Questions & Answers
from "On Ice Cream" featured in Dairy Foods magazine
and sourced from "On Ice Cream" technical short courses.

No Sugar-Added Ice Cream:

Question: What sugar replacement options are available for no-sugar-added ice cream? How can I maintain quality throughout the shelflife of the product?

Answer: The composition of no-sugar-added ice cream must take into account the regulatory requirement that the amount of simple “sugars” from all added ingredients cannot exceed 0.5g per serving. It's also necessary to consider elements of functionality other than the simple loss of sweetness due to conventional sweeteners being removed. This includes bulking effect, water immobilization (essential to maintaining shelflife) and freezing point management. A broad range of ingredients is available to provide these functionalities. The proper ingredient combination must take into account the complex interactions between ingredients, the targeted product properties (including sensory attributes) and cost.

A detailed review of these ingredients, either individually or in combination, is not possible in this space. Each ingredient and combination has its own set of useful properties. It is usually the case that combinations of ingredients are needed to deliver the desired < 0.5 g added sugar per serving, sweetness (14-18% sucrose equivalent), proper water management (solids and bulk), desired freezing point management, flavor performance and cost.

High-intensity sweeteners such as aspartame, acesulfame K and sucralose can typically provide most or all of the desired sweetness. However, there are limits with these sweeteners based on flavor contribution, cost and consumer perception. A combination of sweeteners can minimize flavor impact, reduce cost, improve sweetener stability and enhance perceived sweetness. Some bulking agents may effectively minimize the flavor contribution of high-intensity sweeteners as well. As high-intensity sweeteners provide no significant added solids to the mix, the selection of the proper bulking agent(s) to provide both water management and freezing point depression is daunting and complex.

Ingredients used can be self-limiting. For example, increasing the level of milk-solids-nonfat is restricted due to its potential impact on sandiness. Other limitations include the addition of simple sugars (after all, this is to be a no-sugar-added product), the contribution of undesirable flavors, the reaction of consumers to the addition of certain ingredients (is the ingredient "consumer friendly"?), any laxative effects (from ingredients such as sorbitol, polyols, hydrogenated starch hydrolysates, glycerin, etc.), regulatory limits and over stabilization. Again, blends can be used to balance desired sensory attributes, process stability, shelflife stability and cost. Finally, the use of freezing profile analysis to determine the amount of water frozen at various temperatures can effectively assist in the selection and use of mix ingredients for no-sugar-added products. As always, care is necessary to insure success.