Chewing gum pellet coated with a hard coating containing erythritol

Abstract

A chewing gum product comprises a gum pellet covered by a hard coating containing erythritol. The coating may be a homogeneous material built up of layers from a single coating syrup containing erythritol, or it may be a coating comprising two or more layers of different compositions, wherein at least one of the layers contains erythritol. The coating prevents the gum pellet from picking up moisture. The coating is particularly useful in making sugarless gum products.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a chewing gum product with a hard coating thereon, and in particular to sugarless chewing gum products with a hard coating comprising erythritol, and methods of making such products.

Chewing gums, including pellet chewing gums, are frequently enclosed with hard or soft coatings. Coatings provide an opportunity for the manufacturer to vary product characteristics such as taste, appearance and nutritional value. In recent years, efforts have been devoted to producing sugarless hard coatings for use in chewing gum. Sugarless coatings which have been investigated include coatings containing compounds such as xylitol, sorbitol, mannitol and hydrogenated starch hydrolysates.

Erythritol has been proposed for use as a chewing gum ingredient. U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,550 discloses a chewing gum made with a sweetening agent containing erythritol and a liquid sugar alcohol.

Low calorie sweetening compositions containing meso-erythritol are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,080,916 and No. 4,902,525, EPO Patent Publication No. 0 325 790, and Japanese Patent Publications No. 89-225458 and No. 90-104259.

Japanese Patent No. 89-51045 discloses chewing gum made with a melted mixture of meso-erythritol and sugars or sugar alcohols.

EPO Patent Publication No. 0 497 439 discloses a sweetener employing the use of spray dried erythritol.

EPO Patent Publication No. 0 511 761 discloses a sweetening composition made up of erythritol, sorbitol, and a glucose oligomer.

PCT Publication No. W093/00828 discloses a stabilized dipeptide sweetening composition which is useful in chewing gum and may contain erythritol.

Other patents and publications which discuss erythritol include U.S. Pat. No. 4,382,963 and No. 5,156,866 (erythritol used in chewing gum); Japanese Patent Publications No. 92-287658 and No. 92-287659, both published Oct. 13, 1992, (sweetening compositions containing meso-erythritol); Japanese Patent Publication No. 93-137535 published Jun. 1, 1993, (free flowing sweetener containing erythritol) and European Patent Publication No. 0 530 995, published Mar. 10, 1993, (lozenge containing sweetener which is all or partly erythritol or maltitol).

EPO Patent Publication No. 0 009 325 and Japanese Patent Publication No. 81-18180 disclose a method of reducing dental caries with a sugarless chewing gum made with erythritol. Example VIII of these equivalent EPO and Japanese applications dust the example chewing gum composition with erythritol powder.

Sugarless xylitol coated pellet gums have become very popular and products are being manufactured in Europe and Canada. Coating with xylitol is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,105,801, issued Aug. 8, 1978, to Dogliotti; No. 4,127,677, issued Nov. 28, 1978, to Fronczowski et al.; No. 4,146,653, issued Mar. 27, 1979 to Mader et al.; No. 4,681,766, issued Jul. 21, 1987, to Huzinec et al.; No. 4,786,511, issued Nov. 22, 1988, also to Huzinec et al.; and No. 4,828,845, issued May 9, 1989, to Zamudio-Tena et al.

The cost of xylitol is quite high, and replacement of the xylitol in the coating would be an advantage. There is a need for a less expensive sugarless coating for chewing gum, especially one that produces a smoother coating, dries easier and is less hygroscopic than other sugarless coatings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The current invention involves the use of erythritol as a replacement of xylitol in sugarless pellet coating applications. Erythritol is less expensive than xylitol, but gives the same cooling effect and crunchiness to the pellet.

In one aspect, the present invention is a chewing gum product comprising a gum pellet comprising chewable gum base, a bulk portion and one or more flavoring agents; and a hard coating covering the pellet, the coating comprising erythritol.

