Method for preparing chewing gum and resulting product

Abstract

A method for preparing a chewing gum comprising an all natural gum base is disclosed. The resulting product is characterized by its hardness equivalent to that of chewing gums made using a synthetic fragrant sugar gum base.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a process for preparing chewing gum comprising an all-natural gum base. The resulting product is characterized by a hardness equivalent to that of chewing gum made using a synthetic gum base. Prior art

[0002] The use of natural gum bases, i.e. natural gum bases made only of natural ingredients and substances, in the manufacture of chewing gum is known. In particular, it is known that extracts of Manilkara belonging to the Sapotaceae family originating from the American continent, commonly known as chicle, have been used in the past to manufacture chewing gum. When using chicle to manufacture chewing gum, a gum base consisting solely of chicle cannot be used because the final product is extremely difficult to chew due to its physical and organic characteristics.

[0003] As a result, the chewing gum industry has developed gum base preparations using ingredients including synthetic elastomers (e.g., butyl rubber, styrene-butadiene rubber, and polyisobutylene), synthetic resins (e.g., rosin esters, polyvinyl acetate, and terpene resins), and synthetic or natural plasticizers (e.g., oils, fats, and triacetin), which impart the necessary softness to the finished product so that it can be chewed and used by the consumer.

[0004] Depending on the export market, chewing gum types made of different ingredients are currently available. A variety of chewing gums can be obtained by using gum bases with various properties, and those skilled in the art can appropriately select from gum bases with low, medium or high hardness to obtain a chewing gum of desired hardness for chewing.

[0005] In view of the increasing concern for the environment and the increasing research into foods whose composition is as completely or mainly based on natural ingredients as possible, there is considered a need for chewing gums with a gum base made exclusively from natural ingredients.

[0006] However, the manufacture of said chewing gums involves considerable difficulties, since the natural gum base tends to make them too hard, making them difficult to chew and causing the gum to break into small pieces, thereby causing an unpleasant sensation and the risk of accidental swallowing. Attempts to combine waxes such as candelilla wax with chicle have produced unsatisfactory results. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] The present invention provides a method for preparing a chewing gum which allows to consist only of natural ingredients used, in particular a chicle-based gum base, obtaining a final product whose hardness can be adjusted and which is comparable to chewing gums made from synthetic gum bases.

[0009] This objective is achieved by combining a natural gum base free of polymers (synthetic elastomers and synthetic resins) with a solution of pectin and sugar or polyols. Thus, a chewing gum having the desired hardness characteristics can be obtained, in particular a chewing gum having a hardness and palatability comparable to that of a chewing gum base consisting of synthetic ingredients. The plasticizing effect of a solution of pectin and sugar or polyols on a gum mass consisting only of natural ingredients is not yet clear; pectin has been used as an ingredient in chewing gum preparations, but for purposes different from those of the present invention. For example, GB2013473 discloses the use of pectin as a humectant additive, while JP60054644 describes the large-scale use of pectin as a dietary fiber, up to 80% of the weight of the gum base, with the sole purpose of manufacturing a dietary product with a high fiber content. EP252874 discloses a gum base comprising a polysaccharide, such as pectin in granular form, which has a thickener function. US20120087874 discloses the use of pectin in a solution, and an agent described as a "heating" agent, with which the pectin interacts to induce a sensation of heat in the oral cavity.

[0010] In its first aspect, the present invention relates to a process for preparing a chewing gum comprising:

[0011] a) adding sugar and / or polyol to a natural gum base mass free of synthetic polymers;

[0012] b) mixing the mass obtained in a) with an ungelled aqueous solution of pectin, sucrose or a polyol having a concentration of 30-50° Brix measured with a refractometer, the weight ratio of pectin:polyol or sucrose being 50:50-95:5;

[0013] c) adding essential oils, fragrances and optional other ingredients and mixing until a homogeneous mass is obtained;

[0014] d) processing the mass to form a chewing gum having a desired weight and shape.

[0015] In its second aspect, the present invention relates to a chewing gum obtainable by said process.

[0016] The natural gum base used in the present invention comprises chicle, preferably in an amount exceeding 50%, more preferably exceeding 75%, and even more preferably exceeding 90% of the total weight of the gum base.

[0017] Solutions of ungelled pectin, sucrose or polyols are added to the gum mass, sugar, polyols and other ingredients in a percentage range of 3-7% by weight of the final product.

[0018] The solution of pectin, sugar and / or polyol preferably has a concentration of 43°±1° Brix measured by refractometer and a weight ratio of pectin:sugar and / or polyol of 80:20.

