Food and beverage manufacturers are looking for ways to reduce sugar in their products as excessive dietary intakes of sugar are related to adverse health effects. Sugar has many roles in food products, beyond its sweetening properties such as texture, appearance, and flavour balance. Replacing sugar is not a matter of simple substitution or elimination, as is often the case with salt reduction. Sensory properties such as texture and mouthfeel make a big difference when changing sugar-sweetened beverage formulations.
A wide range of sweetening ingredients are available to substitute for sugar in products. These have a range of different properties and there are important considerations associated with their useage. Due to differences in consumer acceptability of sugar alternatives, research is currently underway looking at technologies that affect sensory and taste perception as a means to reduce the sugar content of products.
Key remarks:
The existing challenge for the food and beverage industry is to find a sweetening ingredient that can be used without compromising the integrity of a product, be part of a balanced diet and while being perceived by consumers as safe and tasty.
At Creme Global, we can calculate daily intakes and use predictive intake models to assess the impact new product formulation and/or reduced portion sizes can have on a given population. Also, we can identify optimal product formulations and overcome data gaps with probabilistic intake modeling. To find out more about our Food Data Science platforms and services, please contact us at info@cremeglobal.com.