“Reducing sucrose is an emerging global trend and can be a challenge for manufacturers, who are looking to match the sweet taste of sugar while achieving the same functional benefits in their products,” says Tony DeLio, senior vice president of corporate strategy and chief innovation officer at Ingredion. “By combining our manufacturing network and global footprint alongside Matsutani’s pioneering work in rare sugars, we will bring exciting opportunities grounded in innovation to meet the needs of the evolving food industry ahead of sugar labeling changes.” 

Ingredion says the deal supports its goal to grow its specialties business to $2 billion in annual sales by 2022. 

“We are growing our trend-connected engine of innovation by expanding our footprint in Mexico and adding allulose to our diverse portfolio of sugar reduction solutions,” says Rob Ritchie, president and general director of Ingredion Mexico. “We look forward to leveraging Ingredion’s Idea Labs and applying our technical expertise to help manufacturers find the right solutions and create reduced sugar and better-for-you products with optimal texture and performance.”

Yoshinobu Matsutani is executive vice president at Matsutani.

“Matsutani spent more than 15 years developing, researching and refining the world’s first rare sugars including ASTRAEA Allulose,” he notes. “Matsutani has also produced more clinical studies and conducted more research on rare sugars than any other allulose supplier. We are excited to see Ingredion bring ASTRAEA Allulose to food and beverage formulators across the Americas.” 

ASTRAEA Allulose is a sweetener that tastes and functions like sucrose and is in the family of rare sugars. Allulose is absorbed by the body but not metabolized, making it nearly calorie-free. Allulose is one of the many types of monosaccharides that exists in nature in small quantities and can be found in certain fruits, including figs, raisins and jackfruit. 

Allulose has a texture and performance behavior similar to sucrose providing comparable bulk, sweetness and functionality (e.g., browning, freeze point depression). These properties make allulose an ideal ingredient for formulators as they look for ways to reduce calories from sucrose in the products they develop. 

Ingredion offers a versatile range of sugar-reduction solutions—from allulose and naturally based stevia leaf sweeteners to specialty polyols, low-sugar glucose syrups, short-chain fructooligosaccharides (scFOS®) and more. 

To learn more about ASTRAEA Allulose or find out how the experts at Ingredion Idea Labs® innovation centers use science-based problem-solving to boost the sweet appeal of your products, contact Ingredion at 1-800-713-0208 or visit www.ingredion.us.

About Ingredion

Ingredion Incorporated (NYSE: INGR) headquartered in the suburbs of Chicago, is a leading global ingredient solutions provider serving customers in more than 120 countries. With 2017 annual net sales of nearly $6 billion, the Company turns grains, fruits, vegetables and other plant materials into value-added ingredients and biomaterial solutions for the food, beverage, paper and corrugating, brewing and other industries. With Ingredion Idea Labs® innovation centers around the world and more than 11,000 employees, the Company develops ingredient solutions to meet consumers' evolving needs by making crackers crunchy, yogurt creamy, candy sweet, paper stronger, and adding fiber to nutrition bars. For more information, visit Ingredion.com.

About Matsutani

Matsutani Chemical Industry Co., Ltd., established in 1919 in Japan, is the global pioneer in the development and commercialization of rare sugars. With annual net sales of over $500 million and approximately 400 employees, the company has been focusing on ways to make processed foods tastier, healthier and more functional. Today, over 30 percent of foods in Japan that are recognized as FOSHU (Foods for Specified Health Use) use Matsutani’s functional food ingredients. For more information, visit the Matsutani website.