In another aspect, the present invention is a method of making a hard coated chewing gum product comprising the steps of forming a gum center comprising chewable gum base, a bulking portion and one or more flavoring agents; and forming on the gum pellet a hard coating comprising erythritol.

As noted above, when used in a hard coating, the erythritol provides a desirable cooling effect and crunchiness. Also because of its lower cost, it is an improvement over the use of xylitol for hard coating of sugarless chewing gum products. Visual perception indicates that hard shell coatings made with erythritol are smoother than comparable xylitol coatings.

The hard coating of the present invention is particularly advantageous to pellet shaped gum products where the pellet shape does not lend itself to packaging of the type that would protect the pellets from atmospheric moisture.

The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention will become further apparent from the following detailed description. The detailed description is to be construed as illustrative rather than limitative, with the scope of the invention being defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a graph showing the moisture gain of coated chewing gum samples at 80% relative humidity.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION AND PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

All percentages herein are weight percentages unless otherwise specified. The term "chewing gum" also includes bubble gum and the like.

Erythritol is a tetrahydric polyol or sugar alcohol, having the empirical formula C.sub.4 H.sub.10 O.sub.4 and the structural formula CH.sub.2 COH--CHOH--CHOH--CH.sub.2 OH. It can be obtained by fermenting glucose with specially selected yeast strains in appropriate aqueous nutrient media, or by treating an aqueous alkali carbonate solution of 2-buten-1,4-diol with chlorine, and saponifying the resulting chlorohydrin. Erythritol is available from Mitsubishi Kasei America, Inc., 81 Main Street, White Plains, N.Y. 10601; and from Mitsubishi Kasei Corp., outside the United States. As supplied by Mitsubishi, erythritol is a powder with a melting point of about 119.degree. C. It has a sweetness level of about 75% of that of sucrose, and has good storage stability. Its solubility in water at room temperature is 40%. Erythritol is not approved for use in human food products or chewing gum in the United States. A GRAS affirmation petition for erythritol as a human food ingredient is being prepared by Mitsubishi Kasei Corp. Erythritol does not contribute to dental caries, does not cause gastric distress, and does not contribute significantly to caloric intake, giving a highly acceptable gum product.

In the present invention, erythritol is used in the coating/panning of a pellet chewing gum. Pellet or ball gum is prepared as conventional chewing gum, but formed into pellets that are pillow shaped or into balls. The pellets/balls can then be coated or panned by conventional panning techniques to make a unique, coated pellet gum. The bulk sweetener is very stable and highly water soluble, and can be easily added to a solution prepared for panning. Erythritol may be combined with sucrose, other polyols or used alone in solution as the coating on pellet gum. Erythritol can also be added as a powder blended with other powders often used in some types of conventional panning procedures. Using erythritol sweetener isolates the sweetener from other gum ingredients and modifies its release rate in chewing gum. Levels of use of erythritol may be about 1% to about 100% in the coating and about 0.5% to about 50% of the weight of the chewing gum product. Where the coating syrup also includes a sugar or sugar alcohol, the erythritol will generally comprise about 1% to about 20% of the coating. The weight of the coating may be about 20% to about 50% of the weight of the finished gum product.

Conventional panning procedures generally coat with sucrose, but recent advances in panning have allowed the use of other carbohydrate materials to be used in the place of sucrose. Some of these components include, but are not limited to, dextrose, maltose, xylitol, hydrogenated isomaltulose and other new polyols or a combination thereof. These materials may be blended with panning modifiers including, but not limited to, gum arabic, maltodextrins, corn syrup, gelatin, cellulose type materials like carboxymethyl cellulose or hydroxymethyl cellulose, starch and modified starches, vegetable gums like alginates, locust bean gum, guar gum and gum tragacanth, insoluble carbonates like calcium carbonate or magnesium carbonate, and talc. Erythritol also acts as a panning modifier with other panning materials to improve product quality. Antitack agents may also be added as panning modifiers, which allow the use of a variety of carbohydrates and sugar alcohols to be used in the development of new panned or coated gum products. Flavors may also be added with the erythritol sweetener to yield unique product characteristics.

