Sweetener composition

Abstract

Disclosed is a sweetener composition in which sucralose, which is a high-intensity sweetener widely used in foods, beverages, and the like, is added to a sweetener composed of a blend of erythritol and stevia, so as to effectively neutralize the characteristic bitter aftertaste that occurs with the blending of erythritol and stevia, thereby providing, overall, a mild and refreshing sweetness similar to that of sugar together with a clean aftertaste, and thus the preferences of general consumers accustomed to the mild sweetness provided by conventional sugar or fructose can be effectively satisfied.

Description

Sweetener composition

[0001] The present invention relates to a sweetener composition, and more particularly, to a sweetener composition that has far fewer calories than sugar, yet is improved to realize an excellent sweetness that is extremely similar to that of conventional sugar in terms of the speed and duration of sweetness onset, while at the same time minimizing the bitterness or chemical taste, which are characteristic of conventional alternative sweeteners and are felt as an aftertaste after consumption, thereby realizing an excellent sweetness quality almost at the same level as that of sugar, thereby effectively satisfying the tastes of general consumers who are accustomed to the sweetness provided by conventional sugar or fructose.

[0002]

[0003] Sugar is the most widely used sweetener in the world because it can provide a light, refreshing, high-quality sweetness. It is widely used in a variety of food products, including bread, cookies, candy, ice cream, and beverages, as well as processed foods such as ham and sausage, canned foods, and various seasonings and sauces.

[0004] However, in recent years, as income levels have risen and diets have become more affluent, the consumption of sugars such as sugar and high-fructose corn syrup has increased rapidly. As a result, excessive sugar intake has emerged as a major cause of various diseases, including frequent tooth decay, obesity, arteriosclerosis, diabetes, and other adult diseases. As a result, the negative impact of excessive sugar intake on health has become more evident, and social interest and efforts to solve this problem are accelerating.

[0005] Social efforts to reduce excessive sugar intake are being reflected in efforts to develop low-calorie alternative sweeteners that can replace high-calorie sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. In particular, in the case of sugar, which has been the most widely used sweetener for a long time, consumers' taste buds have become accustomed to its natural, refreshing sweetness and its long history of continuous use, making it difficult to find an alternative sweetener that can effectively replace it.

[0006] That is, high-sugar sweeteners such as saccharin, aspartame, and stevioside, which have been developed and used in various ways as substitute sweeteners for sugar, have a sweetness that is 150 to 500 times stronger than sugar, have almost no calories, and are relatively free from chemical reactions during the processing, so they are widely used in food processing. However, they have been pointed out as having the disadvantage of leaving an unpleasant aftertaste, such as a peculiar bitter taste and a somewhat chemical or metallic taste.

[0007] Recently, erythritol, a sugar alcohol that is very low in calories and provides a sweetness quite similar to sugar, is being used in many food products as a substitute for sugar. However, in the case of erythritol, although the onset of sweetness is similar to that of sugar, the sweetness then fades quickly, leaving a characteristic bitter aftertaste. In addition, the sweetness of erythritol is only about 70% of that of sugar, so when used as a substitute sweetener, the amount used actually increases compared to sugar. In this case, there is also a disadvantage in that diarrhea can be caused by consuming large amounts of erythritol.

[0008] Accordingly, as a means of providing a higher quality sweetness while complementing the above-mentioned shortcomings of erythritol, stevia is one of the most commonly used high-sweetness sweeteners, which is recently mixed with erythritol.

[0009] Stevia is a natural sweetener that has a high sweetness that is about 200 times that of sugar, and while the onset of sweetness is relatively slow compared to erythritol, the duration of sweetness is relatively long, so it can effectively complement the shortcoming of erythritol, which is that the taste cuts off too quickly, and at the same time, it can provide sufficient sweetness even with a small amount added, so it is the most widely used high-sweetness sweetener as an alternative sweetener to sugar mixed with erythritol recently.

