Sweegen, a pioneer in wellness ingredient technologies and innovations, has just announced the commercialisation of its newest advance in sweetness, the high-intensity sweetener brazzein.
Starting in February, food and beverage brands seeking new ways to create better-for-you and reduced sugar products can begin product development activities with Sweegen’s Ultratia™ brazzein.
With the launch, Sweegen leads a few other players in bringing this new sweetener to the market. Samples are ready for brands interested in expanding their sugar reduction toolkits with cost-competitive ingredients to sugar. Brazzein is 500 to 2,000 times sweeter than regular sugar and zero-calorie, making it an excellent alternative to sugar, artificial sweeteners, and old generation nature-based sweeteners such as stevia rebaudioside A.
Sally Aaron, Sweegen’s Senior Vice President of Marketing said, “In 2021, Sweegen launched our Taste Blazer concept, which is a promise to the food and beverage industry that we will help forge a new path for creating truly better-for-you foods. Sweegen’s Ultratia™ brazzein is a key tool to help brands explore entirely new ways to improve the health profile of existing and new products.”
Brazzein is a protein sweetener that promises little to no bitter aftertaste and helps reduce sweet linger, thereby reducing the taste challenges that have historically been a problem in the natural sweetener space. Brazzein is ideal for sugar reduction across various food and beverage applications.
Aaron added, “With Sweegen’s growing and proprietary portfolio of Signature Sweetness Solutions, product developers have more creative possibilities for developing mainstream reduced sugar foods and beverages, as well as innovations for popular diets such as Keto and low-to-no carbohydrate lifestyles. With Sweegen’s Ultratia™ brazzein, coupled with our portfolio of advanced stevia sweeteners, and our Flavors for Taste Modulation, featuring bitter blocking technology, brands now have modern tools for creating great-tasting products with consumer appeal.”
The pressure for mainstream food and beverage products to migrate to a healthier sugar and calorie profile has never been greater. In January 2022, the World Health Organisation (WHO) European Region announced a new, voluntary Member State-led Sugar and Calorie Reduction Network to promote healthier diets and reduce overweight and obesity levels across the European region. The UK, which will lead the Network in its first 3-year term, reports that sugar intake exceeds recommendations across all age groups in the country. The WHO reports that excess sugar consumption is true in many other countries in the European region.
Sweegen’s CEO Steven Chen said, “We’re charting new territory in sugar reduction solutions by bringing Sweegen’s Ultratia™ brazzein to market.”
Brazzein’s extraordinary qualities enable it to join the ranks of other high-intensity sweeteners in a highly competitive way. Still, the quest to scale and commercialise has proven difficult until now. Found sparingly in nature, brazzein derives from the West African climbing plant’s fruit, oubli. To scale brazzein sustainably, Sweegen uses a proprietary precision fermentation process, a technology that produces clean and sustainable ingredients. In addition to scaling the manufacturing process, Sweegen is currently pursuing a range of global regulatory approvals.
Chen concluded, “The launch of Sweegen’s Ultratia™ brazzein demonstrates our prioritised commitment to opening access to groundbreaking sugar reduction solutions for the global food and beverage industry. We envision a better world through the lens of better foods for health and wellness.”
For more information, please contact info@sweegen.com or visit Sweegen’s website at www.sweegen.com.
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