Ingredion Incorporated, a leading global provider of ingredient solutions to diversified industries, has announced that it has entered into a relationship with Japan’s leading producer of specialty ingredients Matsutani Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.
The Company will manufacture ASTRAEA Allulose in Mexico and market it across the Americas. Available in 2019, ASTRAEA Allulose will enable food and beverage manufacturers throughout the Americas to reduce calories from sucrose and other caloric sweeteners in a wide range of products, including beverages, dairy, bakery and confectionery items.
ASTRAEA Allulose is a sweetener that tastes and functions like sucrose and is in the family of rare sugars. Allulose is absorbed by the body but not metabolized, making it nearly calorie-free. Allulose is one of the many types of monosaccharides that exists in nature in small quantities and can be found in certain fruits, including figs, raisins and jackfruit.
Allulose has a texture and performance behavior similar to sucrose providing comparable bulk, sweetness and functionality (e.g., browning, freeze point depression). These properties make allulose an ideal ingredient for formulators as they look for ways to reduce calories from sucrose in the products they develop.