CA1329891C

CA1329891C - Hard coated sugarless chewing gum

Info

Publication number: CA1329891C
Application number: CA000565954A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Michael A. Reed; Ulesses Orr; Mansukh M. Patel; Vasek J. Kures
Original assignee: WM Wrigley Jr Co
Current assignee: WM Wrigley Jr Co
Priority date: 1987-05-04
Filing date: 1988-05-04
Publication date: 1994-05-31
Anticipated expiration: 2011-05-31
Also published as: ES2006928A6; DE3886895T2; NZ224453A; PH24799A; DE3886895D1; DK1689A; FI890017A0; FI93689C; DK1689D0; FI93689B; KR890700317A; FI890017A

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A sugarless hard coated chewing gum compris-ing a sugarless chewing gum center and a sugarless hard coating containing a substantially hygroscopic sugarless sweetener. The chewing gum center has a low water content, preferably less than about 2.5 weight percent based on the weight of the gum center. The sugarless hard coated chewing gum is manufactured by applying to the chewing gum center a sugarless syrup comprising the hygroscopic sweetener to coat the gum centers. The coated gum centers are then dried in an inert medium such as air to form the hard coating.

Description

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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
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The present invention relates to an improved hard coated sugarle~s chewing gum. ~ ~

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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION ` ,.

Sugarles~ chewing gums are frequsntly en- ;~

clo~ed with hard or soft coatings. Coatings provide an opportunity for the manufacturer to vary product charac-toxistic~ ~uch a~ ta~te, appearance and nutritional value. In recont year~, effort~ have been devoted to produclng sugarle~ hard coating~ or chewing ~um. In tod-y'~ hoalth con~ciou~ ~ociety, gums containing sugar-w~etenor~ are popular confectlonary item~. In re~pon~o to this consumer demand, the indu~try ha~ in-vo~tigated ~ugarles~ coating~ containing compound~ ~uch a~ xylltol, ~orbitol, mannitol, and hydrogenated starch hydroly~at-~. Tho~e ougarle~o compound~ contain ~weet-oning characteri~tic~ but are devoid of common Xnown gaF~ such a~ ~uero~e, dextrooe, ~ructose, gluco~e, And gulvalont produ¢ts.

