AU2395699A

AU2395699A - Sweetening composition and food products containing the same

Info

Publication number: AU2395699A
Application number: AU23956/99A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Pierrick Duflot; Catherine Fouache; Guillaume Ribadeau-Dumas
Original assignee: Roquette Freres SA
Current assignee: Roquette Freres SA
Priority date: 1998-04-29
Filing date: 1999-04-22
Publication date: 1999-11-11
Also published as: CA2270080A1; FR2778066B1; EP0953295A1; SK175099A3; HUP0002450A2; HUP0002450A3; PL337715A1; FR2778066A1; WO1999055173A1; KR19990083574A; JPH11341964A; CN1233405A

Description

t 50373 DP:MN P/00/011 Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT

ORIGINAL

Name of Applicant: ROQUETTE FRERES Actual Inventor(s): RIBADEAU-DUMAS,Guillaume; FOUACHE, Catherine; DUFLOT, Pierrick Address for Service: S: COLLISON CO.,117 King William Street, Adelaide, S.A. 5000 Invention Title: SWEETENING COMPOSITION AND FOOD PRODUCTS CONTAINING THE

SAME

The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us: 1A SWEETENING COMPOSITION AND FOOD PRODUCTS CONTAINING THE SAME The present invention relates to a sweetening composition which can be used in food products and in particular confectionery items such as fondants, fillings, jellied sweets, gums, crystallized fruits and chewing gums.

It similarly relates to food products, in particular chewing gums, which contain said composition.

It is known that the traditional chewing gums, which include sucrose and glucose syrup, and sugar-free chewing gums, based on polyols, consist essentially of approximately: 15 to 30% of base gum, 50 to 70% of carbohydrates in powder form, 0 to 25% of carbohydrate syrups which form the liquid fraction of the chewing gum, 1 to 2% of flavouring, 0 to 5% of other ingredients of the group which includes antioxidants, colouring, powerful sweeteners, bulking agents and emulsifiers, the term carbohydrate signifying on the one hand, carbohydrates such as mono-, di-, 25 oligo- and polysaccharides, and their blends such as starch hydrolysates, and on the other hand, polyols or sugar alcohols such as hydrogenated mono-, di-, oligo- and polysaccharides and their blends, in particular hydrogenated starch 30 hydrolysates or HAH.

O

Starch hydrolysates are obtained by the known method of enzymatic and/or acid hydrolysis of starch milk.

Their processing by catalytic hydrogenation under high pressure and at a high temperature with the aid of Raney nickel enables the corresponding hydrogenated products to be obtained.

In traditional chewing gum, the carbohydrate in powder form and the carbohydrate syrup generally consist in, respectively, sucrose and a so-called "glucose" syrup or starch hydrolysate, while in "sugar-free" chewing gum based on polyols, the carbohydrates in powder form and the carbohydrate syrups generally consist in, respectively, maltitol, xylitol, mannitol, lactitol, isomalt, erythritol and/ or sorbitol powder for the former and polyol syrup for the latter.

Thus we know of some sugar-free chewing gums which contain as a liquid phase aqueous solutions of sorbitol.

These types of chewing gum have a particular tendency to lose water and to dry out. They then become hard, brittle 20 and granular and are for this reason practically unsuitable for consumption. This phenomenon of water loss is explained by the crystallisation of the sorbitol initially present in solution, which leads to an increase in the quantity of free water and thus in the value of Humidity Relative to Equilibrium (HRE) of these chewing gums.

It has therefore been proposed, in particular in documents EP-A-0 082 670 and EP-A-0 325 090 to use glycerine as a plasticizer and binding component in sugarfree chewing gums.

The syrups thus obtained are known to be particularly hygroscopic and thus have a tendency to absorb the water present in the atmosphere in which they are stored. The result of this is that after a certain time, they become sticky and lose their characteristics of structure and texture which made them attractive to the consumer. This phenomenon can partially be counteracted by packing the chewing gums in sealed but expensive wrappers. The propensity for these sugar-free chewing gums to take up water is linked to a fairly low value of Humidity Relative to Equilibrium (HRE) To remedy this drawback, the use of hydrogenated starch hydrolysate syrups has gradually become established to the detriment of that of glycerine or sorbitol syrups.

HAHs have in effect better plasticizing, binding and anticrystallizing properties. They also have the advantage of greatly limiting the variations in HRE in the chewing gums.

However it appeared that these HAH based syrups are not without drawbacks when they are used in chewing gums. In fact their water content is not insignificant since in most cases it represents approximately 15 to .by weight. Thus, they increase the water content of the chewing gums in which they are used. The damp surroundings "25 thus created are totally contra-indicated for the use of powerful synthetic sweeteners such as aspartame which is a dipeptide made up of a methyl ester of L-aspartyl -L phenylalanine.

