Desenvolvimento de oligossacarídeos de sabor doce e com potencial de redução de açúcar em alimentos

The BySweetTech project presents as major objective to reduce the sugar content in foods without impairing the pleasure and sensations associated to their ingestion. This objective is inspired on the recommendation of the WHO to reduce sugar consumption to levels below to 10% of the daily caloric uptake as a key solution to decrease the prevalence of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and obesity, that account some of the most prevailing causes of death. However, the provision of foods that allow such a level of sugar reduction in the diet presents a difficult task for the industries, especially in the context of coexistent demands for sustainable solutions that preserve the environment and that are perceived as being natural. To achieve the proposed goal in the context of the current societal demands, the project will make use of a sustainable strategy concerning the obtention of an alternative sweetener, of low caloric uptake, and produced from apple by-products, assuring its naturalness, environmental sustainability, and low cost. The adopted strategy will focus on an approach that breakdowns dietary fiber components into sweet-tasting short-chain oligosaccharides without the aftertastes and sweetness perception that lingers, associated to many of the current sugar alternatives. One of the possibilities to reach such oligosaccharides includes the use of enzymatic systems for a partial breakdown of dietary fiber components, a novel approach that contrasts with complete saccharification for juice extraction and with the selected extraction of polysaccharides usually pursued to value fruit wastes. Additionally, the project will leverage oxidized pomaces remaining after pectin extraction, and usually perceived as spoiled, but rich in polysaccharides functionalized with polyphenols able to enhance the antioxidant properties of the oligosaccharide product, further distinguishing it from existing sweeteners. It will also be considered their capacity to preserve the rheology and perceived texture of foods formulated with lower sugar contents. Oligosaccharides and polysaccharides are also recognized as dietary fiber components, impacting gut microbiome, and opening the possibility to develop new claims or even health allegations beyond conventional sugar reduction strategies. In this context, the project BySweetTech will combine biotechnology, food biochemistry and sensory analysis towards the following SMART objectives: 1) Reduce the non-valued apple pomace remaining after juice extraction by at least 50%, as measured by weight, through the implementation of the novel enzymatic biotechnological process. This objective aims to enhance sustainability in apple processing and provide a valuable raw material to produce novel ingredients (Manuscript 1). 2) Develop a sweet-tasting oligosaccharide product derived from apple pomace. This objective aims to produce a natural and sustainable alternative sweetener with unique physiological properties, going beyond conventional sugar reduction strategies (Manuscript 2; Prototype 1). 3) Decrease the sugar content in fruit products by at least 10% while preserving their texture and taste attributes. This objective will be achieved through the formulation and optimization of fruit products using the developed sweetener, ensuring consumer acceptance and satisfaction, and assessing potential health claims outcoming from the new sugar alternative (Manuscript 3, Prototype 2).