Chewing gum products of the present invention, using erythritol in the hard coating, may be made with a variety of chewing gum pellet compositions.

In general, a chewing gum composition typically contains a chewable gum base portion which is essentially free of water and is water-insoluble, a water-soluble bulk portion and flavors which are typically water insoluble. The water-soluble portion dissipates with a portion of the flavor over a period of time during chewing. The gum base portion is retained in the mouth throughout the chew.

The chewing gum compositions of the present invention follow the general pattern outlined above. They may be made with erythritol as an ingredient in the bulk portion.

The insoluble gum base generally comprises elastomers, elastomer solvents, plasticizers, waxes, emulsifiers and inorganic fillers. Plastic polymers, such as polyvinyl acetate, which behave somewhat as plasticizers, are also often included. Other plastic polymers that may be used include polyvinyl laureate, polyvinyl alcohol and polyvinyl pyrrolidone.

Elastomers may include polyisobutylene, butyl rubber, (isobutylene-isoprene copolymer) and styrene butadiene rubber, as well as natural latexes such as chicle. Elastomer solvents are often resins such as terpene resins. Plasticizers, sometimes called softeners, are typically fats and oils, including tallow, hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, and coca butter. Commonly employed waxes include paraffin, microcrystalline and natural waxes such as beeswax and carnauba. Microcrystalline waxes, especially those with a high degree of crystallinity, may be considered bodying agents or textural modifiers.

The gum base typically also includes a filler component. The filler component may be calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate, talc, dicalcium phosphate or the like. The filler may constitute between about 5% and about 60% of the gum base. Preferably, the filler comprises about 5% to about 50% of the gum base.

Emulsifiers, which sometimes also have plasticizing properties, include glycerol monostearate, lecithin and glycerol triacetate. Further, gum bases may also contain optional ingredients such as antioxidants, colors and flavors.

According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the insoluble gum base constitutes between about 5% and about 95% of the gum. More preferably the insoluble gum base comprises between about 10% and about 50% of the gum and most preferably from about 20% to about 30% of the gum. The present invention contemplates employing any commercially acceptable gum base.

The water-soluble portion of the chewing gum may further comprise softeners, sweeteners, flavoring agents and combinations thereof. The sweeteners often fulfill the role of bulking agents in the gum. The bulking agents typically comprise about 5% to about 95% of the gum composition.

Softeners are added to the chewing gum in order to optimize the chewability and mouth feel of the gum. Softeners, also known in the art as plasticizers or plasticizing agents, generally constitute between about 0.5% to about 15% of the chewing gum. Softeners contemplated by the present invention include glycerin, lecithin and combinations thereof. Further, aqueous sweetener solutions such as those containing sorbitol, hydrogenated starch hydrolyzate, corn syrup and combinations thereof may be used as softeners and binding agents in gum.

As mentioned above, the erythritol coating of the present invention will most commonly be used on sugar-free gum formulations. However, sugar-gum formulations may also use a hard coating comprising erythritol. Sugar sweeteners generally include saccharide-containing components commonly known in the chewing gum art which comprise, but are not limited to, sucrose, dextrose, maltose, dextrin, dried invert sugar, fructose, levulose, galactose, corn syrup solids and the like, alone or in any combination.

Generally sugarless sweeteners include components with sweetening characteristics but which are devoid of the commonly known sugars and comprise, but are not limited to, sugar alcohols such as sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, hydrogenated starch hydrolyzate, maltitol and the like, alone or in any combination.

Depending on the particular sweetness release profile and shelf-stability needed, coated or uncoated high-intensity sweeteners may be used in the chewing gum composition. High intensity sweeteners, preferably aspartame, may be used at levels from about 0.01% to about 3.0%. Encapsulated aspartame is a high intensity sweetener with improved stability and release characteristics, as compared to free aspartame. Free aspartame can also be added, and a combination of some free and encapsulated aspartame is preferred when aspartame is used.

