New sugar substitutes in citrus could change food and beverage industry

Replacing and reducing sugar in processed foods is a long-term goal of both the healthcare system and food and beverage industry. Consumers want a sweet-tasting juice, but they're also concerned about too much sugar consumption. Sugar can be a deadly attraction that sometimes leads to major health problems, including obesity and type 2 diabetes.

To date, reducing sugar in food without compensating for sweetness can reduce the taste of most food. Replacing sugar with artificial, non-caloric sweeteners such as saccharin, sucralose and aspartame can negatively impact flavor profiles by leaving a bitter and metallic aftertaste.

Researchers have made a breakthrough—discovering new, natural sweeteners in citrus for the first time.

They were able to identify a natural source for an artificial sweetener, (oxime V), that had never been identified from any natural source.

Research could lead to increased opportunities for the food industry to produce food and beverages with lower sugar content and calories while maintaining sweetness and taste using natural products.