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Food additive application – gummy production

Phthalate-free gummy texture

Replaced legacy plasticizer with ATBC to meet migration limits and keep chew/clarity unchanged.

Food ATBC APAC
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Category: Food Format: Gelatin/Pectin gummies Plasticizer: ATBC Region: APAC
Chew profileTPA hardness/springiness within ±5% of control
ClarityNo haze; turbidity within spec
MigrationMeets customer limits; phthalate-free claim
Cost impactNeutral

Customer

Regional confectionery brand shifting to phthalate-free while keeping mouthfeel, flavor and line speeds identical.

Challenge

  • Match chew/elasticity and gloss on current SKUs.
  • Hit local migration targets and maintain “phthalate-free” labeling.
  • No flavor pickup, no haze, no cycle-time penalties.

Approach

Screened citrate esters; ATBC provided the best texture retention at low treat rates with minimal sensory impact. Dosed post-cook to reduce volatilization and retained dispersion with a brief high-shear mix.

Formulation window

Component Function Use level Notes
ATBC Plasticizer 0.3–0.8% w/w Tune vs. gelatin/pectin ratio and target chew.
Gelatin / Pectin Gelling Per SKU Bloom/DE as per house spec.
Citric / Malic acid pH & taste 0.3–0.7% Balance set and sourness.
Antistick glaze Handling qs Vegetable oil/wax as needed.

Processing & validation

  1. Cook & hydrate

    Cook syrup to target °Bx; hydrate gelatin/pectin per spec. Add acids post-cook.

    • °Bx control
    • Hydration
    • Post-acid

  2. ATBC addition

    Add post-cook < 80 °C with brief high-shear mix for uniform dispersion.

    • Low loss
    • Uniformity

  3. Deposit & dry

    Deposit at 70–75 °C; control RH 45–55%. Dry to target aw.

    • Temp
    • RH
    • aw

  4. Testing

    TPA texture vs. control; sensory triangle; turbidity; overall/specific migration per local regs.

    • TPA
    • Sensory
    • Migration

Results

Production-ready

Chew and elasticity matched within ±5%; no flavor pickup; clarity on-spec; line speed unchanged.

TextureTPA within band
ClarityTurbidity on-spec
MigrationPass (customer limits)
ThroughputNo cycle penalty

Panel confirmed identical chew; packaging stability unchanged.

Documentation & support

SDS / COARegulatory pack Food-contact letterJurisdiction-specific Request a sampleApplication support

Scaling phthalate-free gummies?

Send batch size, gelatin/pectin ratio and target chew. We’ll return a tuned ATBC plan.

Get a formulation plan