Erythritol, a New Raw Material for Food and Non‐food Applications

Abstract

In response to an increasing demand from consumers for healthier and calorie controlled foods, Cerestar has developed a new food ingredient, erythritol. Erythritol can be produced from starch by a full biotechnological process, combining enzymatic and fermentative conversions. The use of an osmophilic yeast allows the fermentation step to be performed at high dry substance, giving an economic advantage. An extremely pure end product is then easily obtained by final crystallisation. Erythritol is structurally a polyol and shares the health properties of other polyols such as being toothfriendly and safe for diabetics. However, it offers in addition two very important nutritional advantages: a lower calorific value (0.3 Kcal/g) and a good tolerance. This is due to its low molecular weight, which allows erythritol to be rapidly absorbed from the small intestine, with subsequent excretion in the urine. Fermentation in the colon is therefore excluded and any resulting gastro‐intestinal discomfort avoided. The combination of these properties makes erythritol a unique low calorie bulk sweetener. From a functionality point of view, erythritol is a moderately sweet bulking agent with a cooling taste: workability is similar to other polyols. It has a taste profile close to that of sucrose and may therefore improve the taste quality of a blend with intense sweeteners. Its low solubility and ease of crystallisation, make erythritol very suitable for applications which require a crystalline sweetener, such as chocolate. Other potential application areas are bakery, table‐top and confectionery. Presently erythritol is under evaluation to establish beyond any doubt its safety and to obtain food approval as a new, low calorie, bulk sweetener. Potential non‐food applications of erythritol are in polymers, fine chemicals and pharmaceutical intermediates.

High-level production of erythritol by mutants of osmophilic Moniliella sp.

“…It has also been reported that Leuconostoc oenos produces erythritol, but only under anaerobic conditions [10]. Erythritol is the first sugar alcohol to be produced commercially by fermentation [2]. The compound is industrially produced by the yeast, Aureobasidium sp., which is isolated from the soil of a sugarcane plant in Okinawa.…”

“…It has also been shown to be insulin independent and non-carcinogenic. Erythritol is highly heat resistant and not susceptible to browning reactions with amino acids, both good properties for processing [2].…”

“…It can also be found in fermented foods, such as wine, soy sauce, and sake [1]. Although the sweetness of erythritol is about 70-80% that of sucrose, it is lowcalorie: the in vivo heat consumption is less than 0.3 kcal/g, 10% that of sucrose [2]. Erythritol has a high negative heat when dissolved in solution, providing a strong cooling effect [3].…”

Glycemic Effects of Rebaudioside A and Erythritol in People with Glucose Intolerance

“…The sweetness of erythritol is about 70% to 80% that of sucrose, and its calories are only 10% of the calories in sucrose [6]. …”

Factors Influencing Crystallization of Erythritol in Aqueous Solutions: A Preliminary Study

“…Erythritol, a representative of the chemical class of polyols, exhibits a sweetness of 60 to 80% of the sweetness of sucrose (Röper & Goossens, 1993;Yoon et al, 2003). Generally, erythritol has not been extensively used as sugar replacer since it has just been approved as a bulk sweetener in the European Union in 2008.…”