Flavors contemplated by the present invention include any liquid flavoring which is of food acceptable quality. The flavor may comprise essential oils, synthetic flavors, or mixtures thereof, including but not limited to oils derived from plants and fruits such as citrus oils, fruit essences, peppermint oil, spearmint oil, clove oil, oil of wintergreen, anise, and the like. Artificial flavoring components are also contemplated by the present invention. Those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that natural and artificial flavors may be combined in any sensorially acceptable blend. All such flavors and blends are contemplated by the present invention.

Flavors may be present in the chewing gum in an amount within the range of from about 0.1% to about 10%, preferably from about 0.5% to about 3.0%, of the gum.

Optional ingredients such as colors, emulsifiers and pharmaceutical agents may also be added as separate components of the chewing gum composition, or added as part of the gum base.

Aqueous syrups, such as corn syrup and hydrogenated corn syrup may be used, particularly if their moisture content is reduced. This can preferably be done by coevaporating the aqueous syrup with a plasticizer, such as glycerin or propylene glycol, to a moisture content of less than 10%. Preferred compositions include hydrogenated starch hydrolyzate solids and glycerin. Such syrups and their methods of preparation are discussed in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,967, incorporated herein by reference.

A preferred method of manufacturing chewing gum according to the present invention is by sequentially adding the various chewing gum ingredients to any commercially available mixer known in the art. After the ingredients have been thoroughly mixed, the gum base is discharged from the mixer and shaped into the desired form such as by rolling into sheets and cutting into sticks, extruding into chunks, or casting into pellets.

Generally, the ingredients are mixed by first melting the gum base and adding it to the running mixer. The base may also be melted in the mixer itself. Color or emulsifier may also be added at this time. A softener such as glycerin may be added at this time, along with syrup and a portion of the bulking agent. Further portions of the bulking agents may be added to the mixer. Flavor is typically added with the final portion of the bulking agent. Other optional ingredients are added in the batch in a typical fashion, well known to those of ordinary skill in the art.

The coating may contain ingredients such as flavoring agents, artificial sweeteners and dispersing agents, coloring agents, film formers and binding agents. Flavoring agents contemplated by the present invention include those commonly known in the art such as essential oils, synthetic flavors or mixtures thereof, including but not limited to oils derived from plants and fruits such as citrus oils, fruit essences, peppermint oil, spearmint oil, other mint oils, clove oil, oil of wintergreen, anise and the like. The flavoring agents may be added to the coating syrup in an amount such that the coating will contain from about 0.2 to about 1.2 weight percent flavoring agent and preferably from about 0.7 to about 1.0 weight percent flavoring agent.

Artificial sweeteners contemplated for use in the coating include but are not limited to synthetic substances, saccharin, thaumatin, alitame, saccharin salts, aspartame, sucralose and acesulfame-K. The artificial sweetener may be added to the coating syrup in an amount such that the coating will contain from about 0.05 to about 0.3 weight percent and preferably from about 0.10 to about 0.15 weight percent artificial sweetener.

Dispersing agents are often added to syrup coatings for the purpose of whitening and tack reduction. Dispersing agents contemplated by the present invention to be employed in the coating syrup include titanium dioxide, talc, or any other antistick compound. Titanium dioxide is a presently preferred dispersing agent of the present invention. The dispersing agent may be added to the coating syrup in amounts such that the coating will contain from about 0.1 to about 1.0 weight percent and preferably from about 0.3 to about 0.6 weight percent of the agent.

Coloring agents are preferably added directly to the syrup in the dye or lake form. Coloring agents contemplated by the present invention include food quality dyes. Film formers preferably added to the syrup include methyl cellulose, gelatins, hydroxypropyl cellulose, ethyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose, carboxymethyl cellulose and the like and combinations thereof. Binding agents may be added either as an initial coating on the chewing gum center or may be added directly into the syrup. Binding agents contemplated by the present invention include gum arabic, alginate, cellulosics, vegetable gums and the like.