[0010] However, stevia, like erythritol, has a unique bitter taste, and even when used in combination with erythritol, the problem of a unique bitter aftertaste remains, which has not been resolved yet. As a result, it is not sufficiently satisfying the tastes of consumers who are accustomed to the characteristic sweetness of sugar, which is light and refreshing.

[0011] In addition, there have been various attempts, such as an attempt to combine erythritol with a rare sugar such as D-psicose, as in Patent Publication No. 10-2017-0129102, or an attempt to reduce the characteristic bitterness of stevia by treating stevia with an enzyme, and then using the enzyme-treated stevia in combination with erythritol, as in Patent Registration No. 10-2578244. However, these attempts also have limitations in effectively removing the characteristic bitter aftertaste that appears in erythritol-based alternative sweeteners, and thus have not yet sufficiently satisfied the tastes of consumers who are accustomed to the characteristic sweetness of sugar.

[0012]

[0013] The present invention aims to provide a new sweetener composition that can overcome the shortcomings of the conventional alternative sweeteners described above, and realizes an excellent sweetness that is extremely similar to conventional sugar in terms of the speed and duration of sweetness development while having much lower calories than sugar, and at the same time effectively suppresses the bitterness that is characteristic of conventional alternative sweeteners and is felt as an aftertaste after consumption, thereby realizing a light and refreshing sweetness similar to sugar, thereby easily satisfying the tastes of general consumers who are accustomed to the sweetness provided by conventional sugar or fructose.

[0014]

[0015] In order to achieve the above-described purpose, the present invention provides a sweetener composition comprising erythritol as a main component, wherein a high-sugar sweetener containing stevia and sucralose is added in a range of 0.1 to 1.0 wt% per 100 wt% of erythritol, and wherein the stevia and sucralose blended in the high-sugar sweetener are blended in a range of 4:1 to 1:4, thereby eliminating the bitter aftertaste felt in conventional alternative sweeteners, thereby providing a sweetener composition that can effectively satisfy the tastes of general consumers who are accustomed to the mild sweetness of sugar.

[0016]

[0017] The sweetener composition according to the present invention has the advantage of being able to effectively neutralize the unique bitter aftertaste that appears in the combination of erythritol and stevia by adding sucralose, a high-sweetness sweetener widely used in foods or beverages, to a sweetener composed of a combination of erythritol and stevia, thereby providing a clean aftertaste along with a mild and refreshing sweetness similar to sugar overall, thereby effectively satisfying the tastes of general consumers who are accustomed to the mild sweetness provided by conventional sugar or fructose.

[0018] The sweetener composition according to the present invention is also a low-calorie sweetener composition having significantly lower calories than sugar, and can effectively suppress the occurrence of various physical and social problems caused by excessive intake of sugar. Furthermore, since it shows overall similar sweetness and sugar content to sugar, it has the advantage of being able to be used as a 1:1 substitute for sugar.

[0019]

[0020] Figure 1 is a sweetness analysis graph of sucralose included in a sweetener composition according to the present invention.

[0021]

[0022] Hereinafter, the sweetener composition of the present invention will be described in detail based on preferred embodiments of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments without departing from the gist thereof.

[0023]

[0024] As briefly discussed above, research results showing that excessive sugar intake is a major cause of various adult diseases and lifestyle diseases, including obesity, have been continuously reported until recently, and the most problematic sugars here are simple sugars, namely monosaccharides and disaccharides, especially refined sugar and high-fructose corn syrup.

[0025] In particular, sugar is a sweetener with excellent sweetness quality, and it forms the main sweetening ingredient of various food products, and is very widely used in various food industries such as confectionery and bakery as well as at home and restaurants. Accordingly, in recent years, in order to effectively prevent the excessive intake of sugars mentioned above, various alternative sweeteners are being steadily developed with the aim of providing a sweetness similar to sugar, which is widely recognized as lower in calories.

[0026] Here, the key factor for an alternative sweetener that can effectively replace sugar is not only its basic low calorie content, but also its ability to achieve excellent sweetness similar to that of sugar. This improvement in sweetness can be summarized as efforts to minimize impurities such as bitterness or chemical tastes caused by the alternative sweetener other than the refreshing sweetness unique to sugar, along with the speed of sweetness development, sweetness intensity, and sweetness duration.

