UnSugar to showcase the sweet protein at leading industry expos

UnSugar will be on the floor at several leading food-ingredient and natural-products expos this year, meeting the people who actually build reduced-sugar products. The team is booking private tastings of prototypes made with UnSugar Sweet Protein and sitting down for technical conversations about use levels, cost-in-use, and documentation. If you formulate beverages, confectionery, or protein products and you are trying to cut added sugar while keeping the flavor, this is an invitation to taste the difference for yourself.

Why is tasting the whole point?

Decisions in the sugar-reduction category are made in the mouth, not on a slide. A formulator can read a spec sheet and a cost model, but the decision to move a sweetener into a real product comes down to a sensory judgment: does this taste like the product should taste? That question does not get answered in a deck.

This is where a tasting earns its keep. UnSugar Sweet Protein is the kind of sweetness found in fruit, about 500 to 2,000 times sweeter than sugar by weight, and in most reduced-sugar foods our formulators start near the top of that range and adjust by taste. At the milligram doses used in a finished product, it carries a gentle, clean sweetness on the finish, not the bitter or licorice tail of stevia or monk fruit. In sparkling and alcoholic drinks that clean finish can be a plus. The only way to prove that is to let someone taste it.

There is a second reason tasting matters. The sweet protein rounds out the off-notes of other sweeteners, so a formulator does not always have to choose between systems. A side-by-side lets you feel how a small amount changes the profile of a blend you may already be running, a starting point being about 65% of the sweetness from the sweet protein and 35% from the sweetener you already use.

What can visitors expect?

Each private tasting is built around real prototypes rather than a plain solution in a cup. Depending on the schedule and what your team works on, expect to sample across a few formats:

• A cold beverage, such as a soda or a tea, where a clean high-intensity sweetener shows its value most clearly
• A chocolate or another confection, where the harder problem is bulk, so the conversation covers how the sweet protein pairs with bulking agents and fibers
• A protein or sports-nutrition product, where rounding out off-notes is often the deciding factor

Alongside the tasting, the technical discussion is meant to be useful whether or not you buy anything. We will walk through practical use levels for your category, talk through cost-in-use math so you can compare against your current sweetener line, and explain where the sweet protein fits as a complement rather than a rip-and-replace swap. A high-intensity sweetener replaces sweetness only. Sugar also provides bulk, browning, mouthfeel, freezing-point control, moisture control for shelf life, and structure, so deep cuts usually need bulking systems too. We would rather set that expectation at the table than let it surprise you in the plant. In suitable formulations the sweet protein can help replace 60 to 90% of the sugar, and final performance should be confirmed by bench testing in your own recipe.

"The best conversations we have at these events start with someone tasting a prototype and saying, wait, that is the reduced-sugar version? Then we can get into the real work of fitting it to their formula," said a member of the UnSugar formulation team.

What documentation can you take with you?

Sensory work opens the door, but no ingredient moves into a commercial formula without paperwork. Bring your regulatory and quality colleagues, or bring their questions, because the team can hand over the technical and safety materials on the spot.

You can request the spec sheet, which covers the practical handling properties: the sweet protein is highly water-soluble, its sweetness is reported in the literature across roughly pH 2.5 to 10, and it holds up to about 98°C. On the safety side, UnSugar Sweet Protein is self-affirmed GRAS, with a GRAS Notice filed with the FDA. To be precise, a filed notice is listed in the inventory and the notifier makes the determination. Sweet proteins are an established, recognized ingredient category, and we are glad to give your reviewers the exact references they need.

Because the body digests the sweet protein as a protein and it is used at milligram levels, it contributes no sugars and negligible calories. We keep that framing modest and point to it as a metabolic characteristic, not a health claim.

Where and when?

We are keeping this announcement deliberately general about the specific shows. The 2026 calendar spans leading food-ingredient and better-for-you expos, and the exact events, dates, and locations shift as the year goes on. Rather than publish a list that could go stale, we ask that you contact UnSugar directly for the current schedule and to confirm where the team will be next.

If a show is not on your travel plans, the same tasting and technical conversation can often be arranged separately. A prototype tasting is the fastest way to move from curiosity to a real evaluation.

Common questions

Can I taste the sweet protein against my current stevia or monk fruit system? Yes. Side-by-side tastings are the most useful format we offer, because they let you feel the difference in finish and rounding directly. If you can share a bit about your build in advance, the team can prepare a more relevant comparison.

What will I actually sample at an expo? Finished-style prototypes rather than bare solutions, typically spanning a beverage, a confection, and a protein product, so the sensory read is meaningful.

How do I request samples or a spec sheet? Reach out through the UnSugar contact page. You can ask for the current expo schedule, book a private tasting, or request documentation to review with your regulatory team before you meet.

If you are working on a reduced-sugar project this year, the most productive first step is a tasting. Request Samples, or pull the handling and safety detail from the technical data sheet.