The coating is initially present as a liquid syrup which contains from about 30 to about 80 or 85 weight percent of the coating ingredients previously described herein, and from about 15 or 20 to about 70 weight percent of a solvent such as water. In general, the hard coating process is carried out in a rotating pan. Sugarless gum center tablets to be coated are placed into the rotating pan to form a moving mass.

The material or syrup which will eventually form the hard coating is applied or distributed over the gum center tablets. Flavoring agents may be added before, during and after applying the syrup to the gum centers. Once the coating has dried to form a hard surface, additional syrup additions can be made to produce a plurality of coatings or multiple layers of hard coating.

In the hard coating panning procedure, syrup is added to the gum center tablets at a temperature range of from about 100.degree. F. to about 200.degree. F. Preferably, the syrup temperature is from about 150.degree. F. to about 170.degree. F. Most preferably, the syrup temperature should be maintained at about 158.degree. F. throughout the process in order to prevent the polyol in the syrup from crystallizing. The syrup may be mixed with, sprayed upon, poured over, or added to the gum center tablets in any way known to those skilled in the art.

Each component of the coating on the gum center tablets may be applied in a single hard layer or in a plurality of hard layers. In general, a plurality of layers is obtained by applying single coats, allowing the layers to dry, and then repeating the process. The amount of solids added by each coating step depends chiefly on the concentration of the coating syrup. Any number of coats may be applied to the gum center tablet. Preferably, no more than about 75 coats are applied to the gum center tablets. More preferably, less than about 60 coats are applied and most preferably, about 30 to about 60 coats are applied. In any event, the present invention contemplates applying an amount of syrup sufficient to yield a hard coated chewing gum product containing about 10 to about 65 weight percent coating. Preferably, the final product will contain from about 20 to about 50 weight percent hard coating.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that in order to obtain a plurality of hard coated layers, a plurality of premeasured aliquots of coating syrup may be applied to the gum center tablets. It is contemplated, however, that the volume of aliquots of syrup applied to the gum center tablets may vary throughout the coating procedure.

The present invention contemplates that a flavoring agent may be added to the syrup, or applied to the gum center tablets while the syrup coating is drying or after the coating has dried. Furthermore, the flavoring agent may be applied anywhere within the sequence of coats, for example, after the third, twelfth, eighteenth, etc., coats.

Once a coating of syrup is applied to the gum center tablets, the present invention contemplates drying the wet syrup in an inert medium. A preferred drying medium comprises air. Preferably, forced drying air contacts the wet syrup coating in a temperature range of from about 80.degree. to about 115.degree. F. More preferably, the drying air is in the temperature range of from about 90.degree. to about 105.degree. F. The invention also contemplates that the drying air possess a relative humidity of less than about 15 percent. Preferably, the relative humidity of the drying air is less than about 8 percent.

The drying air may be passed over and admixed with the syrup coated gum centers in any way commonly known in the art. Preferably, the drying air is blown over and around the syrup coated gum center at a flow rate, for large scale operations, of about 2800 cubic feet per minute. If lower quantities of material are being processed, or if smaller equipment is used, lower flow rates would be used. If a flavoring agent is applied after a syrup coating has been dried, the present invention contemplates drying the flavoring agent with or without the use of a drying medium.

A wide range of changes and modifications to the embodiments of the invention described above will be apparent to persons skilled in the art. For example, while the invention is described with respect to hard-coated chewing gum, it will be appreciated that the coating process is applicable to coating other food products, such as candies, in which an erythritol coating would have utility.

EXAMPLES

The invention will now be illustrated with Examples, which are not to be construed as imposing limitations on the invention.

Three gum center compositions, having the formulas in Table I, can be made on production scale equipment and can be used in various coated chewing gum products.