[0027] The most widely used alternative sweetener that satisfies these conditions relatively well is a sweetener composition that mixes erythritol and stevia.

[0028] As previously mentioned, erythritol, a sugar alcohol, is a very low-calorie sweetener used in many food products as a sugar substitute. However, while erythritol's sweetness onset is somewhat similar to that of sugar, its sweetness dissipates much more quickly and leaves a characteristic bitter aftertaste, which can be a bit unpleasant for consumers.

[0029] Accordingly, the result of the attempt to compensate for the shortcoming of erythritol's too fast sweetness cut-off by adding a small amount of stevia, which has a high sweetness about 200 times higher than sugar but has a relatively slow onset of sweetness, while implementing an overall sweetness similar to sugar, using erythritol as the main ingredient, which shows a sweetness of about 70% that of sugar, is a sweetener composition mixed with erythritol and stevia, as mentioned above.

[0030] At this time, the quality of sweetness realized from such sweeteners is a very subjective and complex concept, just like the quality of wine, and is not simply expressed by variables that can be measured precisely physically, such as sugar content or acidity. Therefore, when judging the quality of sweetness, it is common to judge it through direct participation surveys by testers who are physically healthy and have relatively sensitive taste buds.

[0031] The mixing ratio of the erythritol and stevia combination discussed above was found to be the most suitable in the range of 0.1g to 1.0g of stevia per 100g of erythritol, based on long-term testing and accumulated experience, and more preferably, 0.1g to 0.4g of stevia per 100g of erythritol is more effective. Currently, various food or beverage industries mainly use sweetener compositions mixed in this ratio.

[0032] However, despite this complementary combination of erythritol and stevia, stevia, like erythritol, has a unique bitter aftertaste, so when using a sweetener made of a combination of erythritol and stevia, although it achieves a taste similar to sugar in terms of the timing of sweetness onset and duration, it still has the problem of a unique bitter aftertaste lingering in the mouth after the sweetness lasts for a certain period of time, and thus fails to sufficiently satisfy the tastes of consumers who are accustomed to the light and refreshing aftertaste of sugar.

[0033]

[0034] [Test Example 1] Sweetness Test of Erythritol / Stevia Combination Sweetener Composition

[0035] In order to test the sweetness of a sweetener composition consisting of a combination of erythritol and stevia, 30 taste panelists with prior experience in sensory evaluation of sweeteners were selected, and after providing the selected taste panelists with prior training necessary to express the taste attributes expressed by the sweetener, the sweetness characteristics of the sweetener composition were tested while changing the mixing ratio of erythritol and stevia.

[0036] The sweetness test was conducted by changing the concentration of stevia per 100 wt% of erythritol in the range of 0.1 wt% to 1.0 wt%, and having panelists drink an aqueous solution containing the sweetener composition dissolved therein, and comparing it to an aqueous solution containing sugar dissolved therein, to determine whether the sweetness felt in the aqueous solution and whether a bitter aftertaste was felt.

[0037] For sweetness, if a similar sweetness was felt compared to the aqueous solution containing sugar, the answer was set to “good”, and if a lack of sweetness was felt compared to the aqueous solution containing sugar, the answer was set to “insufficient”. For bitter aftertaste, if a bitter aftertaste was felt in the aqueous solution that was drunk, the answer was set to “yes”, and if not, the answer was “no”. The results are summarized in [Table 1] below.

[0038]

[0039] Sweetness Test of Erythritol / Stevia Combination Sweetener Composition Stevia concentration (wt%) per 100 wt% erythritol 0.10.51 Sweetness Good 273030 Poor 300 Bitter 272728 None 332

[0040]

[0041] As can be seen in [Table 1], in all typical blending ranges of erythritol and stevia currently used in various foods or beverages, the sweetness perceived by the panelists did not appear to be much different from that of sugar, but it can be confirmed that approximately 90% or more of the panelists responded that they felt a bitter aftertaste after the sweetness disappeared from the aqueous solution they drank.

