THE CHANGING SWEETENER MARKET

In all cultures of the world, "sugar" is synonymous with "sweetness", and "sweetness" is associated only with agreeable, pleasant sensations. Metaphors employing the words sugar and sweetness have become part of the language, and the reasons for this development are traced. Attempts have been made in recent years to change this positive attitude towards sugar on the part of consumers, as is shown by various examples. At the same time, people's value judgments are changing and with it their eating habits. For centuries, sugar was the only sweetener. Some 150 years ago, starch sweeteners came on the market; about 100 years ago, the first artificial sweetener (saccharin) was introduced; and 60 years ago, the first polyhydric alcohols (sorbitol) arrived as sugar substitutes for diabetics. The products now available or in process of development are reviewed, distinctions being drawn between nutritive, dietetic/low-calorie, and noncariogenic sweeteners.