Less sugar, more ice cream? US review explores ways to reduce sugar in dairy

18 Apr 2019 --- A new report by North Carolina State University (NC State) and the US National Dairy Council (NDC) is reviewing the options available to the dairy industry to reduce sugar in dairy products. Published in the Journal of Dairy Science, the review focuses on reducing sugar in products such as ice cream, yogurt and flavored milk without sacrificing taste.

Dairy is a staple food group that consumers opt for daily and dairy foods sales gross more than US$125 billion per year according to the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA). With dairy product popularity comes a demand from consumers for healthier, low-calorie products that taste the same as their higher-calorie counterparts. 

“Dairy foods represent a large market,” notes lead investigator Professor MaryAnne Drake, Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences, Southeast Dairy Foods Research Center, North Carolina State University. 

“The dilemma of how to reduce sugar content without sacrificing flavor and negatively affecting product sales is challenging, as sugar plays an important role in dairy foods, not only in flavor, but also in texture, color and viscosity. Replacing sugar can have negative effects, making substitution inherently difficult,” she explains.

The market, sugar taxes and hurdles in formulation
Reducing sugar intake remains a top priority for consumers and the industry, as sugar taxes came in to force in several markets in 2018. In an Innova Consumer Lifestyle and Attitudes Survey (2018), nearly seven out of ten consumers across the countries surveyed (US, UK, France, Germany, China and Brazil) have reduced their sugar intake. This is particularly so among the over 55 age group, with consumers in France and Brazil the most likely to consciously reduce sugar in their diet. 

The public health and consumer focus on health has increased in the past 20 years, leading to a significant push for healthier food choices including dairy products. The overconsumption of sugar, for example, can contribute to a host of issues such as hypertension, Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and dental decline.

Amid an environment where calls for reduced sugar formulations are intensifying, the ingredients sector is stepping up to the plate with a wave of innovation. Several recent business moves within the ingredients space suggest that stevia extracts and allulose will be among the key sweeteners to watch out for in 2019. 

Sugar reduction techniques
The review found that the most successful techniques for sugar reduction in dairy foods involve replacing sugar with nonnutritive sweeteners, whether natural or artificial because these provide the sweet taste desired by consumers without added calories. Direct reduction of sugar and lactose hydrolysis methods also show promise.

“Understanding current sugar-reduction techniques, research and consumer response to sugar reduction in dairy products is important for dairy manufacturers in order to design and produce sugar-reduced products,” notes Professor Drake. “Sugar reduction is an inherently difficult task due to the many functions of sugar in food products, but progress is being made in developing products which are acceptable to consumers.”

Further insights from the review
According to the NC State review, dairy products such as ice cream, yogurt and flavored milk are potentially high in unwanted added sugar. However, some of the standard processes for developing healthier food products, such as fat, sugar and salt reduction, result in an undesirable flavor. Sweet taste perception can also be affected by the texture of the food matrix and the presence of fat in the formulation. Other sugar reduction techniques include the hydrolysis of lactose, ultrafiltration and direct reduction. 

Furthermore, the researchers reviewed recent studies to assess the role of sugar, alternative sweeteners and sugar reduction in ice cream, yogurt and flavored milk and discuss the options available to the dairy industry.

Sugar reduction in ice cream
Ice cream is one of the most heavily consumed dairy products in the world, the review notes. To achieve the sweet taste desired by consumers, between 10 to 14 percent sugar needs to be added. Studies have shown that reduced sugar and reduced fat products, such as ice cream, show a higher propensity for a bitter aftertaste and a lower intensity of creaminess. 

Among the promising options the researchers found were:

• Calorie-reduced ice creams sweetened with sorbitol and sucralose were most accepted compared with other light vanilla ice creams or ice cream with a minimum reduction of 25 percent of the total energy, sugar or lipid.
• Erythritol and lactitol are sugar alcohols that have been used to create low-calorie ice cream. Erythritol is more commonly used for sugar reduction in ice cream because it provides volume and texture and is only a fraction of sucrose calories.
• Chocolate-flavored ice cream: Researchers propose a solution by marketing sugar-reduced chocolate ice cream to dark chocolate lovers, who already desire and tolerate substantially higher levels of bitterness.
• A study of frozen yogurt determined that substituting inulin and isomalt for sugar and fat led to a similar sweetness and a reduction in fat with no added sugar.

Sugar reduction in yogurt
Yogurt is generally considered a healthy food because of its nutritional content, but it is usually sweetened with sugar to increase palatability. Several studies have reported that liking yogurt is influenced by texture, aroma, and taste and that sweetness is an important component.

The review notes:

• Several studies found that sweetener blends of nonnutritive sweeteners have been very successful in reducing sugar content of yogurt.
• One study reported that it was possible to produce a probiotic yogurt successfully using sweeteners without affecting the viability of the probiotic microorganisms.

Sugar reduction in flavored milk
Flavored milk is popular among children and adults because of its taste and ability to meet the dietary requirements for dairy foods in the US. Studies have shown that flavored milk increases milk consumption, but reducing its sugar content can be costly. There have also been several studies into alternative ways of reducing sugar calories in chocolate milk with some contradictory results.

• One study showed that withdrawing a chocolate milk option meant that three or four additional foods needed to be added into the diet to replace the nutrients from milk, adding additional calories and cost. Therefore, sugar-reduced chocolate milk should be considered a cheaper alternative.
• In another study, parents preferred natural nonnutritive sweeteners over nutritive sweeteners as the sweetener source in chocolate milk.
• Some studies found that added sugar could be directly reduced in chocolate milk and still be accepted by children and adults if it did not exceed 30 percent.

“Reducing sugar is everyone’s responsibility in order to improve individual and public health and this review paper is timely to highlight options available to the dairy industry,” concludes Siva Kaliappan, VP of Product Research, NDC.