[0042]

[0043] However, in addition to the stevia used in the above [Test Example 1], there are many high-intensity sweeteners that show a sweetness tens to hundreds of times higher than that of sugar, and recently Tan. V. et al. presented the results of a study that graphically showed the time course of sweetness and various side tastes such as bitterness and metallic taste of 16 sweeteners, including nutritive sugars such as sucrose and glucose, nutritive polyols such as erythritol and xylitol, and non-nutritive sweeteners such as aspartame, stevia, and sucralose, using the Temporal Check-All-That-Apply (TCATA) method (Tan. V., Wee, M. & Forde, C., Tomic. O., & Forde, C., "Temporal sweetness and side tastes profiles of 16 sweeteners using temporal check-all-that-apply (TCATA)", Food Research International, 121, 39-47, 2019).

[0044] The inventor of the present invention conducted various tests, focusing particularly on sucralose among the various sweeteners included in the research results of Tan.

[0045] Sucralose is a compound in which some of the functional groups in sugar are replaced with chlorine, and is typically manufactured by reacting sugar with chlorine. Sucralose is a non-calorie sweetener that offers approximately 600 times the sweetness of sugar, and is relatively unaffected by heat, light, or pH, while exhibiting a relatively mild aftertaste. Therefore, it is a relatively widely used sweetener, blended with erythritol, in various foods and / or beverages, including low-calorie drinks such as diet cola.

[0046] However, like other alternative sweeteners, sucralose has a drawback in that it leaves a chemical taste similar to artificial flavoring as it leaves a slightly cool aftertaste in the mouth, which is different from the light and refreshing aftertaste of sugar. Therefore, it does not sufficiently satisfy the tastes of consumers who are accustomed to the light and refreshing aftertaste of sugar, and due to this drawback, its scope of use is not greatly expanded.

[0047] Figure 1 is a graph showing the sweetness analysis of sucralose included in the research results of Tan mentioned above, and is a graph showing the changes in sweetness, bitterness, chemical taste, metallic taste, honey taste, and mouth-drying effect felt over time when drinking a sucralose aqueous solution.

[0048] As shown in Figure 1, sucralose exhibits a significantly long-lasting sweetness, effectively compensating for the rapid taste loss of erythritol, while producing a relatively mild bitterness. Conversely, as previously discussed, the chemical taste is perceived relatively strongly, and the mouth-drying effect increases over time.

[0049]

[0050] Based on the sweetness characteristics of sucralose as described above, the inventor of the present invention discovered through various mixing tests and verification processes using sucralose that the secondary sweetness characteristics appearing in sucralose, as previously discussed, can very effectively neutralize and offset the bitter aftertaste of conventional alternative sweeteners mixed with erythritol and stevia. Furthermore, in the process, it was confirmed that the unique mouthfeel of sucralose, which was against the taste of consumers, became slightly cool, and the aftertaste that felt like a chemical taste similar to artificial flavoring also offset the previous bitterness and became barely perceptible.

[0051]

[0052] [Test Example 2] Sweetness Test of Erythritol / Stevia / Sucralose Sweetener Composition

[0053] In the sweetness test of a sweetener composition consisting of a combination of three sweeteners, erythritol, stevia, and sucralose, as before, 30 taste panelists with prior experience in sensory evaluation of sweeteners were selected, and after providing the selected taste panelists with prior training necessary to express the taste attributes expressed by the sweeteners, the sweetness characteristics of the sweetener composition were tested while changing the mixing ratio of erythritol and stevia.

[0054] The sweetness test was conducted by changing the concentration of a mixed sweetener in which stevia and sucralose are mixed in a 1:1 ratio per 100 wt% of erythritol in the range of 0.1 wt% to 1.0 wt%, and having panelists drink an aqueous solution in which the sweetener composition is dissolved, and comparing it to an aqueous solution in which sugar is dissolved, to check the sweetness felt in the aqueous solution, whether a bitter aftertaste remains after drinking, and / or whether a chemical taste similar to an artificial flavor is felt.