It is in fact known that the stability of 30 aspartame in food products is linked to the quantity of 6 "water present in the surroundings as well as to the HRE i 1T~ I '1 4 value, the time of contact, the temperature and the pH.

In a high HRE environment, aspartame decomposes spontaneously to diketopiperazine, which inevitably leads to a loss in sweetening effect. Furthermore the product of this degradation is known for its unpleasant bitter taste.

Another consequence arising from the use of HAH syrups rich in water is the production of a chewing gum with a very pliable and sticky texture, giving rise to problems during manufacture, since such a chewing gum is not easy to process and to shape due to its tendency to stick to all the manufacturing equipment. Furthermore and for the same reasons as those mentioned above, it is not generally appreciated by the consumer.

Finally, the excess water in the chewing gums can facilitate the solubilisation of certain flavours which then become much more sensitive to oxidation and, in consequence, deteriorate more easily.

To remedy this inconvenience, it was thus 20 necessary to reduce the water content of the sugar free chewing gums and, to be more precise, of their plasticizing and binding liquid fraction.

The HAH syrups which constitute preferentially said plasticizing and binding liquid fraction cannot be 25 concentrated without difficulty above a dry matter content a. a° in the order of 88%. In fact, when the water content in such syrups is evaporated, they become extremely viscous.

coo• Under these conditions, traditional evaporators are not suitable. It is necessary to have recourse to more 30 sophisticated and thus very expensive equipment.

a a 1.

Furthermore, even if the desired reduced water content is achieved, the subsequent high viscosity of these hydrolysate syrups implies that they can only be processed at high temperatures. Thus, one can easily imagine the problems which may be engendered on the industrial scale when working with a hot mass which has to be incorporated in the formulation of a chewing gum.

Furthermore these concentrated syrups must be kept permanently above their solidification temperature, otherwise they would vitrify into a hard and resistant block which would be difficult to re-melt with a view to recycling. To avoid deterioration from heat, these syrups maintained in a fluid state must imperatively be used quickly.

Finally putting these syrups in contact with products sensitive to heat during the preparation of chewing gums can give rise either to the deterioration of these products, as is the case with aspartame, or to their volatilisation when dealing with flavours.

It is clear that such constraints are not conducive to meeting the industrial requirements of economic profitability and quality of the finished S" product It has therefore been proposed, for example in 25 documents US- A- 4 671 967, EP- A-0 196 640 and EP- A-0 323 442 to use, for the preparation of food products such as chewing gums, plasticizing and binding compositions o developed based on glycerine or propylene glycol and starch hydrolysate syrups.

30 In fact glycerine and propylene glycol lower the S"viscosity of starch hydrolysate syrups and facilitate the evaporation of the water which they contain, even when traditional evaporators are used. The rheological behaviour of these blends including glycerine or propylene-glycol and carbohydrate syrups is relatively satisfactory and the concentrated plasticizing compositions thus obtained can be processed even at ambient temperature.

They nevertheless present the inconvenience of having a relatively low HRE and therefore are conducive to the phenomenon of take up of water in chewing gums in which they are incorporated. This low HRE value is in part linked to the elimination of water. Glycerine or propylene glycol, added to these syrups, not only fail to compensate for this loss in water, but on the contrary they only give rise to a lower HRE value.

Furthermore, during consumption, glycerine develops a heat release effect, commonly described in the trade by the expression "heating effect", which is totally displeasing to the consumer.

o S 20 The aim of the invention is to overcome the limitations and or disadvantages of the compositions of S-the prior state of the art and to propose a sweetening .i composition which responds better than those already in existence to the various requirements of the practice, that is to say: S which possesses plasticizing, binding and anticrystallising characteristics, which can be used in food products, in particular chewing gums, and especially in sugar-free chewing :30 gums, i I 7 which contributes only a minor quantity of water to the food product to which it is to be added, which presents rheological properties such that it is easy to process, even at ambient temperatures, is easy to prepare, is intrinsically stable and capable of conferring stability, sufficient for preservation, to food products in which it is intended to be incorporated, in particular in relation to the take up of water which leads to a deterioration in the quality of such products, especially sugar-free chewing gums, and in relation to the phenomenon of crystallization which leads to increased hardness of said products, which exhibits considerable sweetening capacity without the "heating effect", enabling the addition of powerful synthetic sweetener to be reduced.

The Applicant has to its credit found, after extensive research, that this aim could be achieved with a sweetening composition for food products which includes 20 iditol.