HaFd coatlng~ containing ~orbitol are common ln the art. Sorbltol l~ generally acceptable bocau~e o~ lt~ avallabllity and tho low co~t. Current ~ugarleos um~-hard coatod with ~orbltol, however, ~ufer from , - ~
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deficiencies. For example, sorbi~ol coating solutions are difficult to employ in the coating process. In addition, sorbitol coated products are usually rough, contain colored spots or ~lotches, and are waxy. Furthermore, because of its hygroscopicity, sorbitol dries and crystallizes slowly. Thus, sorbitol coated products are often rejected by consumers in favour of sugar coatings because of their rough and mottled appearance and lack of crunchiness.
Accordingly, a need currently exists in the :. :
confectionary market place for a sugarless gum with a hard -coating which possesses the appealable characteristics of a sugar ... . . ..
coating. To satisfy consumers, the coating would ideally be identical in appearance, taste, and mouth feel to a sugar coating. To satisfy the manufacturers, the coating would be high in stability, easy to apply and economical.
It is therefore an object o~ the present invention to provide a novel and improved sugarless hard coated chewing gum.
It 1~ a ~urther ob~ect o~ the present invention to provide a ~ugarles~ hard coating ~or a sugarless chewing gum which compares to the appearance, mouth ~eel, stability, and ease of application o~ ~ugar hard coatings. It is a ~urther ob;ect of the present invention to provide a method ~or applying such a sugarless coating to a ~ugarless chewing gum center.
a~MMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention there i~
provided a ~ugarless hard coated chewing gum compri~ing a ~ugarles6 chewing gum center and a sugarless hard coating is provided. The chewing gum center contains water in an amount :s, : ~ .
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13~9~91 ~
less than about 2.5 weight percent based on the weight of the center. The hard coating comprises hydrogenated isomaltulose.
Preferably, the hydrogenated isomaltulose constitutes greater than about 50 weight percent of the coating and the coating constitutes about 10 to about 75 weight percent of the coated chewing gum.
The present invention further provides a sugarless hard coated chewing gum comprising a sugarless chewing gum center and a sugarless hard coating containing hydrogenated isomaltulose wherein the gum center comprises in admixture an insoluble gum base, a bulking agent, and a softener. The softener, prior to being admixed to form the gum center, contains water in an amount o~ les6 than about 30 weight percent.
Further in accordance with the present invention, there i~ aleo provided a method of manu~acturing a sugarless hard coated chewing gum. The method involves applying to a sugarless chewing gum center which has a water content o~ less than about 2.5 weight percent, a sugarle 8 syrup comprising hydrogenated isomaltulose. Once applied, the coated gum center i5 dried under drying conditions su~icient to form a hard coated chewing gum.
DETAI~ED DESCRIPTIO~ OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
It has now been discovered that when a sugarless chewing gum center is coated with a syrup comprising a ~ub~tantially hygroscopic sugarless sweetener, such as sorbitol or hydrogenated l~omaltulose in accordance with the present lnvention, a novel ~ugarle~6 hard coated chewing gum i9 obtained.
~ The novel ~ugarless hard coated chewing gum o~ the pre~ent inventlon provides many advantages. The low moisture gum ~ r, , ~ ,, , ~' ~ '' " ~. .
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8 ~ 1 center yields a hard coating which is crunchier and more uniform. ~-Without being limited to theory, it is believed th~t a low water gum center, when combined with a coating syrup comprising the sweeteners contemplated yields a superior hard coating because - ~-the center will not be a water donor to the completed coating.
This allows the hard coating to be crunchier, smoother, and not mottled in appearance. In addition, the hard coated sugarless chewing gum of the present invention is very close in appearance, taste and mouth feel to sugar hard coated gums. Thus, a consumer can substantially enjoy the benefits of a hard sugar coating without having to experience the cariogenic disadvantages of ~ugar.
The present invention provides a further advantage in that it allows the use of film formers, if desired, during the application of the coating syrup. In general, film formers help in producing a smooth -. ': - . , ' ''' :' ;'' ; ''' " .

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1~298~1 _5_ hard coating in two way~. First, film formers allow pellets to slide past one another more easily. Second, film formers which are attracted to water in the coating syrup cause the water to remain for a longer period within the coating syrup during evaporation.
This lengthens the drying time of the ~yrup coating, yielding a ~moother surface. Heretofore, film formers could not be employed with ~ubstantially hygroscopic alditol sweeteners in the formation of sugarles~ hard coatinga without yielding a soft, mottled, and non-uniform coating.
In accordance with one embodiment of the pre~ent invention, the sugarless hard coating comprises a substantially hygroscopic alditol ~weetener. The hygroscopicity of materials is best expressed as their equilibrium moisture content, which varies with the relative humidity of the atmosphere surrounding the material under consideration. The equilibrium moisture content of xylitol increases gradually up to about 80%
relative humidity; at 78% relative humidity and 20C it 18 7%. About 80% relative humidity, however, the egui-librlum moisture content of xylitol increases dramati-cally. At 90~ relative humidity, the eguilibrium moi~ture content of xylitol is about 75%. By way of comparison, at 80% relative humidity and 25C, the e~uilibrium moisture content of glycerin is 49%. The egullibrium moisture contents of fructose, sorbitol, dextro~e and sucrose at 78% relative humidity and 20C
are 45%, 33%, 5% and 3%, respectively. At 77% relative humidity and 26.7C, the eguilibrium moisture content~
of dextrose, ~ucrose and mannitol are 0.6%, 0.3% and 0.2%, respectively.
The equllibrlum moisture content of hydro-~onated isomaltulo~e, however, is not currently known to tho inventor~. It is believed, however, that hydro-~enated isomaltUlo~e has an eguillbrium moisture content ' ~' . ", . :. .
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-6- 1~2~

