Bell Flavors & Fragrances claims that its REDsugar natural flavour range helps to keep complex matrices in applications, closing the “sugar gap” and helping to maintain mouthfeel, taste and texture.

Sugar reduction is one of the central topics of the food and beverage industry, notes Bell Flavors and Fragrances, especially in Western Europe. Political restrictions, efforts by manufacturers to reduce the sugar content in their products, and consumers increasing health awareness are encouraging reformulations, leading to a rising demand for sugar-reduced products, especially within the beverages, dairy and ice cream segments. The reduction of sugar in food products represents a major challenge for manufacturers,the company believes, as not only technical product properties within the production process are affected, but above all taste, mouthfeel and texture.

Bell says it offers functional solutions to this problem that not only positively influence the taste, mouthfeel and ultimately the texture of sugar-reduced products, but are also in line with consumers clean labelling expectations.According to market data, Bell notes, almost 90% of global consumers pay attention to sugar, sweeteners or related claims when choosing food and drinks. Growing aspirations for healthy food choices and increasing concerns on sugar intake are driving the food and beverage industry to respond with reformulation of products or new developments based on less or low sugar. At the same time, governments have set up taxes on sugar-sweetened products, making reformulation inevitable in many Western European countries.The industry is therefore, the company believes, facing challenges, as successful products need to be adapted using natural ingredients, less sugar and by substituting artificial sweeteners, with only slight compromises on taste being accepted by the consumer.As sugar is an active ingredient, says Bell, it is not only responsible for sweetness perception, but also impacts other major sensory attributes within the products’ formulation. Bell claims that its REDsugar natural flavour range helps to keep complex matrices in applications, closing the “sugar gap” and helping to maintain mouthfeel, taste and texture, while delivering a positive impact on the sweet perception of a product. As a result, the company claims, sugar content can be decreased by at least 30%, depending on the application.