TABLE I______________________________________ Center Center Center Formula A Formula B Formula C______________________________________Sorbitol 48.06 43.64 44.06Base 33.0 33.0 33.0Calcium Carbonate 13.0 13.0 13.0Glycerin 4.0 6.5 8.0Peppermint Flavor 1.8 2.5 1.8Water -- 0.8 --Color -- 0.2 --Encapsulated Aspartame 0.14 0.36 0.14TOTAL 100.00 100.00 100.00______________________________________

In addition, gum center formulations in Table II without calcium carbonate can be used in coating tests.

TABLE II______________________________________ Center Center Center Formula D Formula E Formula F______________________________________Sorbitol 48.9 48.9 48.9Base 33.0 33.0 33.0Mannitol 12.0 10.0 8.0Glycerin 4.0 6.0 8.0Peppermint Flavor 1.8 1.8 1.8Encapsulated Aspartame 0.3 0.3 0.3TOTAL 100.00 100.00 100.00______________________________________

Gum center formulations can also be made using hydrogenated starch hydrolyzates (HSH) that may be evaporated to 80% solids or may also be coevaporated with glycerin to give various sugar-free center formulas as in Table III.

TABLE III______________________________________ Center Center Center Center Formula G Formula H Formula I Formula J______________________________________Sorbitol 44.3 42.3 40.9 40.9Base 30.0 30.0 33.0 33.0Mannitol 8.0 12.0 10.0 8.0HSH 14.0 10.0 -- --Glycerin 2.0 4.0 4.0 3.0Peppermint 1.5 1.5 1.8 1.8FlavorEncapsulated 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.3AspartameCoevaporated -- -- 10.0 13.0HSH/Glycerin*TOTAL 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00______________________________________ *Contains 67.5% HSH solids, 25% glycerin and 7.5% water.

The gum center formulations in Table I and II are typical of anhydrous gum formulations having less than about 1% moisture. In Table III using HSH and glycerin, formulations contain more than 1% moisture.

Gum center formulations that contain greater than 1% moisture may use liquid sorbitol (70% solids) to give center formulations that are less hygroscopic than the previous formulations in Table I, II and III. Formulas in Table IV may also be used.

TABLE IV__________________________________________________________________________ Center Center Center Center Center Formula K Formula L Formula M Formula N Formula O__________________________________________________________________________Sorbitol 50.4 47.4 42.9 41.9 41.9Base 27.0 27.0 35.0 35.0 35.0Sorbitol Liquid 9.0 12.0 10.0 14.0 10.0Mannitol 10.0 12.0 10.0 6.0 --Glycerin 2.0 -- -- 1.0 --Peppermint 1.4 1.4 1.8 1.8 1.8FlavorEncapsulated 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.3AspartameCalcium -- -- -- -- 11.0CarbonateTotal 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00__________________________________________________________________________

Center formulations may also include various polyols, such as lactitol, maltitol, hydrogenated isomaltulose and erythritol. These polyols may actually be the major component in the center formula, as in Table V.

TABLE V______________________________________ Center Center Center Center Formula P Formula Q Formula R Formula S______________________________________Base 30.0 30.0 30.0 30.0Lactitol 55.3 -- -- --Maltitol -- 58.3 -- --Hydro- -- -- 55.3 --genated Iso-maltuloseErythritol -- -- -- 66.3HSH 8.0 8.0 8.0 2.0Glycerin 5.0 2.0 5.0 --Peppermint 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5FlavorEncapsulated 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2AspartameTOTAL 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00______________________________________

Sugarless gum cores were made using the following formula (Formula T).

______________________________________ Percent Wt.______________________________________Sorbitol 35.62%Gum Base 31.0Mannitol 10.0Sorbitol Solution* 10.0Peppermint Flavor 1.8Lecithin 0.50Encapsulated Aspartame 0.08Calcium Carbonate 11.0______________________________________ *Solution contained 70% sorbitol and 30% water. Coating trials were done on the gum cores. For each trial, 1000 g of gum cores were used. Each gum core weighed 1.0 g and was coated to a weight of 1.6 g. The product was 37.5% coating and 62.5% gum center. The drying air temperature was 100.degree. F. at 20% RH. The air volume varied with each application. The syrups applied in each application were as follows.

COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE A

A solution of 63.05% xylitol, 3% gum arabic as a 33% aqueous solution, 0.45% titanium dioxide (TiO.sub.2) and 33.5% water was made and used to coat the sugarless gum cores of Formula T. The coating was smooth, crunchy, and slightly cooling.

EXAMPLE 1

A solution of 51.6% erythritol, 5.8% gum arabic as a 33% aqueous solution, 0.65% titanium dioxide and 41.95% water was made and used to coat the sugarless gum cores of Formula T. The coating was smooth, crunchy, and slightly cooling.

The erythritol coated chewing gum of Example 1 was very close to the gum coated with xylitol. The cooling effect that was created by using erythritol was similar to the xylitol cooling effect.

Coatings may also be applied in successive layers, at least one of the layers comprising erythritol, as in the following examples.

EXAMPLE 2

Hydrogenated Isomaltulose and Erythritol Coating

Pellets made from Formula T were coated with hydrogenated isomaltulose in the first coating syrup and erythritol in the second coating syrup. The first coating solution (used for the first approximately 20 coats) contained a 61.89% hydrogenated isomaltulose solids, 33.86% water, 3.1% gum arabic as a 33% aqueous solution, and 1.15% titanium dioxide. The second coating syrup contained an 51.6% erythritol, 5.8% gum arabic as a 33% aqueous solution, 41.95% water and 0.65% titanium dioxide. The second coating solution was used for the last approximately 20 coats.

EXAMPLE 3

Lactitol and Erythritol Coatings

Pellets made from Formula T were coated with lactitol in the first coating syrup, then erythritol in the second coating syrup. The first coating syrup contained 64.34% lactitol, 4.6% gum arabic as a 33% aqueous solution, 1.19% TiO.sub.2 and 29.87% water. With the initial piece weight at 1 gram, pellets were coated with lactitol to a piece weight of 1.3 grams. For the second coating solution, the erythritol coating solution of Example 1 was prepared. The lactitol-coated gum was then coated with the erythritol coating solution to a piece weight of 1.6 grams.

EXAMPLE 4

Maltitol and Erythritol Coatings

Pellets made from Formula T were coated with maltitol in the first coating syrup, then erythritol in the second coating syrup. A coating solution of 64.34% maltitol, 4.6% gum arabic as a 33% aqueous solution, 1.19% TiO.sub.2 and 29.87% water was prepared. With the initial piece weight of 1 gram, pellets were coated with maltitol to a piece weight of 1.3 grams. The erythritol coating was prepared as in Example 1 and used to overcoat the maltitol coated pellets to a piece weight of 1.6 grams.

Samples of the products made in comparative Example A and Examples 1-4 were placed in a controlled, high humidity environment to test moisture gain attributes of the coating. The samples were stored at 80% relative humidity for 45 days. FIG. 1 shows the moisture gain of the products over the 45 day storage period. The product coated with xylitol (comparative Example A) had the most moisture gain. All of the samples with erythritol had less moisture gain. The sample coated with erythritol as the sole coating (Example 1) had the least moisture gain. However, the dual coated products of Examples 2-4 also provide a chewing gum product which not only has the benefits of an erythritol coating, but provides an improved coating quality that is shelf stable when exposed to atmospheric moisture.