greater than that of xylitol. Thus, the term "~ub~tan-tially hygroscopic" is intended to include a compound ~-having an equilibrium moisture content greater than about 7% at about 78% relative humidity and about 20C.
Preferably, the substantially hygroscopic sweetener has an equilibrium moisture content greater than about 15%
and more preferably greater than about 33% at about 78%
relative humi~ity and about 20C, the latter being the eguilibrium moisture content of sorbitol. It i9 to be understood, however, that sweetener~ greater than or equal to that of hydrogenated isomaltulose are contem-plated by the pre#ent invention. Thus, the term "sub-stantially hygroscopic" includes sweetener~ having an eguilibrium moisture content at least equal to or greater than the equilibrium moisture content of hydro-genated isomaltulose.
The gum center is preferably employed in a pelletized or tablet form. The center may compri#e varioua ~ubstituents including water, an insoluble gum base, a bulking agent, a softener, an artificial sweet-ener, and a flavoring agent.
In accordance with the pre#ent invention, the ~ugarless gum center should have a very low water con-tent. Preferably, the gum center will have a water ;
content of les~ than about 2.5 weight percent, more preferably les~ than about 1.5 weight percent, and mo#t ;~
preferably le~s than about 1.0 weight percent.
In general, a chewing gum composition com-pri~e~ a water ~oluble portion and a gum base portion.
The water ~oluble portion dissipate~ over a period of time by chewing while the gum ba~e portion is insoluble and i~ retalned in the mouth throughout chewing.
The ln~oluble portion of the gum center or gum ba~e generally comprl~e~ a reslllent elastomeric component whlch may be either natural or synthetic or a _7_ ~3298~1 combination thereof. In addition, resinous components are al~o included in the gum center. In qeneral, t~e elastomer~ provide the in~oluble portion of the gum center with resiliency while the re~in provides a uni-form mouth feel. Gum base ordinarily comprises sub-stantially in~oluble natural ba~e~ uch as chicle alone or in combination with synthetic polymers such as poly-vinyl acetate, polyisobutylene rubbers and the like.
According to the preeent invention, the insoluble gum base constitute~ between about 5 to 95 weight percent of the gum center. Preferably the in~oluble gum base comprieee about 10 to about 50 weight percent of the gum center and more preferably about 25 weight percent.
The gum center often also includes a bulking agent or filler component. The bulking agent generally comprieee inert, inorganic compound such ae calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate, talc, and the like, or inert organic compounds such as waxes and the like, ;
alone or in combination. Those ekilled in the art w~ll recognize that bulklng agente or fill2rs may aleo be lncluded as a portion of the gum baee. The bulking agent may constitute between about 5 to about 95 weight percent of the gum center. Preferably, the bulking agent comprlee~ about 5 to about 50 weight percent of the gum center.
The soluble portion o~ the gum center may ~urther comprise softener~, sweeteners and/or flavoring agents. Softenere are added to the gum center in order to optimlze the chewability and mouth feel of the gum.
80ftener~, al~o known in the art as plaetlcizers or pla~tlcizing agents, generally constitute between about 0.5 to about 15 weight percent of the chewing gum center.
Softener~ contemplated by the preeent invention include glycerlne, glycorol monoetearate, acetylated monoglyc-orldoe, leclthln, vegetable oll~, and combinations thereo~. Further, aqueous sweetener solutione such ae 1 3 ~

