• The food industry is going through a period of profound transformation in how product sweetening is managed.
The pressure comes simultaneously from three directions: consumer demands for less added sugar, increasingly strict regulations in many countries, and the imperative need for final products to remain as tasty and attractive as before. The result? An accelerated innovation race in which classic sugar is gradually replaced by alternatives capable of reproducing not only the sweet taste, but also all the technological functions that sugar performs in doughs and creams.
Sucrose remains, for now, the undisputed queen of industry recipes, representing almost 80% of the sweetener market due to its unique ability to provide browning, volume, moisture retention and yeast fermentation. Alongside it, liquid syrups – glucose, invert sugar or high-fructose corn syrup (known in the European Union as isoglucose) – are indispensable when soft texture and extended shelf life are needed.
For products with reduced sugar or calories, sugar alcohols such as erythritol, xylitol, sorbitol and isomalt have become classic solutions, with erythritol recording the fastest growth in recent years. High-intensity sweeteners – stevia, sucralose, acesulfame-K – find their place mainly in glazes and fillings, although the challenge of taste remains topical. In the premium segment and clean label, honey, maple syrup, agave or fruit concentrates bring natural flavor supported by the marketing story, even if the price and difficulty of processing limit their widespread use.
Global innovations
But the real revolution comes from the next generation of sweeteners, which promise to surpass the limits of current solutions. Among them, allulose (also known as D-psychosis) is characterized by its behavior almost identical to regular sugar: it browns, adds volume, withstands freezing and thawing, and has only 0,2–0,4 kcal per gram. With a sweetness of about 70% compared to sucrose and a taste profile close to fructose, allulose has already become a star ingredient in South Korea and is starting to conquer global markets. Recently, a Korean manufacturer obtained the first Novel Food authorization for allulose in Australia and New Zealand, paving the way for its free use in products with no added sugar – unlike many other intensive sweeteners or polyols, which are treated as food additives.
Another rare sugar that is attracting attention is tagatose, present in small amounts in some fruits and dairy products. With demonstrated prebiotic properties and a good taste, tagatose is seen as a promising alternative for both gut health and glycemic index reduction.
In parallel, the stevia industry is undergoing a veritable renaissance. The latest generation of steviol glycosides – particularly rebaudioside M and rebaudioside D – offer a much better taste, without the bitterness or metallic aftertaste that limited previous generations. Several companies have announced massive expansions of production capacity in Europe and the US, and recent strategic partnerships now allow for the industrial-scale manufacture of Reb M variants obtained entirely on the American continent, through bioconversion. In the UK, authorities have recently approved the use of glycosides produced through bioconversion, aligning the UK market with the European one and facilitating large-scale reformulation.
Complex hybrid systems
More and more manufacturers are abandoning the idea of a single sweetener "marvel" and adopt complex hybrid systems. A common recipe: 30–50% of the sugar is replaced with a mixture of erythritol or allulose for bulk, prebiotic fibers (inulin, polydextrose) for texture and moisture retention, plus a small amount of state-of-the-art stevia or sweet protein for flavor intensity. To these are added flavor modulators and bitterness blockers, enzymes that modify the structure of carbohydrates, or even sucrose esters that compensate for the structural role of traditional sugar.
An increasingly popular strategy is to gradually, almost imperceptibly, reduce sugar – a few percent with each reformulation, without visibly announcing the change on the packaging. This way, the consumer does not feel a major difference in taste or texture, and the brand slowly achieves its reduction goals without risking loss of loyalty.
The next 2–3 years will be decisive. Allulose is awaiting the green light in the European Union, where the Novel Food dossier is under review. If approved and priced competitively, it could become a game-changing ingredient in branded sweet products. "no added sugar". At the same time, steviosides New generation and multifunctional sweetening systems will continue to gain ground.
One thing is certain: the future of food sweetening will never be just sugar. It will mean smart combinations of ingredients that deliver the same taste pleasure, but with a much smaller impact on health. And the consumer, the most demanding jury, will ultimately decide which of these innovations are worth keeping on the shelf. So far, all signs point to the fact that it is possible to reduce the concentration of sugar without sacrificing good taste – and that is probably the sweetest news the industry could receive.
Article written by Gabriela Dan, Editor-in-Chief Arta Albă
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