Let’s explore a brand-new ingredient that’s just starting to appear in the food supply: sweet proteins.

For a while now, consumers have been indicating a desire to reduce sugar intake. At the same time, people increasingly want to avoid artificial sweeteners like aspartame and sucralose. The search for healthier low and non-calorie sweeteners has become an obsession for both consumers and the food industry.

Manufacturers are racing to develop new ingredients that can sweeten our foods and beverages without adding calories or chemicals. Enter sweet proteins, the latest attempt to enjoy sweet foods without the consequences.

What are sweet proteins?

Sweet proteins are naturally occurring compounds found in certain tropical plants and berries native to West Africa and Southeast Asia. Unlike conventional sweeteners, which are typically sugars or artificial compounds, sweet proteins are made up of amino acids. 

The names of these sweet proteins (thaumatin, brazzein, monellin, curculin, and meraculin) arelikely to be unfamiliar–although that may soon change, and the  plants that they come from are generally not used as food crops. But these proteins are anywhere from 400 to 3,000 times sweetener than sucrose. Just as a comparison, the compounds in stevia and monkfruit that are used as noncaloric sweeteners are 200-300 times as sweet as sucrose.

Some of these proteins interact with sweet taste receptors on the tongue and produce an intense, and in some cases, long lasting sweet sensation.  Others actually modify taste perception in a way that makes sour foods taste sweet. 

How are sweet proteins metabolized?

Because they are proteins, sweet proteins are metabolized differently from sugars. They do not impact blood sugar levels. Moreover, their intense sweetness means that only tiny amounts are needed to achieve the desired sweetness, so they also contribute minimal calories. 

One of the things that has people concerned about artificial sweeteners is their potential negative impact on the gut microbiome, which I’ve explored in previous episodes, in particular, episode 682.  Although the research so far has been quite limited, these sweet proteins appear to have no effect on the composition of the gut microbiome.

Sounds pretty ideal, doesn’t it? However, there are still a few regulatory hurdles that have so far  limited the widespread adoption of this ingredient in the food supply.

Are sweet proteins safe?

To be used in food products in the U.S., any new ingredient must receive GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) status from the FDA. So far, only thaumatin has achieved this status. However, the interest in these sweeteners is growing, and ongoing studies are aimed at establishing the safety and efficacy​ of more of these novel ingredients. 

Despite the regulatory challenges, a few products sweetened with sweet proteins are already available on the market, including various chocolate bars and sweetened beverages from a company called Oobli. Retail distribution is quite limited but you can get them online and I recently ordered up a sample pack of both the chocolates and the sweetened iced teas, in order to give you my review. 

Do sweet proteins taste good?

Oobli makes a variety of chocolate flavors, including milk chocolate and dark chocolate with various nuts and other ingredients. I got a sample pack of “minis,” which were individually wrapped ½ ounce squares. 

Two minis (or one ounce) had about 130 calories, 7 grams of fiber (from chicory root–one of the prebiotic fibers I talked about in episode 773), and 2 grams of sugar from a small amount of coconut sugar. Most of the sweetness, however, is coming from the sweet protein ingredient. 

For comparison, a similar sized serving of Ghiardelli mini chocolate squares, is 140 calories—so almost the same amount of calories. However, the Ghiardelli are lower in fiber (only 2 grams) and higher in sugar–about 14 grams. 

The texture of the Oobli chocolate was first rate, as was the chocolate flavor–especially in the dark chocolate. The sweet proteins were definitely perceptible as an intense sweetness with a slight bitter aftertaste–actually, to my palate, not unlike to stevia. There was also a long-lasting sweet aftertaste. 

I will admit to a personal bias here. Most foods that are sweetened with low or noncaloric sweeteners (or even a mix of noncaloric sweeteners and regular sugar) are, to my palate, over-sweetened. It always feels to me like they used too much. But that may simply be the nature of the beast. Because of their intense sweetness, any amount at all tends to taste like too much. (To me, anyway). And weirdly, the natural bitterness of the chocolate, instead of masking the bitter aftertaste of the sweet protein, seemed to accentuate it.  

You might like these chocolates more than I did. But to me, the unpleasant level of sweetness and bitter aftertaste just isn’t worth it, in order to save the relatively small amount of sugar that I’d get from regular dark chocolate. 

I also sampled several of the the Oobli sweetened tea flavors and I liked them much better than I did the chocolates. They are also sweetened with a combination of sweet proteins and other sweeteners, in this case agave nectar and fruit purees. The fruit purees (mango, peach, etc) add a very nice fresh flavor and the aftertaste of the sweet proteins was not as bothersome to me in the beverages as it was in the chocolates.

Each can contains 60-80 calories and around 7 grams of sugar.. So, again, not completely sugar or calorie-free, but significantly lower in both sugar and calories than a regularly sweetened tea-and-fruit-juice beverage.  While I did find them enjoyable, I rarely drink sugar-sweetened OR artificially-sweetened beverages–and that’s not a habit I’m eager to pick up.  So, I’ll be sticking with unsweetened tea or seltzer–with a squeeze of citrus or splash of fruit juice if I want a little extra flavor. 

The bottom line on sweet proteins

Here’s my bottom line on this interesting new ingredient: Sweet proteins offer a novel alternative for reducing sugar intake, providing intense sweetness with minimal calories and no impact on blood sugar levels. However, as I talked about in episode 451, I think our never-ending search for the perfect sweetener–one that provides unlimited sweetness without any consequences–is a bit misguided. 

Opting for beverages and desserts sweetened with low or non-caloric sweeteners may reduce our added sugar intake, but these foods are not likely to be contributing much to the overall nutritional quality of our diets. And, in my experience, constant consumption of these hyper-sweet foods and beverages can actually diminish the appeal of of more nutritious but less intensely sweet foods, such as fresh fruit.

For that reason, instead of viewing them as a pass to consume unlimited quantities, I’d still encourage you to enjoy these things in moderation.  And, if you are consuming them in moderation, you may find (as I do) that you can go ahead and enjoy the real thing instead.