those containing sorbitol, hydrogenated starch hydroly-6ates, corn syrup and combination~ thereof may be com-bined with the above compounds.
In accordance with one embodiment, the pre6-ent invention contemplates the softener as a major water 60urce for the gum center. Thus, the amount of water asæociated with the-softener is low. Preferably, prior to its admixture with the other gum center con-stituents, the softener will have a water content of less than about 30 weight percent. When the softener contain~ a combination of compounds, the total water content is preferably les~ than about 30 weight percent of the combined softener constituent~. Thus, for ex-ample, if glycerine and a sorbitol solution are com-blned a~ the softener, the total water contributed to the gum base from these two compounds is less than about 30 weight percent of their combined weight. More preerably, the softener or combination of compound~ ;
compri~ing the ~oftener will po~se6s a total water con-tent;of le~than ab~ut 20~weight percent of the~
~oftener.
Sugarlo~e~weetener~ in the gum center con-templated by the pre~ent invention include components with ~weetening characteri~tic~ but devoid of the commonly known sugar~. Sugarlee~ sweeteners compri~e but are not limited to ~ugar alcohol~ such as sorbitol, mannltol, xylitol, hydrogenated ~tarch hydrolysates, and the like, alone or in any combination. Also con-templated aa ~ugarle~ sweetener~ are maltitol, i~omalt, or any high inten~ity ~weetener ~uch a~ aspartame, salt~
of ace~ul~ame, alitame, saccharin and it~ ~alts, cyclamic acid and it~ ~alt~, dihydrochalcone~, thaumatin, sucrose ~ derivatlve~ ouch a~ ~ucralo~e, monellin, and the like, - alono or in any combination. Further, tho~e ~killed in the art Will recognize that the ~ugarle~ ~weetener may ~- be pre8ent in the chewing gum ln whole or in part a~ a ~, '':' .
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9 13~98~1 water soluble bulking agent. In addition, the softener may be combined with the sugarle6s sweetener such as in an aqueous sweetener ~olution.
A flavoring agent may be pre~ent in the sugarles~ gum center in an amount within the range of from about 0.5 to about 10.0 weight percent and prefer-ably from about 0.5 to about 3.0 weight percent of the gum center. The flavoring agent may compri~e essential oils, synthetic flavors, or mixtures thereof including but not limited to oil~ derived from plants and fruit such a~ citrus oilq and fruit essences. Other oils contemplated as flavoring agent~ include peppermint oil, spearmint oil, clove oil, oil of wintergreen, anise, fruit flavors, and the like. Tho~e skilled in the art will recognize that these and similar oils, and : -any combinations thereof are contemplated by the present invention which i~ not limited to any particular flavor-ing agent.
The hard coating may be present as a single coating or as a plurality of layers. In addltion, the coating may be present in any thickness or amount which is commercially acceptable. Preferably, the coating i8 pre~ent in the range of about 10 to about 75 weight percent and more preferably about 20 to about 50 weight percent of the coated chewing gum.
The substantially hygroscopic sugarless sweet-eners of the present invention include ~ubstantially hygroscopic alditol sweeteners. In general, alditol are sugar alcohols such a~ sorbitol, xylitol, and man-nltol. Xylitol and mannitol, however, are not con-~idered ~ub~tantially hygroscopic in accordance with tho pre~ont definition and are therefore, not contem-plated by the present invention. Sorbitol, however, i8 a pre~erred ~ugarles~ sweetener as it i8 substantially hygro8copic. Other preferred sugarless sweeteners in-clude hydrogenated i~omaltulose and other sugarless _g_ ::

