The role of sugar reduction on flavor and acceptance of school lunch chocolate milk

Our objective was to investigate sucrose replacement in school lunch chocolate milk with nutritive and non-nutritive sweeteners, with and without lactose hydrolysis of milk, on adult and child acceptance. In experiment 1, chocolate milk was formulated with nutritive and non-nutritive sweeteners (allulose syrup, mixed-sugar syrup, stevia, monk fruit, or sucralose) to the iso-sweet intensity of a current school lunch chocolate milk formulation with 3.69% sucrose (wt/vol). In experiment 2, lactose-hydrolyzed (LH) chocolate milk was formulated with nutritive and non-nutritive sweeteners (allulose syrup, mixed-sugar syrup, stevia, monk fruit) to the iso-sweet intensity of 3.69% sucrose (wt/vol). In experiment 3, LH chocolate milk was formulated with sweetener blends of allulose syrup, monk fruit, and stevia to the iso-sweet intensity 3.69% sucrose (wt/vol). Iso-sweetness for all experiments was determined using magnitude estimation scaling and confirmed by 2-alternative forced-choice paired comparison tests. Sensory properties of chocolate milks in each experiment were documented by descriptive analysis (DA) and temporal dominance of sensations (TDS). Consumer acceptance of chocolate milks was evaluated by adult consumers for all experiments, and by child consumers for experiment 3. Sweeteners in unhydrolyzed chocolate milk (experiment 1) were differentiated (P < 0.05) from the sucrose control chocolate milk due to bitter and metallic tastes inherent in the sweeteners. Liking scores for chocolate milks sweetened with allulose syrup, mixed-sugar syrup, and sucralose were not different (P > 0.05) from the sucrose control chocolate milk, whereas liking scores for chocolate milks sweetened with stevia and monk fruit were lower than the sucrose control (P < 0.05). Lactose hydrolysis (experiment 2) enhanced sweetness, reducing the required sweetener concentration by approximately one-third. Consumer acceptance of LH chocolate milks with different sweeteners were not different (P > 0.05). The application of sweetener blends in LH chocolate milk resulted in minimal differences by DA and TDS, and no differences (P > 0.05) in overall liking compared with the sucrose control chocolate milk among adult and child consumers (experiment 3). These findings demonstrate that combining lactose hydrolysis with non-nutritive sweetener blends can effectively replicate the sensory profile of sucrose-sweetened chocolate milk, offering a lactose-free, no-added-sugar alternative suitable for school lunch programs. This approach may help manufacturers meet nutritional goals while maintaining consumer appeal.