Prepared Foods talks sugar reduction and sweeteners with Elizabeth Sisel, manager of taste modulation at Imbibe Inc. Imbibe is a Niles, Ill., beverage development company focused on the formulation, customization and commercialization of cutting-edge beverage products.

Finding the sweet spot for taste, texture and nutritional profile is a challenge for beverage brands because consumer sentiments about desired product attributes are changing faster than ever.

Sigma Syrup provides superior taste and overcomes solubility challenges encountered when using other stevia sweeteners in products, which are high in sweetness intensity, such as syrups and liquid tabletop sweeteners.

Ingredion and SweeGen were the first suppliers to commercialize Reb M by bioconversion in early 2017. Reb M is a non-caloric stevia sweetener that provides sweetness with a clean, sugar-like taste and enables food and beverage manufacturers to reduce sugar, without sacrificing taste.

Strategies for reducing sugar intake feature a combination of sugar reduction, sugar substitution and moving beyond sweetness to alternative tastes. These methods are often supported by a combination of functional formulations and blends, next generation sweeteners and other technological developments.

The new Super V Fruit represents a major step in improving and securing the end-to-end monk fruit supply chain, naturally and without the use of GMO.

Cargill’s sugar-reduction tools were on full display. EverSweet stevia sweetener teamed up with Cargill’s new ClearFlo botanical extract in a peach tea-flavored energy shot, packed with 150mg of caffeine--with no added sugar necessary.

Sugar reduction efforts from food and beverage processors include product reformulations, as well as new offerings with reduced sugar or zero sugar content.

Despite a myriad of alternative sweeteners, reducing sugar in foods and beverages is a big challenge for product developers.

New functional foods, drinks and supplements introduced to the Better For You segment in July 2018.