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sweetener~ having an equilibrium moisture content equal to or greater than that of hydroqenated isomaltulose.
Hydrogenated isomaltulose, al~o known a~ iso~
malt, i5 a sugar ~ub~titute which can be used in place of ~ucrose, gluco~e, or similar sugars for the pro- -duction of food stuff~. Hydrogenated isomaltulo~e may bQ cLassified as a carbohydra-te and more ~pecifically, a hydrogenated di~accharide.
~ EydrogeNated i~oma-l:t~1-4~eci-g ~ailab~le-from Palatinit GmbH under the trademark name palatinit. Ac- ;
cording to the manufacturer, the production of hydroge-nated i~omaltulose involves an enzymatic rearrangement of ~accharose into a much more qtable compound known a~
isomaltulo3e (trademark name palatinose). Following a purifying crystallization, the isomaltulose is hydroge-nated to form the resulting palatinit compound. Spe-cifically, palatinit i~ an equimolecular mixture of the i~omer~ a-D-glucopyranosido-1,6-mannitol (GPM) and a-D~glucopyranosido-1,6-glucitol (GPG). Palatinit is de~cribed a~ an odorle~s, white, crystalline, nonhygro-scoplc ~ubstance containing about 5 percent water o~
cryetallization. Hydrogenated leomaltuloee is advan--l tageoue ln a gum hard coating because of its relatively high ~weetenlng power, lack of aftertaste and synergis-tic capabilities when mixed with other sugar alcohol~
~Uch as xylltol or ~orbitol.
The pre~ent invention contemplate~ a coating comprising a ~ub~tantially hygro~copic sugarle~ ~weet-ener, preferably between about S0 to about 100 weight percent. More preferably, the coating will contain greater than about 80 weight percent of the ~weetener.
The coating may al~o contain other component~
ouch ae flavoring agent~, artificlal ~weetener~ and diBpereing agente, coloring agent~, fllm formers, and bindlng agente. Flavoring agent~ contemplated by the pre~ent lnvention lnclude tho~e commonly known in the , ~ ' - 1 0 - ",, , .. ',.-' ' " ' .
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art and already di~cus~ed herein. The flavoring agents may be added to the coating ~yrup in an amount ~uch that the coating will contain about 0.2 to about 1.2 weight percent and preferably about 0.7 to about 1.0 weight percent flavoring agent.
Artificial ~weeteners contemplated by the present invention include those substance~ already mentioned herein including but not limited to ~ynthetic ~ubstances, ~accharin, thaumatin, alitame, ~accharin ~alts, a~partame, and ace~ulfame-K. The artificial sweètener may be added to the coating syrup in an amount such that the coating will contain about 0.05 to about 0.3 weight percent and preferably about 0.10 to about 0.15 weight percent artificial ~weetener.
Dispersing agents are often added to ~yrup coating3 for the purpo~e of whitening and tack reduc-tlon. Disper~ing agent~ contemplated by the pre~ent invention to be employed ln the coating syrup include titanlum dioxide, talc, or any other antistick com- ~
pound. Titanium dioxide i~ a pre~ently preferred dis- -persing agent of the present invention. The disper~ing agent may be added to the coating eyrup in amount~ such that the coating will contain between about 0.1 to about 1.0 weight percent and preerably 0.3 to about 0.6 weight percent of the agent.
Coloring agents are preferably added dlrectly to the ~yrup in the dye or lake form. Coloring agents contemplated by the pre~ent invention include food quality dyes. ~;
A~ already mentioned, the pre~ent invention allow8 the u~e of ~ilm former~ with ~ubstantlally hygro-~copic sugarle~ oweeteners without adver~e effect~.
Fllm ~ormer~ pre~erably added to the ~yrup, lnclude methyl cellulo~e gelatin~, hydroxypropyl cellulose, ethyl cellulo~e, hydroxyethyl cellulo~e, carboxymethyl cellulo~e and the like and combinations thereof.
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' ~. :' ' ' -12- 1329891 Binding agents may be added either as an in-itial coating on the chewing gum center or may be added directly into the ~yrup. Binding agents contemplated by the present invention include alginate, cellulosic, vegetable gums and the like.
Thë:-pre~nt-invefi~n fur~her provides a method for manufacturing a sugarle~s hard coated chew-ing gum which comprise~ applying to the chewing gum center a ~yrup compri~ing a ~ub~tantially hygroscopic ~ugarless ~weetener. In general, the hard coating proce~ carried out in a rotating-pan.~ -Suga~le~s gum center tabletq to be coated are placed into the rotating pan to form a moving mas~. The material or syrup whlch will eventually form the hard coaking, i8 applied or dlstributed over the gum-center tablets.
