A PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF FLAVOURED SWEET PRODUCTS AND THE PRODUCTS OBTAINED

Abstract: The process for the production of flavoured sweet products including, by way of sweetener, a crystalline sugar alcohol or mixture of sugar alcohols and possibly other sweeteners, is characterised in that the flavouring agent is previously incorporated in the sugar alcohol component used in the sweet product. The flavouring agent is incorporated in the sugar alcohol by a process which includes the steps of: a) heating the sugar alcohol to a temperature above its melting point until it has melted, b) cooling the melt to a temperature below its melting point until it reaches a metastable glassy state, c) adding to the melt in its glassy state under mixing conditions a quantity of the sugar alcohol in crystalline form of from 5 to 120 % by weight with respect to the weight of the molten mass and a quantity of flavouring agent sufficient to give flavour to the entire mass, and d) removing the heat under conditions in which the total mass is mixed in order to cause it to crystallise.

Description: A PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF FLAVOURED SWEET PRODUCTS AND THE PRODUCTS OBTAINED The present invention relates to the production of flavoured sweet products and, in particular, to sweet products containing, as the sweetener, sugar alcohols such as hexitols, pentitols and their derivatives and possibly other sweeteners. The use of sugar alcohols of the type indicated above is very widespread today, particularly for the production of sweet products with low calorie content and/or with low cariogenic activity. The problem at the root of the invention is particularly that of improving the development of flavour in flavoured sweet products of the type indicated above. The improvement in the development of flavour is particularly related to an organoleptic sensation of flavour enhancement, perceptible by the consumer when the sweet product is in contact with saliva at the moment of consumption. For this purpose, it has been found that the desired enhancement of the flavour of sweet products may be achieved by the prior incorporation of the flavouring agent in the sugar alcohol component, in the specified operative manner. Thus a first subject of the invention is a process for the production of flavoured sweet products including, by way of sweeteners, one or more crystalline sugar alcohols and possibly other sweeteners, characterised in that the flavouring agent is previously incorporated in the sugar alcohol component used in the sweet product, the flavouring agent being incorporated in the sugar alcohol by a process which includes the steps of: a) heating the sugar alcohol to a temperature above its melting point until it has melted, b) cooling the melt to a temperature below its melting point until it reaches a metastable glassy state, c) adding to the melt in its glassy state under mixing conditions, a quantity of the sugar alcohol in crystalline form of from 5 to 120% by weight with respect to the weight of the molten mass and a quantity of flavouring agent sufficient to give flavour to the entire mass , and d) removing heat under conditions in which the total mass is mixed in order to cause it to crystallise. A further subject of the invention is a process for the preparation of a flavoured sugar alcohol, in solid crystalline form, characterised in that it includes the incorporation of the flavouring agent by means of the operative steps a) , b) , c) and d) indicated above. A further subject of the invention is constituted by flavoured sweet products including, as the sweetener, a sugar alcohol incorporating a flavouring agent, as obtainable by the operative steps a) , b) , c) and d) indicated above. A further subject of the invention is a flavoured sugar alcohol or mixture of flavoured sugar alcohols obtainable by a process including the operative steps a) , b) , c) and d) indicated above. The sugar alcohols used in the invention are, in particular, hexitols and pentitols and their derivatives, such as, in particular, xylitol, sorbitol, lactitol, mannitol, maltitol, isomaltitol and -I-glucopyranoεyl-l,6-mannitol, c.-D-gl- ucoj-yranosyl-l,6-sorbitol and their mixtures. In the process of the invention, the sugar alcohols are used preferably in a substantially dehydrated form, e.g. with a water content not exceeding 5% wt. or preferably not exceeding 2% wt. The definition of sugar alcohol and "their derivates in accordance with the invention includes comπercial products such as PALATINIT (registered trade mark) and ISOMALT (registered trade mark). The preferred sugar alcohol used in the invention for the incorporation of the flavour is xylitol. The flavouring agents used in the invention include, but are not limited to, peppermint, spearmint, cinnamon, lemon, orange, citron, grapefruit, strawberry, cherry and pineapple in the form of essences and compounds, such as wintergreen (methyl salicylate) . The chemical nature of the flavouring agent is not critical in the incorporation process of the invention. The flavour enhancement achieved