Hydrocolloids For Sugar Reduction in Granola

WHITE MARSH, Md.Food manufacturers wanting to reduce the amount of sugar in granola bars or other cereal bar varieties without compromising structural properties can look to TIC Gums' You Tube video series "Does This Have Gum In It."

This months video demonstrate how food gums and gum systems can replace the body and film forming that are lost when dissolved sugar is removed or reduced from this or other fully sweetened products. The series is hosted by Harold Nicoll, marketing manager for TIC Gums and Maureen Akins, technical manager for TIC Gums.

Replacing sweetness can be accomplished with high intensity sweeteners like aspartame or stevia. What is not easy to replace is the texture, stability, gloss, stickiness and film forming attributes sugar provides that is used to shape and hold cereal together. Sugar provides these because it is a solid. It is these properties that bind the parts of the granola together. Food scientists at TIC Gums invented a product that replaces the cling" needed to keep disparate ingredients like these together.

Add-Here 3200 is a proprietary line of hydrocolloids that replaces texture and binding qualities needed, but with significantly less sugar. Add-Here 3200 delivers other functional benefits as well. Traditionally sugar, honey or high fructose corn syrup are used for tying together ingredients like oats, shredded coconut, seeds, nuts and dried fruit into cereal clusters. Reduced sugar content in breakfast cereal and similar food products can potentially result in the loss of taste and textural appeal when compared to that of fully sweetened products. Add-Here 3200 is easily dispersible and readily soluble with a low enough viscosity to be sprayed. It can also reduce drying time by as much as 20%.