Iditol is a polyol obtained industrially by the hydrogenation of sorbose. It is of considerable potential S. interest because it is more chemically stable than sucrose, whilst having the advantage of a sweetening 25 capacity very close to that of sugar. Furthermore iditol has the particular characteristic of not generating tooth decay, thereby opening many applications in the industry, in particular in the food and pharmaceutical industries.

In consequence the sweetening composition for food products according to the invention comprises from 5 to

I

8 100% by weight of iditol in relation to the total dry matter.

Food products according to the invention are characterized by the fact that they contain the sweetening composition according to the invention.

Among these food products can be included not only chewing gums but also fondants, fillings fatty or otherwise, gums, jellied items or the equivalent.

The sweetening composition in accordance with the invention is particularly stable in storage and possesses attractive anti-crystallising properties with regard to the carbohydrates used as sweetening agents and /or bulking agents in food compositions.

These properties enable the hardness of the food product in which the composition is introduced to be stabilised, which is particularly advantageous when the food product is a chewing gum.

In the context of its application to chewing gums, the plasticizing and binding properties of the composition 20 in accordance with the invention are also attractive since numerous ingredients must be mixed homogeneously during their preparation.

Furthermore said composition permits the replacement of part of the expensive products in powder or liquid form used as a bulking agent.

to 9 In any case it usefully replaces known compositions based on carbohydrates in powder form or .5.o ::carbohydrate syrups.

The stabilising and anticrystallizing effects 30 which confer the chewing gums a consistent quality upon S S aging, even in severe conditions of storage, particularly with regard to relative humidity, can also be emphasised.

According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the sweetening composition comprises from 5 to 80%, preferably 7 to 60% and in particular from 10 to by weight of iditol in relation to the total dry material.

The composition in accordance with the invention can further include at least one polyol other than iditol.

This polyol or polyols are selected from the group consisting of threitol, erythritol, xylitol, arabitol, ribitol, sorbitol, mannitol, maltitol, maltotriitol, maltotetraitol, lactitol, hydrogenated isomaltulose, glycerine, hydrogenated starch hydrolysates, sorbitol being preferred.

Among the hydrogenated starch hydrolysates which can be used in the context of this invention, those marketed under the trademark LYCASIN® by the Applicant can be quoted, and those described, by way of example, in the Sdocuments FR-A-2 654 308 and FR-A-2 459 002.

20 The composition in accordance with the invention can furthermore include at least one powerful synthetic sweetener such as aspartame or the equivalent.

The composition, in accordance with the invention, thus obtained, can take the form of powder or syrups.

To prepare the composition in accordance with the invention, carbohydrate(s) in a powder form can be mixed with iditol in a powder form. Carbohydrate(s) in a powder form, or respectively in solution, can also be mixed with iditol in solution, or respectively in powder form, and 30 then the water contained in the blend thus prepared evaporated until a water content is achieved such that the t I__I I_ resulting blend is processable, even at ambient temperatures, and presents a viscosity compatible with ease of operation of the evaporation process using conventional equipment.

The invention also relates to a food product comprising the composition which has just been described.

In accordance with a particular embodiment, the food product according to the invention consists of a sugar-free chewing gum including from 0.5 to 85% by weight in relation to the total dry matter, of a composition according to the invention.

In particular the invention relates to a chewing gum which comprises a) from 15 to 60% of gum base b) from 0.5 to 80% of at least one polyol c) from 0 to 10% of a maltitol syrup d) from 0 to 10% of a plasticizing agent selected from the group consisting of glycerine, propylene glycol and their blends, in which 0.5 to 30%, preferably 2 to 25% of the polyol is iditol.

In accordance with an advantageous embodiment the polyol of the chewing gum according to the invention is sorbitol.

Other characteristics and advantages of this description will become apparent on reading the following examples, which are non-limitative and which relate to chewing gums and other food products.

3 .i 11 EXAMPLE 1 Sugar free chewing gum 100 g of chewing gum were prepared, which constituants are as follows: DREYCO BASE base gum marketed by the DREYFUS Company 25.0 g.

Sorbitol powder marketed by the ROQUETTE FRERES Company: 58.5 g Mannitol 60 marketed by the ROQUETTE FRERES Company 5.0 g.

Glycerine marketed by the DOW CHEMICAL Company 10.0 g Mint flavour 1.5 g.