by the invention is particularly evident when the flavour used has aromatic components which give a fresh sensation; thus mint flavours are particularly preferred. The process of incorporating the flavouring agent in the sugar alcohol is preferably carried out in an autoclave under light pressure with inert gas; excess pressures of from 0.5 to 2 bars in an inert gas atmosphere are preferred, the gases in particular being nitrogen, argon and carbon dioxide. The use of an excess pressure of inert gas is advantageous in that it limits the loss of flavour. However, the process could be carried out at atmospheric pressure in an ambient environment . The quantity of flavouring agent added to the melt in its glassy state, in the operative step c) , may vary within wide limits according to the flavouring capacity of the flavours used. In general, quantities of from 0.5 to 10% by weight of flavouring agent with respect to the weight of the molten mass and, more preferably, from 1.5 to 2% by weight are used. The process of incorporating the flavour in the sugar alcohol results in the production of a sugar alcohol in flavoured crystalline form in which the flavouring agent is presumably co-crystallised in the crystal lattice of the sugar alcohol. The flavoured sugar alcohol thus obtained is used as a sweetener and in sweet products . The sweet products include, in particular, pastils and tablets (coated and uncoated) , chewing gum and bubble gum, soft caramels, toffees and chocolates. The quantity of flavoured sugar alcohol used in the products is preferably between 0.5 and 20% by weight, preferably 1 to 5% by weight, of the overall weight of the sweet product. The sweet product may also include other conventional sugars such as sucrose, glucose and possibly synthetic sweeteners . The flavours of the final sweet product may be introduced wholly or only partially by means of the flavoured sugar alcohol component as described above . In the preparation of the sweet product, the flavoured sugar alcohol component or mixture of sugar alcohols is preferably introduced as the final ingredient in the final stage in the production of the finished product, or of any intermediate products, in order to prevent the component from coming into contact with moisture or from being exposed to high temperatures which could alter the physical structure of the component itself. Example 50 kg of xylitol in powdered crystalline form were introduced into a 200 1 autoclave provided with a heat- exchange jacket and scraping stirrer. The autoclave was pressurised with nitrogen to 1.5 bar. Heating was carried out by means of the heating jacket up to a temperature of 110°C until the xylitol had melted, the molten mass being stirred slowly. The melt was then cooled to 80-82°C until it had reached its metastable glassy state. 50 kg of crystalline xylitol containing peppermint flavouring in quantities of 1 to 5% by weight of the weight of the molten mass (in this particular case 2% by weight) were then added under slow stirring. Slow stirring was continued while the heat of fusion of the xylitol which diffused through the molten mass was removed in order to cause the mass to crystallise. The product was discharged from the autoclave at the ambient temperature of 25°C. The product obtained was used as sweetener component in coated tablets having the following composition expressed in percentage terms: Ingredients % wt. Sucrose 80-95 Maltodextrin 2-10 Polyalcohols (xylitol, mannitol, lactitol, altitol) 2-6 Arabic Gum 1-5 Rice starch 0.5-5 organic acids (tartaric, citric, malic) 0.2-4 Wax (carnauba, beeswax, candle) 0.001-0.1 Natural and artificial flavourings 0.05-3 In order to produce the tablets, a granular composition was first formed by the mixing together of the sucrose, maltodextrin, arabic gum and polyalcohols in which flavourings as previously described had already been incorporated . The granular composition was then pressed to a desired shape in suitable tableting machines to obtain the cores. These latter were then coated with a sugar and starch solution in a bowl in which the cores were rotated and sprayed with small quantities of sugar solution to which further quantities of flavourings may have been added in known manner. Thus the final tablets were obtained. Comparative example By way of control, coated tablets were prepared with the same formulation as that described in the above example but in which the flavouring agent was added to the composition in the conventional manner. Tests carried out by a panel of 100 tasters showed that the tasters had a general preference for the product obtained by the invention with respect to the following parameters : - general preference, - sensation of greater freshness, - improved mint flavour, and - enhancement of flavour. The results of these tests are given in the single figure which shows a histogram, in which the overall evaluation vote of the tasters for the tablets of the invention and for those made in the conventional manner respectively are given on the abscissa and the numbers of tasters who expressed a particular vote are given on the ordinate .

