Effect of Substitution of Sugar by High Fructose Corn Syrup on the Physicochemical Properties of Bakery and Dairy Products: A Review

High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is commonly found in soft drinks and juice beverages, as well as in many pre-packaged foods such as breakfast cereals, baked goods and dairy desserts. Historically, sucrose (table sugar) was primarily added to processed foods and beverages as the sweetening agent. In recent years, the use of HFCS has significantly increased in popularity due to its sweetness, ability to enhance flavor and shelf life, and its low cost. HFCF made by enzymatic isomerization of glucose to fructose was introduced as HFCS-42 (42% fructose) and HFCS-55 (55% fructose) and opened a new frontier for the sweetener and soft drink industries. Using a glucose isomerase, the starch in corn can be efficiently converted into glucose and then to various amounts of fructose. Hydrolysis of sucrose produces a 50:50 molar mixture of fructose and glucose. The primary difference is that these monosaccharides exist free in solution in HFCS, but in sucrose bonded together. The disaccharide sucrose is easily cleaved in the small intestine, so free fructose and glucose are absorbed from both sucrose and HFCS. The advantage to food manufacturers is that the free monosaccharide in HFCS provides better flavor enhancement, stability, freshness, texture, color, pourability, and consistency in foods in comparison to sucrose. The development of these inexpensive, sweet corn-based syrups made it profitable to replace sucrose (sugar) and simple sugars with HFCS in our diet. In the present study, the replacement of sucrose with HFCS and its effect on the functionality and organoleptic properties of different food products were reviewed.