The process of manufacturing the chewing gum comprises the following stages: softening the base gum at 50 0

C.

placing the base gum into a double-walled mixer in which water circulates at 50 0 C, and equipped with a mixing shaft in the general shape of a Z of the type 20 marketed by the KUSTNER FRERES Company, introducing 1/3 of the sorbitol powder, mixing for 2 minutes, introducing 1/3 of the sorbitol powder and half the glycerine, 25 mixing for 2 minutes, introducing the remaining sorbitol powder and the other half of the glycerine, mixing for 2 minutes, introducing the mint flavor, mixing for one extra minute, 30 mixing for one extra minute, o shaping the chewing gum by rolling in such a way as to produce sticks 5 mm thick.

Five chewing gums were manufactured in accordance with the conditions given above and using in the formula quoted above sorbitol powder (sorbitol A) marketed by the Applicant under the name NEOSORB® P60W (chewing gum 1), and replacing the sorbitol powder component in the formula quoted above with the following compositions: 98% of sorbitol A+2% of iditol (chewing gum 2 according to the invention).

98% of sorbitol A+2% of xylitol (chewing gum 3) 80% of sorbitol A+20% of iditol (chewing gum 4 according to the invention).

80% of sorbitol A+20% of xylitol (chewing gum An evaluation is then made of the hardness (in Newtons, N) of the chewing gums with the aid of an INSTRON type 4502 device.

The measurements of hardness were effected on 20 sticks of chewing gum 5 mm thick, on the one hand in the course of cooling them to three successive temperatures (45 0 C, 35 0 C and 20 0 C) and on the other hand at three different times during storage at 20 0 C in an environment of 66% relative humidity e. after 1 day, 8 days and days of storage) The results are given in the following table: 0 0* r ~_111__1 Chewing gum Hardness during cooling Hardness during storage 35 0 C 20 0 C 1 day 8 days 15 days 1 4.70 9.40 30.85 49.30 70.00 57.00 2 4.00 8.00 23.90 40.40 47.50 48.60 3 4.80 11.00 37.70 54.30 63.80 64.67 4 1.21 4.14 9.81 26.00 34.00 33.00 2.12 4.27 16.77 32.00 41.20 43.20 Iditol has an anti-crystallising potential superior to xylitol.

The incorporation of low doses of iditol in the sorbitol powder (chewing gums 2 and 4) enables the hardness of the chewing gum to be reduced considerably in the course of manufacture and storage.

EXAMPLE 2 200 g of chewing-gum was prepared according to the following formulas: Valencia T PL base gum marketed by the CAFOSA Gum S/A Company (Barcelona, Spain): 30.0% 15 Sorbitol powder marketed by the Roquette Freres Company 48.8% Mannitol 60 marketed by the Roquette Fr&res Company LYCASIN® maltitol syrup 80/55 with 85% solids, marketed 20 by the Roquette Freres Company 13.0% o*o Glycerin marketed by the Dow Chemical Company 1% Liquid mint natural flavouring marketed by the Silesia Company 1.8% 14 Powdered mint natural flavouring marketed by the Silesia Company 0.4% The chewing-gum manufacturing process comprises the following stages: softening the base gum at 50 0

C,

placing the base gum in a double-walled mixer in which water circulates at 50 0 C, equiped with two mixing shafts fitted with blades of the type marketed by the Ika Company, adding half the sorbitol powder in the mixer, mixing for two minutes, adding half the LYCASIN® 80/55, previously heated to 0

C,

mixing for three minutes, adding the mannitol mixing for 2 minutes, adding half the sorbitol powder and the glycerin, mixing for 5 minutes, adding half the LYCASIN® 80/55 at 50 0

C,

20 mixing for 2 minutes, adding the powdered mint flavouring, mixing for 2 minutes, a adding the liquid mint flavouring, mixing for 2 minutes, discharging the mixer, shaping the chewing-gum by rolling into 5 mm thick tablets.

e

I

Five chewing-gums were manufactured under the above conditions using in the formula given above: sorbitol powder marketed by the Applicant under the name of NEOSORB® P60W (chewing-gum 1), and by replacing, in the formula given above, the powdered sorbitol fraction with the following compositions: 95% NEOSORB® P60W 5% iditol (chewing-gum 2 according to the invention), 95% NEOSORB® P60W 5% xylitol (chewing-gum 3), 90% NEOSORB® P60W 10% iditol (chewing-gum 4 according to the invention), 90% NEOSORB® P60W 10% xylitol (chewing-gum The hardness of the chewing-gums was then measured (in Newtons, N) by means of an Instron type 4502 device.

The hardness of the 5 mm thick chewing-gum tablets was measured during cooling at three successive S..temperatures (45 0 C, 35 0 C and 20 0 C) and at three different times during storage at 20 0 C in an atmosphere of 20 relative humidity (that is, after 1 day, 8 days and days of storage).