Flavoring agents may be added before, during and after applying the syrup to the gum center~. Once the coating has dried to a hard surface, additional syrup additions may be made to produce a plurality of coatings or multiple layers of hard coating.
In the hard coating panning procedure, ~yrup l~-added to the gum center ta~let~''at a tempera~ure 'A~
range o~ about 100F. to about 200F. Preferably, the '-~yrup temperature is-between about lS0F. to about 170F, Most pre~erably, the syrup temperature should be maintalned at about 158F. throughout the proce~ in ordor to prevent the hydrogenated i~omaltulose in the "i" ' ~yrup from crystalllzing. The syrup may be mixed with, ~prayed upon, poured over, or added to the gum center '' tablets ln any way known to tho~e skilled in the art. ~' The gum center tablets may be coated wlth a ~ingle hard layer or a plurality of hard layer~. In ~eneral, a plurallty o~ layers 18 obtained by applying oingl~ coats, allowing the layers to dry, and then re- '' peating the process. Any number of coats may be ap-plied to the gum center tablet. Preferably, no more : ,, ..
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than about 75 coats are applied to the gum center tablets. More preferably, less than about 60 coats are - -applied and most preferably, between about 30 to about 60 coats are applied. In any event, the present in-vention contemplates applying an amount of syrup suf-ficient to yield a hard coated chewing gum product con-taining about 10 to about 75 weight percent coating.
Preferably, the final product will contain between about 20 to about 50 weight percent coating.
Those ekilled in the art will recognize that in order to obtain a plurality of hard coated layer~, a plurality of premeasured aliquots of coating syrup may be applied to the gum center tablets. It i8 contem-plated, however, that the volume of aliquot~ of eyrup applied to the gum center tablets may vary throughout the coating procedure. In any event, the present in-vention contemplate~ applying a coat or plurality of coats eufficient to yield a product containing about 10 to about 75 weight percent coating.
The pre~ent inventlon contemplatee that the ~yrup pre~erably comprlses between about 30 weight per-cent o~ the substantially hygroecoplc sugarless sweet-ener and ite ~aturatlon polnt at coatlng temperature~.
More preferably, the syrup will contain about 60 to about 75 welght percent eweetener. The ~yrup may com-prl~e the ~weetener dl~solved ln water or any other food ~uallty ~olvent in an amount eufficient to yield a hard coating comprieing between about 50 to about 100 weight percent of the sweetener. More preferably, how-ever, the ~yrup will comprise an amount of eub~tantially hygro~copic sugarlese eweetener sufficient to yield a hard coating comprieing greater than about 90 weight percont. Furthermore, the syrup and thue the coating ;
m~y contaln other sugar eubetitutes including mannitol and xylitol. ;;
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In addition, it i8 contemplated by the pre~-ent invention that a flavoring agent may be added to the ~yrup, or applied to the gum center tablets while the ~yrup coating i 5 drying or aft~r the coating ha~
dried. Furthermore, the flavoring agent may be applied -after any ~equence of coats, for example, the third, twelfth, eighteenth, etc. coat.
Once a coating of syrup is applied to the gum center tablets, the present invention contemplates dry-ing the wet ~yrup in an inert medium. A preferred dry-ing medium compri6es air. Preferably, forced drying air contacts the wet syrup coating in a temperature range of about 80 to about 115F. More preferably, the drying air i8 in the temperature range of about 90 to about 105F. The invention also contemplates that the drying air po~ses~ a relative humidity of le~s than about 15 percent. Preferably, the relative humidity of the drying air ie les~ than about 8 percent.
The drying air may be paa~ed over and admixed with the ~yrup coated gum--centers in~any way commonly known ln the art. Preferably, the drying air is blown over and around the syrup coated gum center at a flow rate of about ~800 cubic feet per minute. Furthermore, 1~ a flavorlng agent le applled after a ayrup coatlng ha~ been dried, the present invention contemplates dry-ing the flavorlng agent with or without the addltion of A drylng medlum.
The following examples are not to be construed ae a llmltation upon the precent invention, but are in-cluded merely a~ an lllustratlon of embodlments of the pre~ent lnventlon.

