History of Monk Fruit

Monk fruit is a relatively new sweetener that has hit the top of the trend charts. Originally used in traditional Chinese medicine, monk fruit has often been used to treat diabetes—with the extract around 150-200 times sweeter than sugar. Because monk fruit is able to stimulate insulin without raising glucose, it effectively lowers overall blood glucose levels, rather than increasing levels like some other sweeteners. Monk fruit gets its sweetness from antioxidant mogrosides. These mogrosides are metabolized differently by the body than other sugars—creating a no-calorie alternative sweetener. Unlike some other natural, high intensity sweeteners, monk fruit does not have a lingering bitterness or aftertaste. At Icon Foods, our dedicated R&D team has worked to create a line of ideal monk fruit sweeteners that can fit a variety of formula needs. Our food scientists are available for formulation and reformulation inquiries.

Highlights

• Monk fruit is a small, round fruit grown in Southeast Asia—also known as Lo Han Guo—that has been cultivated for more than 200 years.
• Siraitia Grosvenorii—an herbaceous perennial vine from the Cucurbitaceae family, commonly referred to as monk fruit—gets its sweetness from a group of compounds called mogrosides found within the fruit of the plant.
• Monk fruit has been a favorite for centuries in cultures around the world but did not reach GRAS status with the FDA until 2010.

Uses and Best Practices

Icon Foods' MonkSweet mogroside blends can be formulated into a variety of foods including beverages, soups, teas, dairy, cereals, confections, and bakery products. The MonkSweet product line performs best in ready-to-drink juices, teas, and coffees. Additional applications include still or carbonated enhanced waters, cereals, nutrition bars, flavored milk, and yogurt—both dairy and plant based. This line works to provide a balanced sweetness profile when used in tandem with low intensity sweeteners such as erythritol and allulose. For a complete formula, we recommend adding resistant digestive fibers in the form of FOS, soluble tapioca fiber, or inulin. This will provide body while increasing mouthfeel and texture.

• This natural sweetening solution is produced through water extraction and temperature induced spray-drying. No chemical solvents are used during extraction or recrystallization.

Solubility

Icon Foods’ MonkSweet portfolio is freely soluble in water, fluid lipids and vegetable glycerin at less than 2.5% (w/v). Given the potencies of the various mogrosides, individual solubilities do not limit their use.

Stability

The MonkSweet portfolio is process stable in a wide pH range, making this line ideal for use in low-pH systems such as beverages and in neutral-pH foods and beverages. Icon Foods' MonkSweet product line has demonstrated excellent heat stability to 150℃ in water for over four hours. The MonkSweet formulas can be maintained under pH value 2.0~10.0 for two years without degradation.