Different Types of Sugars Used in the Food Industry

When most consumers picture sugar, their instinct is to envision table sugar, or sucrose. However, sucrose is only one small part of the picture. In fact, sugar has 4 main categories (simple and complex sugars) and sub-varieties to fulfill every niche in the food industry. Food ingredient supplier Bell Chem wants you to recognize sugar in its multiple forms to give you the most knowledge when you order your supplies from us.

But first, why do manufacturers add sugar as an ingredient? Surprisingly, sugar has more impact than mere sweetness. Sugar acts as a thickener, especially when paired with pectin. It also controls the boiling and freezing points of specific foods, which aids in searing and crystallization, respectively. When sugar binds with water, it prevents microbial growth. Sugar also enhances taste by countering the bitterness of other ingredients. It changes the aromas of some foods and creates a different mouthfeel to still other foods.

The four broad categories of sugars are below.

Glucose

Any carbohydrates consumed are broken down into glucose, the human body’s natural fuel. Glucose feeds the cells, energizing every body function. Plants also rely more heavily on glucose than any other natural sugar.  ‌Within this category, there are two types of sugar:

• Maltose: Two bonded glucose molecules create maltose. Maltose naturally occurs when carbohydrates are broken down, such as when grains break down complex carbohydrates as they sprout (sprouted grains). 

• Galactose: Take the chemical elements within glucose, rearrange them, and galactose may be the new creation. Galactose naturally occurs in avocados and dairy products, among many other foods.

Fructose

Fruits, honey, and root vegetables contain fructose as their sweetest sugar. The most renowned instance of fructose is as an ingredient in high-fructose corn syrup, which consists of fructose, dextrose, and scant amounts of oligosaccharides.

Lactose

Mammalian milk contains enough lactose to meet the needs of growing offspring. Lactose is composed of glucose and galactose to meet those needs. The latter produces lactic acid, which aids in fermentation’s chemical breakdown in the process of cheese- and yogurt making. 

Sucrose

The similar chemical properties of sucrose and glucose make this sugar easily digestible. In fact, sucrose is an equal measure of glucose and fructose molecules. The main source of sucrose in food industries is sugarcane or sugar beets.

Bell Chem is your food ingredient supplier based in Longwood, FL (just north of Orlando) with hundreds of products stocked in their 50,000+ square-foot warehouse, including a variety of sugars. You can expect the highest quality products, expedited shipping options for maximum efficiency, and unrivaled personalized customer service. Let our knowledgeable and friendly customer service representatives and accounting staff personalize all your needs by either calling 407-339-BELL (2355) or by sending us an online message.

When to Use Granulated Sugar

The holidays are just around the corner, and professional bakers around the globe are prepping their kitchens to create the perfect culinary delights for their customers. From baklava for Hanukkah to chocolate fruit cake for Kwanzaa, winter months are resplendent in delicious desserts. At Bell Chem, your food ingredient distributor, we want to go over different varieties of sugar and explain how each one can enhance holiday baking in an industrial kitchen. 

• Brown sugar: Almost every professional baker stocks brown sugar and granulated sugar in their kitchens. How do these differ? Brown sugar is simply granulated sugar with molasses. Why would you add molasses to sugar? You don’t. Sugar sources naturally contain molasses, which is removed for refined sugars. Light brown sugar, not surprisingly, has less molasses per volume than dark brown sugar.

• Granulated sugar: Granulated sugar has various sized grains (both words are derived from the Latin granum) that can mean the difference between confectioner’s sugar and turbinado (raw or unrefined) sugar.

Granulated sugar is 99.95% sucrose, whether it is derived from beets or sugarcane. This form is by far the most popular form used by professional bakers since it’s easy to use in all applications from main meat courses to desserts. Sugar is hygroscopic, meaning it tends to collect water, which keeps bakery items fresher longer. This fact is also handy when sugar is an ingredient in a sauce since it acts as a thickener, although sugar may clump when left on the shelf for an extended time. However, sugar, like salt and honey, does not spoil. 

Regardless of the variety, sugar decelerates the formation of gluten in wheat flour, causing goods to be softer, lighter, and have a more delicate texture.

• Confectioner’s sugar: Powdered sugar is the top ingredient in candy making and icings. Many baked goods are often dusted with confectioner’s sugar. Powdered sugar is rated 10X, 6X, XXX or XX, with 10X being ground to the finest consistency. While 10X will give foods (especially frostings) a creamy mouthfeel, it is often too fine-grained to dust atop baked goods since it dissolves. Confectioner’s sugar contains 3%-5% cornstarch to prevent clumping.

• Superfine sugar: Known as baker’s sugar, caster sugar, or ultrafine sugar, the grains are still crystalline, but not quite as finely ground as confectioner’s sugar. Superfine sugar dissolves more rapidly and gives baked goods a finer texture. 

• Raw granulated sugar: Also called turbinado or demerara sugar, raw sugars contain molasses, but are dry crystals rather than thick, clumpy brown sugar. Raw sugar adds texture and crunch to the top of baked goods, and is often added to hot or cold beverages.

• Decorative sugars: Many forms of sugar abound to decorate foods and beverages. Among these are sanding sugar and pearl sugar. Pearl sugar has large, opaque grains similar to salt while sanding sugar is shimmery and clear. 

Discover more about industrial baking ingredients by reading Bell Chem’s blog. Bell Chem is a food ingredient distributor based in Longwood, FL (just north of Orlando) with hundreds of products stocked in their 50,000+ square-foot warehouse, including many varieties of sugar. You can expect the highest quality products, expedited shipping options for maximum efficiency, and unrivaled personalized customer service. Let our knowledgeable and friendly customer service representatives and accounting staff personalize all your needs by either calling 407-339-BELL (2355) or by sending us an online message.

Sugar (Extra Fine Food Grade)

There are many different types of sugar, with each crystal size and processing manner providing unique functional characteristics that make the sugar appropriate for specific needs. According to the Sugar Association, the food industry defines "regular" sugar as "extra fine" or "fine" because small crystals are ideal for bulk handling and not susceptible to caking. This type of sugar is the most commonly used sugar for these reasons. Extra fine granulated sugar, a food grade product, is made by crystallizing purified and filtered juice syrup that has been removed from sugar beets or sugar cane. This thick syrup is then dried to produce the most popular sugar grades. Extra fine granulated sugar is white in color and has at least 99.85% sucrose content.

Because of the valuable qualities inherent in extra fine food grade sugar, this product has applications in a wide variety of industries. It is used in pharmaceuticals, jams/jellies, meats, chewing gum, candies, dairy products, bakery products, cereals, condiments, pickles, powdered drink mixes, liquid sugar, powdered sugar, table top sugar, and much more.

From our headquarters in Longwood, Florida, Bell Chem offers prompt delivery of hundreds of stock chemical products on our own fleet of trucks. Our Florida chemical supply company offers food/reagent grade chemicals, USP ingredients, sanitation products, custom compounds, and even hard to find botanical ingredients. Our vision is to offer high-quality chemical products with a “just-in-time” inventory approach to provide customers with the very best service in the industry. Give us a call at 407-339-2355 today to order chemical products today!