Tagatose Powder

Tagatose powder is a new type of low-calorie sweetener. The biggest advantage of tagatose is that its sweetness is close to that of sucrose, and its sweetness is 92% of that of sucrose.
Tagatose is an epimer of fructose. Tagatose has one-third the calories of sucrose and its texture and appearance are also similar to sucrose.
Its large-scale production uses galactose as raw material and is made through steps such as isomerization, decolorization, desalination, concentration, and crystallization. Or use synthetic biology technology to increase the production of D-Tagatose. Its appearance is a white crystalline powder at room temperature.
Tagatose is considered safe by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and has been approved by the US FDA and the European Union.

1. Tagatose can increase sweetness when used with other sweeteners and can present a unique flavor. This eliminates the metallic, bitter and astringent taste produced by some sweeteners.
2. The absorption rate of Tagatose in the human body is low, and there is no significant change in blood sugar levels. Only 20% is absorbed by the small intestine, and most of it is fermented by intestinal microorganisms, which is beneficial to the growth of beneficial bacteria and improves the intestinal flora.
3. It is easy to caramelize at low temperatures, making it easier to produce ideal color and mellow flavor than sucrose.

Tagatose powder is prone to caramelization reaction and can be used as a substitute for sucrose in food processing.
In 2003, tagatose was approved as a food additive by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and passed the "Generally Recognized as Safe" certification.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) approved tagatose as a new food ingredient.
The Korean Food and Drug Administration approved tagatose as a health functional food.
1. Application in baked goods
Adding 1% tagatose in baking can shorten the coloring time of food and can be added to products that need to be given color.
Added to bread, tagatose can replace sucrose.
2. Improve the taste of dairy products.
Tagatose can be used in yogurt to provide sweetness and rich flavor while increasing the number of viable bacteria in the yogurt and improving the nutritional value of the yogurt.
3. Tagatose can be used as a sweetener in chewing gum or other candies. The anti-caries functional properties of tagatose have great potential in this field.

Reference

[1]. Koh, J. H., Choi, S. H., Park, S. W., Choi, N. J., Kim, Y., and Kim, S. H. (2013). Synbiotic impact of tagatose on viability of Lactobacillus rhamnosus strain GG mediated by the phosphotransferase system (PTS). Food Microbiol. 36, 7–13. doi: 10.1016/j.fm.2013.03.003

[2]. Adachi, S. Formation of lactulose and tagatose from lactose in strongly heated milk. Nature 181, 840–841 (1958).