[0019] Pectin can be high methoxy, low methoxy or amidated pectin. Highly purified pectin that meets the E440 purity standard of additives is available on the market. Alternatively, crude extracts or products that naturally contain pectin, such as citrus fruit fiber or apple peel products, can be used.

[0020] "Non-gelled pectin" refers to pectin that has not been subjected to treatments or conditions that induce gelation, such as by using a combination of sugar and acidifying additives or using calcium salts. Thus, the ungelled pectin solution of the present invention does not contain acidifying additives or calcium salts.

[0021] The aqueous solution of pectin, sucrose or polyol preferably contains a pH adjuster, such as trisodium citrate, in a percentage range of 0.5-1% by weight of the solution.

[0022] Sugar and polyol are selected from sucrose, glucose, fructose, allulose, tagatose, maltose, isomaltulose, isomalt, maltitol, lactitol, sorbitol, xylitol, mannitol, erythritol and combinations thereof. The sugar used to make the mixture can be selected from sucrose from different sources: sugar cane, beet, agave or coconut. It may be unrefined (e.g. brown sugar, raw sugar, muscovado or demerara sucrose) or refined (white sugar). The sugar used is preferably crystalline, finely powdered. Preferably, crystal sugar (sucrose) is used.

[0023] Examples of polyols that can be used as sugar substitutes include isomalt, maltitol, lactitol, sorbitol, xylitol, mannitol, and erythritol. The polyols are preferably used in a crystalline form of varying particle sizes.

[0024] The sugar or polyol is typically used in an amount of 15% to 85% by weight of the final product, preferably 50% to 70% by weight of the final product.

[0025] Syrups such as glucose syrup, invert sugar, agave syrup, and maltitol syrup may also be used.

[0026] In a particular embodiment of the invention the chewing gum is free of said syrup.

[0027] In one embodiment of the invention, the chewing gum does not contain said syrup but comprises sucrose in an amount of 50% to 70% by weight of the final product.

[0028] Natural fragrance may be used, preferably consisting of essential oils in an amount of 1% to 2% by weight of the total mass and more preferably 1.5%.

[0029] Additional ingredients may be present in amounts of 0.1% to 10% by total weight.

[0030] A mixture of sugar or polyol, pectin and optionally trisodium citrate or another similar salt is prepared by dissolving the ingredients in water at a temperature above 70°C, preferably between 90°C and 98°C, mixing to the desired concentration, and then cooling to room temperature.

[0031] According to a preferred aspect, step a) is carried out at a temperature below the melting point of the natural gum base. The mass of natural gum base, preferably chicle, is placed in a mixer at a temperature below 80°C, typically at 25-50°C, to prevent the gum base from dissolving, and is typically mixed for 10-600 seconds, typically 60-180 seconds.

[0032] Gum base addition and mixing with the solution of pectin, sugar and / or polyol (step b) is typically carried out for a period of 10 seconds to 1200 seconds. Flavors and optional other ingredients may be added before or after said step.

[0033] The mass obtained is then processed by conventional methods using a set of specific knives until a single piece of the desired weight and shape is formed. For example, the mass can be transferred to an extruder for extruding a piece or a rope of chewing gum, which may also contain solid, viscous liquid or powdered fillers.

[0034] The chewing gum may then be coated; the sugar coating may be hard, brittle, soft, opaque or transparent.

[0035] The chewing gum obtained by said method is another object of the present invention and is characterized in that the gum base content is composed of the following substances: natural gum base without synthetic polymers, 20%-40% by weight of the final product, pectin, sucrose or polyol aqueous solution, 3-7% by weight of the final product, in a weight ratio of 50:50-95:5, with a concentration of 30-50° Brix measured by refractometer, natural flavors, 1%-2% by weight of the final product, sugar and / or polyol up to 100% by weight of the final product. The chewing gum of the present invention typically has a hardness of 690-350 N*mm.

[0036] The present invention is illustrated in detail in the following examples. Example

[0037] The following products were made by the method of the present invention: Individual tablets had no sugar coating, were rectangular, weighed 1.1 g each, and had a height of 5.1-5.5 mm.

[0038] Examples 1-6

[0039] Table 1: Examples 1-4: Compositions using natural gums

[0040]

[0041] Table 2: Examples of Compositions 5 and 6 using artificial gums

[0042]

[0043] Instrument evaluation

[0044] Instrumental evaluation uses the following equipment and setup. Hardness parameters can be evaluated by either instrumental or sensory methods.