[0055] In the case of sweetness, if a similar sweetness was felt compared to the aqueous solution containing sugar, the answer was set to “good”, and if a lack of sweetness was felt compared to the aqueous solution containing sugar, the answer was set to “insufficient”. In the case of a bitter aftertaste or a chemical taste similar to artificial flavoring, if the respective aftertaste was felt in the aqueous solution consumed, the answer was set to “yes”, and if not, the answer was “no”. The results are summarized in [Table 2] below.

[0056]

[0057] Sweetness Test of Erythritol / Stevia / Sucralose Sweetener Compositions Concentration (wt%) of stevia / sucralose mixed sweetener per 100 wt% of erythritol 0.10.51 Sweetness Good 283030 Poor 200 Bitter 433 None 262727 Chemically Tasty 234 None 282726

[0058]

[0059] As confirmed in [Table 2], in almost the entire range of typical mixing ranges of conventional sweetener compositions consisting of a combination of erythritol and stevia, when the stevia component was replaced with an equal amount of a stevia / sucralose mixture (mixing ratio 1:1), the sweetness perceived by the panelists did not show much difference compared to sugar, as in the previous [Test Example 1]. However, in terms of the additional taste of the sweetener, only 10% to 15% of the panelists responded that they felt a bitter taste after drinking, while the remaining 85% to 90% of the panelists did not feel any bitter aftertaste in the drinking solution, showing a clear difference. At the same time, as briefly explained above, it can be confirmed that the chemical aftertaste similar to the artificial flavoring unique to sucralose was also clearly improved.

[0060] In other words, as confirmed in the above [Test Example 2], when the stevia component is replaced with an equal amount of a stevia / sucralose mixture mixed at a weight ratio of 1:1 in a sweetener composition comprising a combination of erythritol and stevia, the overall sweetness is implemented similarly to that of sugar, while the bitter aftertaste or the chemical aftertaste similar to that of artificial flavoring, which commonly appears in sweeteners of the combination of erythritol / stevia or of the combination of erythritol / sucralose, cancels out each other and becomes extremely faint, so that as a result, after the sweetness is expressed, almost no impurities remain as an aftertaste, and it can be confirmed that a light and refreshing sweetness extremely similar to sugar can be provided.

[0061]

[0062] [Test Example 3] Sweetness Test of Sweetener Composition According to Stevia / Sucralose Mixing Ratio

[0063] Hereinafter, as in the above [Test Example 2], in the case where the stevia component is replaced with an equal amount of a stevia / sucralose mixture in a sweetener composition composed of a combination of erythritol and stevia, the results of testing the sweetness of the sweetener composition according to the mixing ratio of stevia and sucralose are presented.

[0064] In the sweetness test below, as before, 30 taste panelists with prior experience in sensory evaluation of sweeteners were selected, and after providing the selected taste panelists with prior training necessary to express the taste attributes expressed by the sweetener, the sweetness characteristics of the sweetener composition were tested while changing the mixing ratio of stevia and sucralose in an equal amount of stevia / sucralose mixture replacing the stevia component.

[0065] The sweetness test was conducted by having panelists drink an aqueous solution containing the sweetener composition in which the mixing ratio of stevia and sucralose was changed from 1:4 to 4:1 in a sweetener composition containing 0.5 wt% of a stevia / sucralose mixture per 100 wt% of erythritol, and comparing it to an aqueous solution containing sugar, to determine whether the sweetness felt in the aqueous solution, whether a bitter aftertaste remained after drinking, and / or whether a chemical taste similar to an artificial flavor was felt.

[0066] In the case of sweetness, as in the previous test examples, if a similar sweetness was felt compared to the aqueous solution containing sugar, the answer was set to “good”, and if a lack of sweetness was felt compared to the aqueous solution containing sugar, the answer was set to “insufficient”. In the case of a bitter aftertaste or a chemical taste similar to artificial flavoring, if the respective aftertaste was felt in the drank aqueous solution, the answer was set to “yes”, and if not, the answer was “no”. The results are summarized in [Table 3] below.

