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PROCESSING
New lolly manufacturing Chewy lolly turns technology into chewing gum Wacker Chemie has launched a completely new confectionery manufacturing technology that turns a chewy lolly into chewing gum after a short time. The confectionery is made in a boiling process so water-based, fatcontaining and natural ingredients, such as fruit juice, cocoa and coffee, can be added to the lollies.
T
he chewing of gum-like substances appears to always have been a basic human need. Archaeologists found the oldest specimen to date of a precursor to chewing gum when they excavated a 9000-year-old settlement in southern Sweden. The ancient Greeks were also fond of similar substances. Some 2000 years ago, they chewed on the resin of the mastic tree, which is still harvested on the Greek island of Chios. Nowadays, chewing gum is generally based on synthetically produced solid resins that serve as carriers for sugar, sweeteners and flavourings. For over 60 years now, Wacker Chemie has been a leading supplier of food-grade polyvinyl acetate solid resins, which the confectionery industry uses to make gum base. Together with finely ground sugar and concentrated flavourings, the gum base is kneaded into chewing gum at around 60°C. This gives the mixture a tough and tacky consistency, which is why it must be processed by powerful specialty machines. The choice of ingredients is limited. Water-based additives are not suitable, because they would dissolve the sugar out of the gum mixture. The disadvantage of fat-based ingredients is that they make the gum base extremely soft. This would cause the chewing gum to simply disintegrate in the mouth while being chewed instead of forming a homogeneous mass. According to the Euromonitor market database, roughly 1000 kilotons of chewing gum were sold worldwide in 2015 alone. The same period saw sales of gumdrops, jelly and chewy candy that were more than double that quantity. This also includes soft candy, as flexible sugar bars are known in the industry, which is available in every flavour variation — from all kinds of fruit to milk and even soft chocolate centres. 54
March/April 2017
These are based on a melted sugar solution, which is boiled with glucose syrup at ca. 100 to 130°C. Chewy candy thus has decisive advantages over chewing gum: it is produced in a continuous boiling process. Waterand fat-based ingredients such as milk, cream, honey, cocoa, nuts, vitamins and other flavourings, as well as colourings, can easily be added to the boiled sugar mixture. Since sugar dissolves in water, it is also very easy to clean the equipment. However, it also has a weak point: due to its sugar base, the calorie content is high. Chewing gum, on the other hand, provides a long-lasting chewing experience without giving you a guilty conscience — the calorie intake is considerably lower. In addition, the chewing of gum stimulates the formation of saliva, which increases the pH value in the mouth, neutralising the acids that attack tooth enamel. Alkaline saliva can also re-mineralise teeth. To prevent tooth decay, only sugar-free gum should be chewed, of course. Wacker’s new CANDY2GUM technology combines the best of both worlds: the texture of chewing gum with the boiling options of chewy candy. “This opens up entirely new possibilities for integrating ingredients. This technology can be used to formulate unprecedented confectionery,” said Martin Seizl, business development manager at Wacker Biosolutions. Plus, CANDY2GUM makes for an entirely new mouthfeel — starting as a chewy candy and then turning into chewing gum after a short time in the mouth. The secret of CANDY2GUM lies in its basic ingredient, Wacker’s pre-formulated CAPIVA C03 mixture. It is insoluble in water and melts fully, which means it can be blended uni-
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