A New Force of Sugar Substitute - Allulose

The global popularity of sugar-free diet has fully detonated the market demand for sugar substitute products. After experiencing artificial sugar substitutes in the 1.0 era, natural sugar substitutes and sugar alcohols in the 2.0 era, and continuous optimization iterations, China's sugar substitute products are about to usher in the 3.0 era with allulose as the mainstay.

The safety of allulose was certified by the US FDA as early as 2011, and it is allowed to be used as a dietary additive and some food ingredients. It was followed by regulatory approvals in 13 countries, including Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand. In the Chinese market, in August 2021, the National Health and Medical Commission has accepted the application of Allulose as a new food raw material, and it is expected to be approved in the second half of 2023 or 2024.

Allulose has almost zero calories and has special functions such as regulating blood sugar that are beneficial to human health. It is evaluated as the most potential sucrose substitute by the US foodnavigator and will become another popular natural sweetener that will sweep the world after stevia and erythritol.

Key benefits of allulose:

1. Low heat.

The sweetness of allulose can reach 70% of sucrose, and the calories are almost zero. The taste is softer and more delicate than other sweeteners. Under various temperature conditions, it has a stable pure sweetness that is very similar to high-purity sucrose. Allulose is 70% as sweet as sucrose, but has only 0.4 calories per gram (compared to 4 calories per gram of sucrose), and is in high demand overall. Allulose is metabolized differently from sucrose and does not raise blood sugar or insulin, making it an attractive natural sweetener for consumers concerned about blood sugar.

2. Strong stability.

It has strong stability under high temperature and acidic environment, can produce Maillard reaction, has better anti-oxidation ability, and is suitable for baking products. Allulose is used wonderfully in baked goods such as rolls, cakes, pies, pastries, biscuits and frostings, and the tastes and functions very similarly to sugar, which can help products develop the same structure and texture as sucrose. Furthermore, allulose can extend the shelf life of products and improve product moisture retention, etc.

3. High security.

In terms of safety, allulose is made from fructose extracted from corn or sugar beet through enzymatic epimerization, which is a natural product with high safety.

Allulose hardly undergoes metabolism after intestinal absorption. Oral tests show that allulose is easily absorbed into the blood through the small intestine, and most of it is excreted through urine within 7 hours, only a small amount of allulose absorbed through the small intestine is metabolized and released from the body. Allulose is not metabolized after entering the human body, so it will not cause gastrointestinal discomfort, and can inhibit fatty liver enzymes and intestinal α-glucosidase, thereby reducing the accumulation of body fat and inhibiting the rise of blood sugar concentration.

As the concept of "sugar-free" is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, the market size of sugar-free diet products continues to expand, and sweeteners play a vital role in the development of sugar-free products. However, at present, the mainstream sweeteners in our country restrict the development in terms of taste and raw material supply.

The discovery and application of allulose powder is a breakthrough in the market of sugar substitute products!

With the upgrading of domestic technology and the improvement of cost performance, coupled with its excellent characteristics such as good taste, heat resistance, high temperature resistance, and hypoglycemic properties, the application of allulose will continue to expand, and there will be another better choice for sugar-free products.

At present, the production of wholesale allulose by allulose manufacturers in China is mainly used for exporting overseas. Once it is approved for use in the food field in China, what kind of development prospects will it bring to the sugar-free diet market? We will wait and see!