[0067]

[0068] Sweetness test of sweetener compositions according to stevia / sucralose blending ratio Stevia / Sucralose mixing ratio (Stevia:Sucralose) 1:41:31:21:12:13:14:1 Sweetness: Good 30303030303030 Insufficient 0000000 Bitter 12236914 None 29282827242116 Chemically delicious 6322210 None 24272828282930

[0069]

[0070] As shown in [Table 3], in a sweetener composition in which 0.5 wt% of a stevia / sucralose mixture is mixed per 100 wt% of erythritol, the sweetness characteristics of the sweetener composition were tested while changing the mixing ratio of stevia and sucralose from 1:4 to 4:1. As a result, it was confirmed that in the entire range from the mixing ratio of 1:4 (i.e., 0.1 wt% of stevia and 0.4 wt% of sucralose) to the mixing ratio of 4:1 (i.e., 0.4 wt% of stevia and 0.1 wt%), the bitter aftertaste or the chemical aftertaste similar to artificial flavoring, which commonly appears in conventional erythritol / stevia combination sweeteners or erythritol / sucralose combination sweeteners, was significantly reduced.

[0071] However, when the relative mixing ratio of sucralose exceeds 80% (i.e., 1:4 in [Table 3]), it was observed that more than 20% of the panelists felt the chemical aftertaste unique to sucralose, and conversely, when the relative mixing ratio of stevia exceeds 66.7% (i.e., 2:1 in [Table 3]), it was confirmed that the panelists who felt the bitter aftertaste unique to stevia increased to 20% or more.

[0072]

[0073] The applicant of the present application confirmed through various repeated tests in a form similar to the above-described [Test Example 2] and [Test Example 3] that the bitter aftertaste that appears in the conventional erythritol / stevia combination sweetener is significantly reduced in a sweetener composition in which 0.1 to 1.0 wt% of a stevia / sucralose mixture is mixed per 100 wt% of erythritol, and at this time, the mixing ratio of stevia and sucralose in the stevia / sucralose mixture can be adjusted in the range of 1:4 to 4:1, and more preferably, at a mixing ratio of 1:3 to 1:1, it was confirmed that the bitter aftertaste that commonly appears in the erythritol / stevia combination sweetener or the erythritol / sucralose combination sweetener or the chemical aftertaste similar to an artificial flavor, or the like, which remains as an aftertaste after the sweetness is expressed, is minimized, thereby providing a light and refreshing sweetness that is extremely similar to sugar.

[0074]

[0075] In addition to the erythritol, stevia, and sucralose described above, the sweetener composition of the present invention may also contain other sweeteners as needed. At this time, the other sweeteners contained in the sweetener composition of the present invention may be used without particular limitation as long as they are sweeteners commonly used in food products, beverages, oral medicines, oral care products, etc. For example, sugar, glucose, fructose, isomerized sugar, trehalose, taccharose, or other sugar alcohols other than erythritol may be contained and used. Furthermore, a portion of a naturally derived high-intensity sweetener such as a Monk fruit extract may be added.

[0076] In addition, it goes without saying that, in addition to the erythritol, stevia and sucralose described above, various additives such as a flavoring ingredient, a bulking agent, an excipient, a diluent, a carrier, a flavoring agent, a preservative or an antioxidant may be added to the sweetener composition of the present invention as needed.

[0077] The form in which the sweetener composition according to the present invention is provided is not particularly limited, and may be provided in a solid form such as a powder, granules, or tablet, or in a liquid form such as an aqueous solution, emulsion, or suspension.

[0078] The sweetener composition according to the present invention is used as a sweetener to provide sweetness to food products including beverages, bread, confectionery, etc., oral medicines, oral care products, etc., and at this time, as described above, the sweetener composition of the present invention may be used alone or in combination with other sweeteners that have been used in the past. For example, by using it together to replace a part of sugar or fructose contained in confectionery, beverages, etc., the overall sweetness of the food product can be maintained while the total calories contained in the food product can be reduced, thereby effectively satisfying the preferences of consumers who prefer low-calorie food products.