The results are shown in the following table: a, a. a a a a* Chewing gum Hardness during cooling Hardness during storage 45 0 C 35 0 C 20 0 C 1 day 8 days 15 days 1 2.8 4.8 14.7 15.4 15.5 16.5 2 2.4 4.0 11.3 12.6 12.7 13.0 3 2.8 5.6 17.9 16.9 17.1 17.5 4 0.7 2.1 4.7 8.1 8.3 8.3 1.2 2.5 8.0 10.0 11.8 12.5 n_ 16 Iditol has a greater anticrystallizing action than xylitol.

The addition of small amounts of iditol to the powdered sorbitol (chewing-gums 2 and 4) enabled the hardness of the chewing-gum to be reduced considerably during manufacture and storage.

EXAMPLE 3 Hard sugarless gums Several sugarless hard gums with a xylitol or sorbitol (control tests) base and an iditol base were prepared using the recipe given in the following table.

Composition used (by weight) Xylitol Sorbitol Iditol Lycasin® 80/55 260.7 260.7 260.7 dry matter) Xylitol 124.4 Sorbitol 124.4 Iditol -124.4 Gum arabic solution 614.9 614.9 614.9 52% (dry matter) Flavouring -colouring qs* qs* qs* *qs sufficient quantity LYCASIN® 80/55 is a maltitol syrup marketed by the applicant company.

The xylitol used may, for example, be the one marketed by the applicant company under the trademark 20 XYLISORB® 700.

S

5* S S r 5*

S

5* 17 The sorbitol used may, for example, be the one marketed by the applicant company under the trademark NEOSORB® The operating method for preparing these hard sugarless gums consists, successively, of: heating the mixtures of LYCASIN® 90/55-iditol, LYCASIN® 80/55-xylitol and LYCASIN® 80/55-sorbitol at 150 0 C under atmospheric pressure; cooling to 110 0

C;

adding the gum arabic solution, the colouring and flavouring; casting in starch moulds; baking at 35 0 C for two d; days until a final brix of The compositions obtained are shown in the fc ays then at 40 0 C for about six f 89 is obtained.

of the sugarless gums thus ollowing table.

Composition Xylitol Sorbitol Iditol Lycasin® 80/55 27.2 27.2 27.2 dry matter) Xylitol 17.3 Sorbitol 17.3 Iditol 17.3 Gum arabic solution 44.5 44.5 44.5 52% (dry matter) Flavouring -colouring qs* qs* qs* Residual water 11.0 11.0 11.0 *qs: sufficient quantity a.

18 Stability tests were carried out by placing the hard sugarless gums in a microclimate at 60% relative humidity and at 20 0 C for 10 days. At the end of this period, the hard sugarless gums were tested and graded according to their stability, their sweet flavour and their hardness. The grading scale is as follows: low high very high The results of the stability tests obtained for the hard sugarless gums are shown in the following table.

Stability Sweet flavour Hardness Gum with iditol Gum with xylitol Gum with sorbitol P* o

Claims

1. A sweetening composition characterised in that it comprises 5 to 100% by weight of iditol compared to the total dry matter.

2. A composition according to claim 1, characterised in that it comprises at least one polyol other than iditol.

3. A composition according to claim 2, characterised in that the said polyol is selected from the group consisting of threitol, erythritol, xylitol, arabitol, ribitol, sorbitol, mannitol, maltitol, maltrotritol, maltotetraitol, lactitol, hydrogenated isomaltulose, glycerin, hydrogenated starch hydrolysates, sorbitol being preferred.

4. A composition according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that it is in powder form.

A composition according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that it is in the form of a syrup. 20

6. A food product characterized in that it comprises a composition according to any one of claims 1 Sto

7. A food product according to claim 6, characterized in that it consists of a sugarless chewing- 25 gum comprising of 5 to 85% by weight, compared to its total dry matter, a composition according to any one of claims 1 to

8. A chewing-gum comprising a) 15 to 60% base gum, 30 b) 0.5 to 80% of at least one polyol, c) to 10% of a maltitol syrup, c) 0 to 10% of a maltitol syrup, ~I I_ _I _1 d) 0 to 10% of a plasticizer selected from the group consisting of glycerin, propylene glycol and their mixtures, characterized in that to 30% of the polyol is iditol.

9. A chewing-gum according to claim 8, characterized in that the polyol is sorbitol.

A chewing-gum according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that 2 to 25% of the polyol is iditol.

11. A composition as defined in claim 1 substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to examples numbers 1 to 3. S e 00 e *o