.--15- 1 ~ 9 EXAMPLES

EXAMPLE 1:
A sugarles~ hard coated chewing gum was pre-pared in accordance with the present invention. A -~
sugarle~s chewing gum center wa~ prepared by mixing an in~oluble ba~e with calcium carbonate, glycerine, and an aqueou~ ~orbitol solution. Thi~ admixture wa~ then combined with sorbitol over a short period of time. A
high intensity sweetener, encapsulated ace~ufame-K was then added to the admixture. The encap~ulant employed was a fluid bed coated zein. Those ~killed in the art, however, will readily understand that the invention is not limited by any encapsulation technigue. Finally, a peppermint flavoring agent was added and the components were mixed to substantial homogenity. The composition of the chewing gum center was a~ follow~:

Com~onent Weiaht Percent ., Ba~o Sorbltol 41.95 Calcium Carbonate 13.0 Glycorino ~96%) 6.0 Aqueous Sorbitol Solution (70%) 4.0 Peppermlnt Flavor 1.8 Acesufame-K 0.25 , ~,; .
100 . O ,. . .

A coating oyrup containlng 73 welght percent hydrog-nated ioomaltulo~e, 24 weight percent water and 3 woight percont T102 ~lurry (1:1 TiO2:H20) wa~ pre- ~ `
parod by blendlng the componento and heating to boll-lng. After tho componento were dlooolved, the syrup wao allowod to cool to approxlmately 160F. ;

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- Fifty kilograms of the chewing gum centérs were placed in a 38 inch hard coating pan which was rotated at about 21 RPM. Those skilled in the art will recognize that any standard copper, stainless steel, or side vented type pan may be employed in the process of the present invention. Standard pans include tho~e which-aEe available from suppliers such as Dumouline ' Co., Pelligrini Co., Driam Co., and the like. Thus, the skilled artisan'will~~nder~tand that any'coa~ing system commonly used'to perform confectionary coating may be employed in the process-of the pre~ent inven- ~
tlon. The syrup was applied portionwise to the chewing ''' gum centers rotating in the pan over a period of ap-proximately 4 hours according to the schedule in Table 1. Sixty milliliters (60 ml) of peppermint flavoring '':'' agent was applied on the eighth, thirteenth, and eighteenth coating~. Upon drying, the sugarless hard coated chewing gum was comparable in appearance and mouth feel to chewlng gums containlng hard sugar coat-ings.

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Application Quantity Drying (radles) Time A~plication1 Ladle=1 Pt (min.) :

3 1/2 3 . -7 3/4 4 . .
8* 1 4 1 4 : :

12 1-1/2 5 ::
13* 1-1/2 5 ::

16 2 5 ~: :
17 2 5 ::
18* 2 5 : . -19 2 5 .:
2 5 ...

23 2 5 `:~::: .
24 2 5 .
2 5 :
26 2 5 ::
27 2 5 ....

2 5-6 .
31 2 5-6 :. .
32 2 5-6 .:
33 2 5-6 .. ...
34 ~ 5-6 . .

36 2 5 - 6 : :

39 2 5-6 "

: 41 1 6 :~

:
Total coatiny time: 3.75 hour~
~60 ml Of ~lavQr agent applied on coat~ 8, 13 and 18. .
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. 13~9~91 EXAMPLE 2:
A sugarless chewing gum center was prepared, identical to that in Example 1. A coating syrup con- --taining 57.4 percent by weight sorbitol (specifically Neosorb (trademark) a very pure sorbitol in water), 0.3 percent titanium dioxide, 2.1 percent carboxy methyl cellulose (a film former), and 40.2 percent water. The syrup was prepared by blending the components and heating to boiling. After the component~ were di~-solved, the ~yrup was allowed to cool to approximately 160F.
The syrup was ladled over a moving bed of pellets in a rotating pan. Each ~uccessive coat was allowed to spread thinly over the pellets and dry. The plurality of layers quickly dried and produced a crunchy coating. The hard coated chewing gum pellet~ were compa-rable (as those o Example 1) in appearance and mouth eel to chewing gum~ contalning hard sugar coatings.

Claims

1. A hard coated sugarless chewing gum comprising a sugarless chewing gum center and a sugarless hard coating comprising hydrogenated isomaltulose, said gum center having a water content of less than about 2.5 weight percent based on the weight of the gum center.

2. The gum of claim 1 wherein the coating comprises hydrogenated isomaltulose and other coating ingredients and the hydrogenated isomaltulose constitutes greater than about 50 weight percent of the coating.

3. The gum of claim 1 wherein the coating comprises hydrogenated isomaltulose and other coating ingredients and the hydrogenated isomaltulose constituted greater than 90 weight percent of the coating.

4. The gum of claim 1 wherein the coating further contains a flavoring agent.

5. The gum of claim 1 wherein the coating further contains an artificial sweetener.

6. The gum of claim 1 wherein the coating further contains a dispersing agent.

7. The gum of claim 6 wherein the dispersing agent comprises titanium dioxide.

8. The gum of claim 1 wherein the coating constitutes about 10 to about 75 weight percent of the coated chewing gum.

9. The gum of claim 1 wherein the chewing gum center has a water content of less than about 1.5 weight percent.

10. The gum of claim 1 wherein the chewing gum center has a water content of less than about 1.0 weight percent.

11. The gum of claim 1 wherein the chewing gum center comprises an insoluble gum base.

12. The gum of claim 1 wherein the insoluble gum base constitutes between about 5 to about 95 weight percent of the chewing gum center.

