By Joerg Gruenwald, analyze & realize ag09.09.21
Consumers are becoming more health conscious and aware of their sugar intake. In the last decade or so, this consciousness about sugar content in various foods and beverages, and possible negative health consequences, has increased dramatically. It is now becoming a major market trend.
Adverse health outcomes related to high sugar consumption have been linked to an increased risk of certain conditions. Most prominent among them is the development of metabolic syndrome and its component insulin resistance, which can quickly lead to type 2 diabetes.
Consequently, the E.U. is working on the development of Tolerable Upper Intake Levels for dietary sugars, which would give industry concrete boundaries to work with, both for product development and for labeling. Following the request of five European countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) for an update of a 2010 assessment on dietary sugars, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published its draft scientific opinion on the Tolerable Upper Intake Level for Dietary Sugars in July 2021.
Opinion Summary
After reviewing more than 30,000 publications, EFSA could not set a tolerable upper intake level for dietary sugar. Nevertheless, EFSA confirmed various links between the intake of different categories of sugars and the risk of developing chronic metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and dental caries.
Currently, an open consultation on this draft scientific opinion is taking place. The public consultation will be open until the end of September, and interested parties are invited to submit their comments.
Reformulation Efforts
In the meantime, cutting the amount of sugar from product formulations has become a priority for many food and beverage companies as consumers are seeking healthier solutions. Beverages and other products containing high-glucose syrup are being avoided especially, which has led to the formulation of “free from” or “low sugar” variants.
The reduction of sugar in product formulations can be achieved in various ways. The most obvious way is to reduce the amount of added sugar, or even replacing added sugar with, for example, sweeteners. Since sugar also has the function of masking unpleasant off-flavors, improving the flavor profile of, for example, products that contain plant proteins, with processing technologies makes formulations with less added sugar possible.
It is important to mention that public awareness of the impact on health by some artificial sugar substitutes has increased. Moreover, not all sweeteners are suitable for all applications. Therefore, there is a constant search for versatile and safe sugar substitutes.
Market Alternatives & Regulations
Sugar alternatives are either high-intensity sweeteners (such as aspartame or steviol glycosides) or low calorie sweeteners (isomalt, xylitol, erythritol). These are food additives and require a food additive authorization in the E.U. before they can be used. In contrast, non-caloric sugars such as allulose and cellobiose, which are chemically sugars and behave like sugars in food and beverage formulations, are not considered additives but novel foods. Therefore, they require a marketing authorization.
Then, there is the Miracle fruit (Synsepalum dulciferum), whose Latin name literally means “to make sweet.” Historically consumed in Africa, it contains the bioactive ingredient miraculin, which causes sour and acidic foods to taste sweet, even though no sugar or sugar alternative is present. The ingredient thus provides an innovative alternative to sugar reduction in food and food supplements.
Recently, EFSA has published a positive opinion on dried fruits (by lyophilization) of Miracle Berry (Synsepalum dulcificum) as a novel food pursuant to Regulation (E.U.) 2015/2283.
The EFSA Panel concluded that the Miracle Berry is safe for use as food or in food supplements at the maximum intake level of 0.7 g/day for the target population (i.e., adults excluding pregnant and lactating women). This opens a path for the fruit into interesting new formulations in the food and functional food space, or even into food supplement formulations that require a favorable taste profile such as shots and sprays.
There are many ways to achieve the same goal. Food business operators that are developing an innovative sugar replacer and need regulatory advice or support in demonstrating the safety of their ingredient can always approach experienced consultancies such as analyze & realize GmbH.
About the Author: Dr. Joerg Gruenwald is co-founder of analyze & realize GmbH, a specialized business consulting company and CRO in the fields of nutraceuticals, dietary supplements, herbals and functional food, and author of the PDR for Herbal Medicines. He can be reached at analyze & realize GmbH, Waldseeweg 6, 13467 Berlin, Germany; +49-30-40008100; E-mail: jgruenwald@a-r.com; Website: www.analyze-realize.com.
Adverse health outcomes related to high sugar consumption have been linked to an increased risk of certain conditions. Most prominent among them is the development of metabolic syndrome and its component insulin resistance, which can quickly lead to type 2 diabetes.
Consequently, the E.U. is working on the development of Tolerable Upper Intake Levels for dietary sugars, which would give industry concrete boundaries to work with, both for product development and for labeling. Following the request of five European countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) for an update of a 2010 assessment on dietary sugars, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published its draft scientific opinion on the Tolerable Upper Intake Level for Dietary Sugars in July 2021.
Opinion Summary
After reviewing more than 30,000 publications, EFSA could not set a tolerable upper intake level for dietary sugar. Nevertheless, EFSA confirmed various links between the intake of different categories of sugars and the risk of developing chronic metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and dental caries.
Currently, an open consultation on this draft scientific opinion is taking place. The public consultation will be open until the end of September, and interested parties are invited to submit their comments.
Reformulation Efforts
In the meantime, cutting the amount of sugar from product formulations has become a priority for many food and beverage companies as consumers are seeking healthier solutions. Beverages and other products containing high-glucose syrup are being avoided especially, which has led to the formulation of “free from” or “low sugar” variants.
The reduction of sugar in product formulations can be achieved in various ways. The most obvious way is to reduce the amount of added sugar, or even replacing added sugar with, for example, sweeteners. Since sugar also has the function of masking unpleasant off-flavors, improving the flavor profile of, for example, products that contain plant proteins, with processing technologies makes formulations with less added sugar possible.
It is important to mention that public awareness of the impact on health by some artificial sugar substitutes has increased. Moreover, not all sweeteners are suitable for all applications. Therefore, there is a constant search for versatile and safe sugar substitutes.
Market Alternatives & Regulations
Sugar alternatives are either high-intensity sweeteners (such as aspartame or steviol glycosides) or low calorie sweeteners (isomalt, xylitol, erythritol). These are food additives and require a food additive authorization in the E.U. before they can be used. In contrast, non-caloric sugars such as allulose and cellobiose, which are chemically sugars and behave like sugars in food and beverage formulations, are not considered additives but novel foods. Therefore, they require a marketing authorization.
Then, there is the Miracle fruit (Synsepalum dulciferum), whose Latin name literally means “to make sweet.” Historically consumed in Africa, it contains the bioactive ingredient miraculin, which causes sour and acidic foods to taste sweet, even though no sugar or sugar alternative is present. The ingredient thus provides an innovative alternative to sugar reduction in food and food supplements.
Recently, EFSA has published a positive opinion on dried fruits (by lyophilization) of Miracle Berry (Synsepalum dulcificum) as a novel food pursuant to Regulation (E.U.) 2015/2283.
The EFSA Panel concluded that the Miracle Berry is safe for use as food or in food supplements at the maximum intake level of 0.7 g/day for the target population (i.e., adults excluding pregnant and lactating women). This opens a path for the fruit into interesting new formulations in the food and functional food space, or even into food supplement formulations that require a favorable taste profile such as shots and sprays.
There are many ways to achieve the same goal. Food business operators that are developing an innovative sugar replacer and need regulatory advice or support in demonstrating the safety of their ingredient can always approach experienced consultancies such as analyze & realize GmbH.
