Australian scientists develop healthy low-calorie sugars
Researchers at the University of Queensland (UQ) are developing a new way to produce rare natural sugars that could provide consumers with lower-calorie alternatives to traditional sugar while maintaining similar sweetness, Qazinform News Agency correspondent reports.
The project is being carried out at UQ’s Biosustainability Hub, where scientists are using fermentation technology and specially engineered bacteria to create rare sugars from cane-based feedstocks. The sugars are naturally found in small quantities in some fruits and are valued for offering similar sweetness, texture and baking properties to regular sugar while containing fewer calories.
According to project leader Dr Axayacatl Gonzalez, rare sugars have attracted growing interest from food and beverage companies, but their wider use has been limited by high production costs.
Researchers are now working to overcome that challenge by producing the sugars through microbial fermentation. The process uses bacteria commonly found in Queensland cane fields, which have been engineered to convert raw sugar into higher-value rare sugars.
Dr Nathan Zhong, a research and development scientist with Australia’s Food and Beverage Accelerator, said the team has already developed multiple bacterial strains capable of producing rare sugars in custom-built bioreactors.
“Once we have the right bacterial strain, the equation is pretty simple: raw sugar goes in, and rare sugars come out,” Dr Zhong said.
Australia is one of the world's largest sugar exporters, alongside Brazil, India and Thailand, with the industry contributing about A$2 billion annually to the national economy.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Australian scientists found that sugar could play a key role in defeating superbugs.
