PLANT BASED DAIRY ALTERNATIVES
Plant-based milk alternatives
Sisterna sucrose esters
Milk alternatives based on
vegetable raw materials,
have become increasingly
popular in recent years, with
a drastic increase in the availability
of varieties and flavours. Sisterna
sucrose esters are especially suitable
for plant-based drinks, as they
can emulsify the oils very well, and
can keep the proteins in solution and
particles in suspension. And also
very important; the taste of your
plant based drink will remain as it
was meant by nature.
Stable and white
Plant-based milks, with the exception
of soy, generally contain far less protein
than dairy milk, while they contain
some fat/oil that is released when the
plant material (e.g. nuts and seeds)
are grounded. In some cases, oil is
added for extra nutritional value.
In liquid products the use of a
powerful oil-in-water emulsifier is
crucial to ensure a stable emulsion
for the whole shelf life. This is particularly
so because most milk alternatives
have a long shelf life at ambient
temperatures.
Sisterna sucrose esters are water
soluble, which is very important to
An overview of the benefits of Sisterna SP70 in milk alternatives like coconut- or
almond drink.
Functionality Sisterna sucrose esters Effect in plant based milk
Emulsification of oil/fat
get a stable emulsion. The high HLB
value of sucrose esters (up to 16!)
strongly lowers the surface tension
which results in the easy formation
of very small oil droplets, thus ensuring
stability and whiteness. Small oil
droplets do not have a strong upward
force (Stoke’s Law), and scatter the
light in a way that the emulsion appears
white.
Smooth and clean
Proteins in many plants are sensitive
to coagulation at acidic conditions,
near their iso-electric point, similar
No oil separation at surface
Whiter colour
Dispersing particles Easier to shake to homogeneous drink
Protein protection
No flocculation
Homogeneous residue on glass
(almond drink)
to caseinate. Sisterna SP70 protects
the plant proteins as well as caseinate
from coagulation caused by low
pH and/or heat.
The pictures show that sucrose
esters prevent coagulation and precipitation
of vegetable proteins at a
pH around their iso-electrical point.
In some cases the sedimentation is
only partly prevented. Probably the
effect is larger with a higher dosage
of Sisterna SP70, e.g. 0.3% or 0.5%.
Most packages of milk alternatives
state “SHAKE BEFORE USE”,
because small particles sediment to
the bottom. Sucrose esters have the
ability to keep particles in suspension,
and prevent a tight packed layer
of particles at the bottom of the
package. Drinks with sucrose esters
are easy to shake to a homogeneous
whole.
Taste and odour
Milk alternatives have a mild taste.
Sisterna sucrose esters are very neutral
in taste and odour, and therefor
they are an excellent choice for almost
all food stuffs. Your plant-based drink
will keep its original natural taste.
↑ Suspensions of 2% almond flour in water
pH 6.8 (original) pH 6 pH 5
pH 4.5 pH 4 pH 3.5
↓ Suspensions of 2% almond flour in water with 0.2% Sisterna SP70
September 2020 ¦ international-dairy.com · 19
/international-dairy.com
