruit (luo han guo) could hit shelves in the United States this year, according to the New Zealand-based firm driving its commercialization.
Ingredients supplier Beneo is finding new outlets for its functional carbohydrate Palatinose; the latest being with Germany energy drinks producer, Rhino’s Energy.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) claims that some caramel colorings may cause cancer, and has called on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ban them in foods and beverages.
The Coca-Cola Company has announced a collaboration with Chromocell Corporation on flavor innovation research, targeting sweetness enhancers, natural sweeteners and other flavor ingredients.
The CIUS is calling for the European Commission to act now to keep sugar supplies within the EU market rather than export the sweetener, with it claiming that EU based confectioners and other food and drink manufacturers are facing sugar supply difficulties.
Redpoint Bio and International Flavors and Fragrances (IFF) have achieved FEMA GRAS status for their Reb C sweetness enhancer, allowing it to be used in a variety of applications in the United States and elsewhere.
Senomyx has expanded its collaborative agreement with Firmenich for the commercial development of sweet enhancers to include its S6973 sucrose enhancer in certain beverages, the company has said.
California-based flavor firm Senomyx has entered into a four-year partnership with PepsiCo in order to develop sweetness enhancers and natural high-intensity sweeteners for new PepsiCo products.
California-based flavor firm Senomyx has signed a letter agreement with PepsiCo to negotiate a deal for the development and commercialization of new sweet taste technology, Senomyx said on Thursday.
BioVittoria has received an FDA letter of no objection that its fruit-derived zero-calorie Fruit-Sweetness sweetener is GRAS (generally recognized as safe), the company said on Monday.
Some 70.4 million tonnes of sweeteners were used by the global food and beverage industry in 2008, including sugars. But which sweeteners are most used, in volume terms?
Virginia Dare has become the latest company to make a move in the competitive stevia market, launching a range of flavors to mask bitter, astringent notes.
Sugar politics means high prices are a bitter pill for US and Indian sweet food and beverage makers; while the European industry is sitting pretty on the back of the recent sugar reforms.
Researchers claim to have discovered a particular gene variant that could affect sweetness perception among different ethnic groups, raising the possibility of more targeted flavor profiling of foods.
Symrise has launched a new toolkit of flavour masking solutions to help food manufacturers to overcome the off-notes and aftertaste associated with stevia-derived sweeteners.
Growing concern in the US over health conditions such as obesity and fears regarding production costs have led to the development of a new ingredient its manufacturer claims can reduce sugar requirements without affecting taste.
While there has been more optimism hovering over the post-reform EU sugar industry this year, ABF cites the new regime as having an on-going effect on the profits of its sugar division.
French sugar and food solutions company Tereos has confirmed it is
hoping to acquire Danisco's sugar business, and that it is bidding
against Germany's Nordzucker.
A growing body of research is questioning the usefulness of
low-calorie sweeteners in stemming weight gain, according to an
editorial in JAMA, which could have an impact on diet food
development.
Ingredients firm Tate & Lyle has entered an agreement with Fiji
Sugar Corporation for the supply of 300,000 tonnes of raw sugar per
year till 2015, amid developments in the EU sugar regime.
Some food and beverage manufacturers may switch from high fructose
corn syrup (HFCS) to sugar as a result of high corn prices, but
this is only likely to be the case for relatively small scale
users, according to a consultant.
The Imperial Sugar Co today said it will rebuild the parts of its
Georgia sugar refinery that were damaged in last year's explosion,
reinstating it as the second largest refinery in the US.
Bagasse, a previously useless waste product from sugar cane, can
now be used to make biodegradeable packaging for food products in
Thailand, its manufacturers claim.
Syngenta has developed a variety of sugar beet for cultivation in
tropical climates that is expected to boost output and farmer
income, and has initiated two products to develop its use for food
and biofuel in India.
Food and beverage manufacturers will now be able to cut the level
of sodium by up to 50 per cent in some products thanks to new
Flavor Modulation Technology developed by Mastertaste.
Consumer watchdog Which? has hit out at confusing labelling of
sugar content in foods, placing the onus on manufacturers to put
full nutritional information on packs after a survey found high
levels in savoury foods that were not...
Switzerland-based pharmaceutical company Metrohm has developed a
test to determine the exact sugar content of chocolate - helping
manufacturers ensure consistency on the production line.
Cargill is seeking EU approval for its sweetener Xtend Sucromalt,
which it claims can bring slow energy release and low glycaemic
response to a wider range of applications.
A 'low sugar' claim does not necessarily mean 'low calorie' or
'better for you', said the US Sugar Association, in its latest
attempt to recapture a part of the market lost to the growing
popularity of...
