Sugar-reduction and reformulation demand spurs Tate & Lyle to expand Singapore lab

14-Mar-2018 - Last updated on 14-Mar-2018 at 01:30 GMT

Tate & Lyle’s application lab is equipped for ingredient characterisation, application development and analysis, and sensory evaluation of foods and beverages.

Rising industry and consumer demand for more healthy products, especially with reduced sugar, was one of the drivers behind Tate & Lyle’s decision to double the size of its laboratory and application centre in Singapore.

The company recently hosted manufacturers at its new facility to showcase solutions which deliver calorie and sugar reduction.

This comes on the back of the high-profile ‘War Against Diabetes’, spearheaded by Singapore’s Health Promotion Board amid fears one-in-five citizens could have the condition by 2050.

According to Harry Boot, general manager and senior vice-president of Tate & Lyle Asia Pacific, there is high demand “for great tasting food and beverages that support balanced diets and lifestyles”.

Recently, Tate & Lyle worked with the TungLok Group to redevelop its Lunar New Year Cake or nian gao, providing “the same great taste” with 25% less sugar, fewer calories as well as additional dietary fibre.

TungLok’s new range of nian gao was reformulated using one of Tate & Lyle’s newest ingredients to be introduced to the Singapore market. Dolcia Prima Allulose is a rare sugar that provides the taste and texture of sugar without the calories.

Bakery and sauces

The company said the recent upgrade to its Singapore lab would boost such services to manufacturers.

“With its proximity to key markets and access to a skilled workforce, we believe that our upgraded lab will further enhance our position as a high-value and expert ingredients provider and business partner in the Asia-Pacific region,” said Anna Taylor, corporate public relations manager.

Tate & Lyle’s application lab is equipped for ingredient characterisation, application development and analysis, and sensory evaluation of foods and beverages.

The laboratory’s pilot-scale capabilities in beverage, dairy, bakery, sauce and dressing processing enable Tate & Lyle food scientists to work in collaboration its food and beverage partners on new products or to reformulate or redevelop existing products.

The application lab is able to recreate the customer’s production processes and manufacturing conditions so that Tate & Lyle can see how different recipe formulations would perform at their customer’s site.

Tate & Lyle’s Singapore operations is further supported by its network of application laboratories and sales and technical service resources in Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand, Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.