[0045] MEMMERT IPP 55 Incubator

[0046] Setting = 24°C

[0047] Xtplus Texture Analyzer

[0048] Load Cell 500N

[0049] Probe: 8mm (steel cylinder)

[0050] Trigger force: 0.2N

[0051] Pre-speed: 5.4mm / min

[0052] Test speed: 100.2mm / min-STRAIN 55%

[0053] Speed ​​after test: 100.2mm / min

[0054] The test samples were conditioned in an incubator for 24 h and then analyzed with a texture analyzer. For each test sample, 32 pieces were used, the hardest and softest pieces were discarded, and the hardness was calculated as the average work (N*mm) required to penetrate the sample under the conditions.

[0055] Table 3: Instrumental hardness of the compositions of Examples 1-4 containing natural gums

[0056]

[0057] The increase of pectin solution decreased the hardness of the samples made according to the method of the present invention.

[0058] Figure 1 This correlation is also illustrated, showing that an increase in pectin solution leads to a linear decrease in hardness.

[0059] Sensory evaluation N1

[0060] Samples 1-4 were evaluated by four expert tasters to assess the acceptability of their hardness (Table 4).

[0061] Table 4: Acceptability assessment of samples containing natural gums

[0062]

[0063] Sensory evaluation N2

[0064] Eight expert tasters participated in the second sensory evaluation. Each taster received three blind samples and was asked to chew for 5 minutes and evaluate the samples using the following terms at the beginning and during chewing: "not too hard", "medium hard", "hard". The descriptors were assigned scores of 1, 2, and 3, respectively, and these values ​​were multiplied by the number of times each descriptor was associated with the sample. For each sample, the sum of the products represented the total hardness, as shown in Table 5.

[0065] Table 5: Sensory evaluation of hardness during chewing

[0066]

[0067] Example 3 of the present invention is closer to Reference Example 5 (made using an artificial gum base of medium hardness) than Example 6. In general, Example 3 demonstrates that the chewing is slightly harder at the beginning and the hardness is slightly softer during chewing than the two reference samples. When the average of the two hardnesses is calculated, Example 3 demonstrates that the hardness is slightly higher than Example 5, but slightly lower than Example 6. In summary, Example 3 made by the method of the present invention using a natural gum base has a hardness that is almost the same as the comparative example.

Claims

1. A method for preparing chewing gum, comprising: a) adding sugar and / or polyol to a natural gum base mass without synthetic polymers; b) mixing the mass obtained in (a) with an aqueous solution of ungelled pectin, sucrose or a polyol having a concentration of 30-50° Brix measured by a refractometer, the weight ratio of pectin:polyol or sucrose being 50:50-95:5; c) adding essential oils, fragrance and any other ingredients and mixing until a homogeneous mass is obtained; d) Processing the mass into chewing gum of desired weight and shape.

2. A process according to claim 1, wherein step (a) is carried out at a temperature below the melting point of the natural gum base.

3. A method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the natural gum base preferably comprises chicle in an amount higher than 50% by weight of the total gum base, more preferably higher than 75% by weight of the total gum base, and most preferably higher than 90% by weight of the total gum base.

4. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the amount of pectin, sucrose or ungelatinized solution of a polyol added is 3-7% by weight of the final product.

5. A process according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the solution of pectin, sucrose and / or polyol has a concentration of 43°±1° Brix measured with a refractometer and the weight ratio of pectin:sugar and / or polyol is 80:

20.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the pectin is high methoxyl, low methoxyl or amidated pectin.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the aqueous solution of ungelled pectin, sucrose or a polyol comprises a pH-adjusting agent.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the pH-adjusting agent is trisodium citrate, and its amount is 0.5-1% of the solution.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the sugar and polyol are selected from sucrose, glucose, fructose, psicose, tagatose, maltose, isomaltulose, isomalt, maltitol, lactitol, sorbitol, xylitol, mannitol, erythritol and combinations thereof.

10. The process according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the mixing of step b) is carried out for a period of 10 seconds to 1200 seconds.

11. Chewing gum, wherein the gum base consists of the following substances: A natural gum base without synthetic polymers, in a proportion of 20%-40% by weight; 3-7% by weight of an ungelled pectin, sucrose or polyol aqueous solution, in a proportion of 50:50-95:5 by weight, having a concentration of 30-50° Brix measured with a refractometer; 1%-2% by weight of natural flavors; and up to 100% by weight of sugar and / or polyol.

12. Chewing gum according to claim 11, characterised in that The hardness is 690-350N*mm.

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