EXAMPLE 5

Erythritol and Maltitol Coatings

Using any center formula from Tables I through V, 1000 grams of pellet can be coated by first applying 20 applications of an erythritol solution containing 900 grams of erythritol, 66 grams of gum arabic, 10 grams of TiO.sub.2 and 433 grams in the water. With the initial piece weight of 0.94 grams, pellets can be coated with erythritol to a piece weight of 1.18 grams, for a product which is 20.3% erythritol coating and 79.7% center. The maltitol coating solution can be prepared by mixing 1200 grams of maltitol, 20 grams of gum arabic, 10 grams of TiO.sub.2 and 840 grams of water. A 1000 gram quantity of erythritol-coated gum can then be coated with the maltitol coating solution to a piece weight of 1.44 grams, for a product which is 34.7% erythritol and maltitol coating, and 65.3% center.

It is well known that solutions containing two different sugars or sugar alcohols do not crystallize the same way that a solution containing only one component does. When forming hard shell coatings, crystallization is important. Therefore, when using erythritol and another sugar alcohol or sugar to make a coating, the dual layer coating approach is preferred. Recent tests with erythritol and xylitol in solution together have shown, however, that both polyols will crystallize together. It is believed that a hard shell coating with a combination of these polyols is easily formed. As for coatings made from syrups with a combination of erythritol and other polyols, or sugars, the appearance of the coating may be affected by the crystallization difficulties, unless other procedures are followed that promote crystallization or otherwise compensate for the crystallization difficulties. Of course, in some instances, the appearance problems may not cause the overall product to be unsatisfactory.

It will be appreciated that the addition of some other ingredients, process steps, materials or components not specifically included will have an adverse impact on the present invention. The best mode of the invention may therefore exclude ingredients, process steps, materials or components other than those listed above for inclusion or use in the invention.

It should be appreciated that the compositions and methods of the present invention are capable of being incorporated in the form of a variety of embodiments, only a few of which have been illustrated and described above. The invention may be embodied in other forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. The described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive, and the scope of the invention, therefore, is indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.

Claims

1. A chewing gum product comprising:

a) a gum pellet comprising chewable gum base, a bulk portion and one or more flavoring agents; and

b) a hard coating covering said pellet, said coating comprising erythritol.

2. The chewing gum product of claim 1 wherein the erythritol comprises about 1% to about 100% of the coating.

3. The chewing gum product of claim 1 wherein the product is non-cariogenic.

4. The chewing gum product of claim 1 wherein the gum pellet is free of sugars.

5. The chewing gum product of claim 1 wherein the coating further comprises a sugar or sugar alcohol other than erythritol and the erythritol comprises about 1% to about 20% of the coating.

6. The chewing gum product of claim 1 wherein the hard coating comprises a plurality of layers, one of said layers comprising erythritol and another of said layers being free of erythritol.

7. The chewing gum product of claim 1 wherein the coating further comprises a binder.

8. The chewing gum product of claim 7 wherein the binder comprises gum arabic.

9. The chewing gum product of claim 1 wherein the coating further comprises a whitener.

10. The chewing gum product of claim 1 wherein the coating further comprises a flavoring agent.

11. The chewing gum product of claim 1 wherein the coating comprises about 10% to about 65% of the product.

12. A method of making a hard coated chewing gum product comprising the steps of:

a) forming a gum center comprising chewable gum base, a bulking portion and one or more flavoring agents; and

b) forming on said gum pellet a hard coating comprising erythritol.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the hard coating is formed by applying a liquid coating comprising erythritol and solvent in a plurality of coats to the gum center and evaporating solvent from each coat prior to applying the next coat.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein the coating further comprises a flavoring agent.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein the coating comprises from about 1% to about 100% erythritol.

16. The method of claim 13 wherein the liquid coating syrup is applied to the chewing gum center by spraying.

17. The method of claim 13 wherein the solvent comprises water.

18. The method of claim 13 wherein a plurality of different liquid coatings are applied in successive steps so as to build up a plurality of layers of different coatings.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein a first coating liquid, free of erythritol, is used to build up a first layer and a second liquid coating comprising erythritol is applied to form a second layer over said first layer.

20. The method of claim 12 wherein the hard coating comprises from about 10% to about 65% of the product.