Fermentation technology increases supply and lowers cost for sweet protein production

Sweet proteins are gaining broader adoption in sugar reduction formulations as suppliers leverage fermentation to expand volume and reduce ingredient costs, Food Business News reported. [1]

Brazzein is a naturally occurring sweet protein derived from the oubli fruit, a berry native to the equatorial regions and Atlantic coastal areas of Central Africa. Food Business News reported that sweet proteins are hundreds to thousands of times sweeter than sugar. According to Wikipedia, brazzein was named in 1994 by researchers at the University of Wisconsin, Madison and measures roughly 500 to 2,000 times sweeter than sucrose. [1][2]

Amy Chen, president and chief commercial officer for Davis, California-based Oobli, told Food Business News that sweet proteins bind directly to sweet taste receptors on the human tongue. Chen stated that these proteins digest like standard proteins, delivering sweetness without causing blood sugar spikes or gastrointestinal disruption. [1]