[0079] Food products to which the sweetener composition according to the present invention can be added include seasonings such as soy sauce, powdered soy sauce, soybean paste, powdered soybean paste, mayonnaise, dressing, vinegar, ketchup, bulgogi seasoning, and compound seasonings; confectionery or bakery products such as cookies, rice cakes, steamed buns, yanggaeng, jellies, castella, bread, biscuits, crackers, cookies, pies, puddings, butter creams, custard creams, cream puffs, waffles, cakes, donuts, chocolates, gums, caramels, candies, and ice creams; fruit / vegetable processed foods such as fruit syrups, peanut pastes, fruit pastes, jams, and marmalades; grain processed foods such as various noodles or rice products or soybean meats; livestock processed foods such as ham and sausages; processed fish foods such as fish cakes and marinated squid; side dishes such as various stews, pickles, and japchae; canned foods; beverages such as various alcoholic beverages, carbonated beverages, and coffee / milk products; and various other instant foods.

[0080] In addition, the sweetener composition according to the present invention can be effectively used in oral care products such as gargles, or in various types of oral medicines, especially oral medicines for children.

[0081]

[0082] Although the present invention has been described above through several representative embodiments of the present invention, the embodiments of the present invention described as examples only show examples of preferred embodiments of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto, and the protection scope of the present invention is limited by the matters described in the claims that will be described later. In addition, it is obvious that a person having ordinary skill in the technical field to which the present invention pertains can implement various modifications without changing the gist of the present invention claimed in the claims, and such modifications or improvements are within the protection scope of the present invention as long as the scope is within the scope of matters obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the technical field to which the present invention pertains.

[0083]

[0084] As described above, the sweetener composition according to the present invention effectively removes impurities such as the bitter aftertaste or chemical taste characteristic of alternative sweeteners, which have been raised as problems in conventional alternative sweeteners, through an appropriate combination of three sweeteners of erythritol, stevia, and sucralose, thereby providing a clean aftertaste along with a light and refreshing sweetness similar to sugar overall, thereby effectively satisfying the tastes of general consumers who are accustomed to the light sweetness provided by conventional sugar or fructose, and at the same time, as a low-calorie sweetener composition having significantly lower calories than sugar, it has the advantage of being applicable to various food products and other pharmaceuticals, and can effectively suppress the occurrence of various physical and social problems caused by excessive sugar intake.

Claims

1. A sweetener composition containing erythritol as a main ingredient, It is composed by adding a high-sweetening agent containing stevia and sucralose in the range of 0.1 to 1.0 wt% to 100 wt% of erythritol. A sweetener composition characterized in that stevia and sucralose blended in the above high-sweetener are blended in a weight ratio of 4:1 to 1:

4.

2. In paragraph 1, A sweetener composition characterized in that stevia and sucralose blended in the above high-sweetener are blended in a weight ratio of 1:1 to 1:

3.

3. In paragraph 1 or 2, The above sweetener composition, A sweetener composition characterized in that it additionally comprises other sugar alcohols or extracts of Monk fruit other than sugar, glucose, fructose, isomerized sugar, trehalose, taccharose, and erythritol.

4. In paragraph 1 or 2, In the above sweetener composition, A sweetener composition characterized in that it comprises at least one additive selected from the group consisting of a sweetener, a bulking agent, an excipient, a diluent, a carrier, a flavoring agent, a preservative, and an antioxidant.

5. In paragraph 1 or 2, A sweetener composition characterized in that the sweetener composition is provided in the form of a solid in the form of a powder, granules or tablets.

6. In paragraph 1 or 2, A sweetener composition characterized in that the above sweetener composition is provided in a liquid form in the form of an aqueous solution, emulsion or suspension.

7. A food product comprising the sweetener composition of paragraph 1 or 2.

8. An oral care product comprising the sweetener composition of claim 1 or 2.

9. An oral pharmaceutical product comprising the sweetener composition of paragraph 1 or 2.

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