06.01.03
The functional sweetener Gaio® tagatose is now being produced commercially for the first time, which has been made possible through cooperation between Arla Foods, a Danish/Swedish Dairy company, and Nordzucker, a German sugar manufacturer. Arla Foods bought the rights for Gaio tagatose from the American company Spherix in 1996. The sweetener, which is extracted from the milk product lactose, has a similiar production process to sugar. It looks and tastes like sugar, but contains approximately a third of the calories. In addition, Gaio tagatose is prebiotic, stimulating the beneficial bacteria in the digestive system, and is suitable for people who focus on a “low carb-diet” including diabetics since it does not affect glucose levels in the blood.