Optimising sweet taste in foods

A sweet taste is often a critical component in a consumer's sensory evaluation of a food product. This important book summarises key research on what determines consumer perceptions of sweet taste, the range of sweet-tasting compounds and the ways their use in foods can be optimised.

The first part of the book reviews factors affecting sweet taste perception. It includes chapters on how taste cells respond to sweet taste compounds, genetic differences in sweet taste perception, the influence of taste-odour and taste-ingredient interactions and ways of measuring consumer perceptions of sweet taste. Part 2 discusses the main types of sweet-tasting compounds: sucrose, polyols, low-calorie and reducedcalorie sweeteners. The final part of the book looks at ways of improving the use of sweet-tasting compounds, including the range of strategies for developing new natural sweeteners, improving sweetener taste, optimising synergies in sweetener blends and improving the use of bulk sweeteners.

With its distinguished editor and international team of contributors, Optimising sweet taste in foods will be a standard reference for the food industry in improving low-sugar and other foods.

Edited by W.J. Spillane.

Contents

• Introduction

Part I - Factors affecting sweet taste perception

• Stimulation of taste cells by sweet taste compounds
• Genetic differences in sweet taste perception
• Children's liking of sweet tastes and its biological basis
• Taste-odour interactions in sweet taste perception
• Taste-ingredient interactions modulating sweetness
• Measuring consumers' perceptions of sweet taste

Part II - Types of sweet tasting compounds

• Sucrose
• Polyols
• Low-calorie sweeteners
• Reduced-calorie sweeteners and calorie alternatives

Part III - Improving sweet tasting compounds and optimising their use in food

• Analysing and predicting properties of sweet-tasting compounds
• Discovering new natural sweeteners
• Molecular design and the development of new sweeteners
• Developing new sweeteners from natural compounds
• Improving the taste of sweeteners
• Analysing and predicting synergy in sweetener blends
• Bulk sweet tasting compounds in food product development
• Hydrocolloid-sweetener interactions in food products
• Future directions: using biotechnology to discover new sweeteners, bitter blockers and sweetness potentiators

Hardback book - 448 pages

ISBN-13: 978 184569 008 3