Stevia Formulation with Sugarcane Extracts and GABA
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Solution Overview
Problem
High-purity rebaudioside A stevia sweeteners exhibit unpleasant tastes such as aftersweetness and bitterness, and existing flavor improvers do not adequately enhance sweetness buildup and body while maintaining desirable flavor in food and beverages.
Innovation Solution
A stevia formulation comprising high-purity rebaudioside A combined with specific sugarcane-derived extracts and γ-aminobutyric acid, where the extracts are processed using porous adsorbents and solvents like methanol and ethanol, to reduce aftersweetness and bitterness while promoting rapid sweetness buildup and excellent flavor.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If high-purity rebaudioside A products are used as stevia sweeteners, then sweetness intensity is improved, but unpleasant tastes such as aftersweetness and bitterness occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces flavor improvers as intermediary substances that mediate between the stevia sweetener and the human taste system. These flavor improvers do not directly eliminate the bitter compounds but create a sensory bridge that masks bitterness and enhances desirable sweet notes, allowing high-purity rebaudioside A to maintain its sweetness intensity while reducing unpleasant aftertastes through sensory modulation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite sweetener system by combining high-purity rebaudioside A with multiple flavor improvers in specific ratios. This composite formulation integrates the high sweetness intensity of pure rebaudioside A with the flavor-modifying properties of complementary substances, achieving a synergistic effect where the whole provides superior taste quality compared to the sum of its parts
2Object-affected harmful factors
If flavor improvers are added to reduce unpleasant tastes, then aftersweetness and bitterness are reduced, but buildup of sweetness and body are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the concentration parameters of multiple flavor improvers simultaneously rather than adjusting a single substance. By precisely controlling the ratios of different flavor compounds within specific concentration ranges, the formulation achieves a balance where unpleasant tastes are suppressed while the temporal profile of sweetness buildup and body are enhanced through coordinated action of the compound system
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a dynamic flavor release profile by selecting flavor improvers with different volatility and solubility characteristics. These substances release their flavor-active components at different rates and times, creating a temporal sequence where initial sweetness buildup is rapid, followed by sustained body and suppressed aftertaste, rather than a static flavor profile
3Object-affected harmful factors
If flavor improvers are used to reduce bitterness, then unpleasant taste is reduced, but desirable flavor effect on food or beverage is suppressed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality enhancement by selecting flavor improvers that specifically target and enhance particular desirable flavor notes (such as fruity, floral, or caramel notes) while leaving other flavor dimensions unaffected. This selective enhancement approach allows bitterness suppression without creating a blanket masking effect that would dull the overall desirable flavor character of the food or beverage
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The formulation effectively reduces aftersweetness and bitterness, achieves rapid sweetness buildup, and enhances the body and desirable flavor of food and beverages, providing a superior taste experience compared to existing stevia sweeteners.
Implementation Method 1
passing a raw material selected from the group consisting of sugarcane juice and sugarcane-derived molasses through a column packed with a first porous adsorbent, and eluting the components adsorbed onto the first porous adsorbent
Implementation Method 2
eluting the components adsorbed onto the first porous adsorbent with a solvent containing at least one selected from the group consisting of methanol and ethanol
Implementation Method 3
obtained by distillation of a raw material selected from the group consisting of sugarcane juice and solvent extracts of sugarcane
Data Source
AI summary
The invention provides a stevia formulation comprising a stevia sweetener with a rebaudioside A content of 95% or greater, and 0.25 to 5.15 parts by weight of a sugarcane-derived extract (a), 0.06 to 2.50 parts by weight of a sugarcane-derived extract (b) and 0.002 to 12.5 parts by weight of γ-aminobutyric acid with respect to 100 parts by weight of the stevia sweetener.