Neotame – derivative of aspartame

Neotame is the newest sweetener and a derivative of aspartame. Neotame functions effectively as a sweetener and flavor enhancer in foods and beverage. Neotame is used in baked goods, beverages, candies, chewing gum, dairy products, frozen desserts, puddings, yogurt-type products and as a tabletop sweetener.

Neotame is composed of two amino acids L-aspartic acid and L-phenylalanine, similar to aspartame and an additional 3, 3-dimethylbutyl group.

It is 7,000–13,000 times as sweet as sugar and 30–60 times as sweet as aspartame. It provides zero calories and has a clean, sweet, sugar-like taste with no undesirable taste characteristics. Since neotame and aspartame are considered as intense sweeteners, a very low level is needed to sweeten the food products.

It is functional in a wide array of beverages and foods and can be used alone or blended with other high-intensity or carbohydrate sweeteners.

A t-butyl group is added to the free amine group of aspartic acid. This could be a super sweet deal for food and beverage manufacturers, all the sweetness of sugar without a metallic after-taste plus at a fraction of the amount of sweetener needed compared to other sugar substitutes. The neotame was approved in 2002 as a general purpose sweetener, excluding in meat and poultry by FDA.

In the European Union Neotame is licensed as food additive E 961 since January 2010, in Australia as early as 2001.
Neotame – derivative of aspartame

Neotame

Neotame is a derivative of aspartame and is a white powder. It has a clean, sweet taste similar to sugar with no significant bitter, metallic or other off-tastes.

Neotame functions effectively as a sweetener and flavor enhancer in foods and beverage.

It is approximately 8000 times sweeter than sucrose and is therefore, used at extremely low levels in soft drinks (e.g. 6 ppm in cola).

Unlike aspartame, neotame is heat stable and therefore can be used in cooking and baking.

Many products (particularly soft drink), use combinations of neotame and sugar or HFGS (high fructose glucose syrup). It is also used in combination with other intense sweeteners such as saccharin and sucralose.

Neotame is an amino acid derivative and is therefore hydrolyzed under conditioned of low or high pH. Its ability will be a function of pH, temperature and time.
Neotame