13. The gum of claim 1 wherein the chewing gum center further comprises a bulking agent.

14. The gum of claim 13 wherein the bulking agent constitutes between about 5 to about 95 weight percent of the chewing gum center.

15. The gum of claim 13 wherein the bulking agent comprises a sweetener.

16. The gum of claim 13 wherein the bulking agent comprises sorbitol, mannitol, hydrogenated isomaltulose, xylitol, maltitol, hydrogenated starch hydrolysate, or combinations thereof.

17. The gum of claim 15 wherein the sweetener comprises sorbitol.

18. The gum of claim 1 wherein the gum center further comprises a softener.

19. The gum of claim 18 wherein the softener constitutes between about 0.5 to about 15.0 weight percent of the chewing gum center.

20. The gum of claim 18 wherein the softener comprises glycerine.

21. The gum of claim 18 wherein the softener comprises an aqueous sweetener solution.

22. The gum of claim 21 wherein the aqueous solution comprises sorbitol, hydrogenated starch, hydrolysates, corn syrup, or combinations thereof.

23. The gum of claim 18 wherein the softener contains less than about 30 weight percent water.

24. The gum of claim 1 wherein the chewing gum center further comprises a flavoring agent.

25. The gum of claim 1 wherein the chewing gum center further comprises an artificial sweetener.

26. A sugarless hard coated chewing gum comprising a sugarless chewing gum center and a sugarless hard coating containing hydrogenated isomaltulose, said gum center comprising in admixture an insoluble gum base, a bulking agent and a softener, said softener having a water content less than about 30 weight percent.

27. The gum of claim 26 wherein said softener comprises glycerine, sorbitol, glygceros, glycerides, lecithin, vegetable oils, aqueous sweetener solutions or combinations thereof.

28. A method of manufacturing a sugarless hard coated chewing gum which comprises applying to a sugarless chewing gum center which has a water content of less than about 2 . 5 weight percent a sugarless syrup comprising hydrogenated isomaltulose to obtain a coated gum center and drying the coated gum center under drying conditions to form said sugarless hard coated chewing gum.

29. The method of claim 28 wherein the syrup temperature is between about 100° to about 200°F.

30. The method of claim 28 wherein the syrup composition comprises between about 60 to about 75 weight percent hydrogenated isomaltulose.

31. The method of claim 28 wherein the syrup composition further comprises a dispersing agent.

32. The method of claim 28 wherein the syrup composition further comprises an artificial sweetener.

33. The method of claim 28 wherein the syrup composition further comprises a flavoring agent.

34. The method of claim 28 wherein the syrup is applied by spraying.

35. The method of claim 28 wherein the coated gum is dried in forced air at a temperature range of about 90°F to about 150°F.

36. The method of claim 35 wherein the drying air has a relative humidity of less than about 15 percent.

37. The method of claim 35 wherein the drying conditions include an air flow rate of about 2800 ft3/min.

38. The method of claim 28 further comprising applying a flavoring agent to the coated chewing gum.

39. The method of claim 35 further comprising applying a flavoring agent to the coated chewing gum and the agent is dried in the absence of forced air.

40. The method of claim 28 wherein a plurality of coatings are applied to the chewing gum center.

41. The method of claim 40 wherein about 30 to about 60 coats are applied.

42. The method of claim 40 wherein a flavoring agent is applied during at least two of the plurality of coatings.

43. The method of claim 28 wherein the coating is applied to the chewing gum center in an amount sufficient to constitute about 10 to about 75 weight percent of the coated chewing gum.

44. The method of claim 28 wherein the chewing gum center comprise an insoluble gum base.

45. The method of claim 28 wherein the chewing gum center comprises sorbitol, mannitol, isomalt, xylitol, maltitol, sucralose, hydrogenated starch hydrolysates, or combinations thereof.

46. The method of claim 28 wherein the chewing gum center comprises glycerine.

47. The method of claim 28 wherein the chewing gum center comprises a flavoring agent.