What are the applications of Tagatose, a new food ingredient, in food?

National Announcement

On May 30, 2014, the National Health and Family Planning Commission issued the Announcement on the Approval of 6 New Food Ingredients Including Tagatose (No. 10 of 2014) to officially approve Tagatose as a new food ingredient. And the basic information, process, quality and scope of application of Tagatose are explained as follows:

Introduction of Tagatose

Tagatose is the differential isomer of fructose, and the industrial production is mainly made from galactose, through isomerization, decolorization, desalination, concentration, crystallization and other steps.

Tagatose has 92% of the sweetness of sucrose and only one-third of the calories of sucrose. It also has the processing characteristics of sucrose, and is prone to caramelization and melard reaction, so it can be used in food processing as a substitute for sucrose.
At the same time, when Tagatose is used together with other sweeteners, it has a gain effect on sweetness and can present a unique flavor.
The absorption rate of Tagatose in human body is low, only 20% is absorbed by the small intestine, and there is no significant change in blood glucose level. Most of Tagatose in human body is selectively fermented by intestinal microorganisms, which is beneficial to the value-added of beneficial bacteria and improves intestinal flora.
Application of Tagatose
3.1 Application in baked goods 1) Meladic reaction is more rapid in the bread products to add 1% Tagatose can shorten the coloring time by a quarter, add more than 2%, the color change is deeper, the taste has a bitter taste, it is not suitable to continue to add, so it can be seen that Tagatose Meladic reaction occurs more quickly, added in the need to give the color of the product, the effect of its effect has a strong expressive power.
(2) Replacing sucrose has outstanding performance in reducing the amount of sucrose. When 1% Tagatose is added to high-sugar bread products and sucrose is reduced by one-third, 85% of the people said that there was no change in taste, 10% said that the change was not obvious, and only 5% thought that the sweetness was insufficient.
When the sucrose content was halved, the sweetness was significantly reduced. In low-sugar breads such as French bread, Tagatose can completely replace sucrose with good substitution.
From the point of view of nutrition and process improvement, the application of Tagatose in bakery products has a broad prospect.
At the same time, the problems it faces are obvious. The first is to solve the problem of Tagatose cost, high quality and low cost products are the first choice of enterprises. The second is to improve the processing technology, the whole process from fermentation to baking need to clarify the functional mechanism, perfect process conditions in order to make it in the baking field.
3.2 Application in chewing gum The addition of small doses of Tagatose in chewing gum can prolong the time of sweetness and produce a special flavor, which can be added to chewing gum as well as used as a sugar coating.
Addition of more than 15% can produce flavors like peppermint oil and fruit, as well as enhance the peppermint oil flavor and promote some of the acidity in the fruit flavor, but does not increase gum viscosity.
Tagatose can be used in conjunction with other polyols and xylitol to make up for the disadvantage of diarrhea caused by high polyol use.
3.3 Application in beverages Low-energy beverages often lack texture and flavor compared to highly sweetened beverages. Adding 1% Tagatose to low energy beverages can produce better mouthfeel, mask undesirable flavors, reduce bitterness, and harmonize sweetness.
Tagatose added to cow’s milk based beverages like chocolate yogurt, fruit type yogurt can improve the poor flavor associated with the use of high sweetness sweeteners, obtaining good sweetness, prolonging sweetness and reducing bitterness at the same time.
3.4 Application in meat products Meat products such as cured meat and ham contain relatively high levels of carbohydrates (2% to 7%), which can easily lead to microbial contamination and thus economic losses.
In the meat industry, the requirements for preservatives and fungicides are very stringent, so the addition of carbohydrates that cannot be utilized by microorganisms to meat products can be considered.
Tagatose cannot be utilized by lactic acid bacteria that can cause spoilage and some pathogenic bacteria such as E. coli, Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, etc. If it is added to meat products, it can play the functional role of carbohydrates and prevent microbial contamination.
3.5 Application in health food Due to the prebiotic effect of Tagatose, it can effectively improve intestinal flora and prevent colon cancer, so it can be used as a raw material for health care functional food.