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A process for the production of flavoured sweet products including, by way of sweetener, a crystalline sugar alcohol or mixture of sugar alcohols and possibly other sweeteners, characterised in that the flavouring agent is previously incorporated in the sugar alcohol component used in the sweet product, the flavouring agent being incorporated in the sugar alcohol by a process which includes the steps of : a) heating the sugar alcohol to a temperature above its melting point until it has melted, b) cooling the melt to a temperature below its melting point until it reaches a metastable glassy state. c) adding to the melt in its glassy state under mixing conditions, a quantity of the sugar alcohol in crystalline form of from 5 to 120% by weight with respect to the weight of the molten mass and a quantity of flavouring agent sufficient to give flavour to the entire mass, and d) removing heat under conditions in which the total mass is mixed in order to cause it to crystallise. 2. A process according to Claim 1, characterised in that the sugar alcohol is selected from the group consisting of xylitol, sorbitol, lactitol, mannitol, maltitol, isomaltitol and glucopyranosyl derivatives of mannitol and sorbitol. 3. A process according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, in which the flavouring is incorporated in the crystalline sugar under a pressure of from 0.5 to 2 bar in an inert gas atmosphere . 4. A process according to any one of Claims 1 to 3 , characterised in that the flavouring agent is an essence or a compound selected from the group consisting of spearmint, peppermint, cinnamon, lemon, orange, citron, grapefruit, cherry, strawberry, pineapple and methyl salicylate . 5. A process according to any one of Claims 1 to 4 , in which the flavouring agent is added in stage c) in quantities of from 0.5 to 10% by weight of the molten mass . 6. A process for the preparation of a flavoured crystalline sugar alcohol, characterised in that it includes the steps of: a) heating the sugar alcohol to a temperature above its melting point until it has melted, b) cooling the melt to a temperature below its melting point until it reaches a metastable glassy state, c) adding to the melt in its glassy state under mixing conditions a quantity of the sugar alcohol in crystalline form of from 5 to 120% by weight with reference to the weight of the molten mass and a quantity of flavouring agent sufficient to give flavour to the entire mass, and d) removing heat under conditions in which the total mass is mixed to cause it to crystallise. 7. A process according to Claim 6, characterised in that the sugar alcohol is selected from the group consisting of xylitol, sorbitol, lactitol, mannitol, maltitol, isomaltitol, glucopyranosyl mannitol, glucopyranosyl sorbitol and their mixtures. 8. A process according to Claim 6 and Claim 7, in which the flavouring agent is selected from the group consisting of compounds or essences of spearmint, peppermint, cinnamon, lemon, orange, citron, grapefruit, cherry, strawberry, pineapple. 9. A process according to any one of Claims 6 to 8 , characterised in that the flavouring agent is added in stage c) in quantities of from 0.5 to 10% by weight with reference to the weight of the molten mass. 10. A process according to any one of Claims 6 to 9, characterised in that the flavouring agent is added under pressure in inert gas . 11. A sugar alcohol composition including a flavouring agent, obtainable by means of the process according to any one of Claims 6 to 10. 12. A flavoured sweet product, including a sugar alcohol component as obtainable by the process according to any one of Claims 6 to 10. 13. A sweet product according to Claim 12, particularly a coated tablet, including flavoured xylitol, as obtained by a process according to any one of Claims 6 to 11.

Inventors: DAMONTE TOMASO, DAMONTE, TOMASO
Applicants: DAMONTE TOMASO, FERRERO OHG, FERRERO SPA, SOREMARTEC SA, DAMONTE, TOMASO, FERRERO OFFENE HANDELSGESELLSCHAFT M.B.H, FERRERO S.P.A., SOREMARTEC S.A.
Application year: 1997
Main classification: A23G3
IPC codes: A23G3