Iidea Supplies Agave Powder

The benefits of agave sweetening are no longer restricted to syrup, because The Iidea Company (San Diego) is now supplying agave powder. The ingredient is called Switter.

Agave sweetening in powder form has several potential perks over the usual liquid format. Over time, a light powder can reduce expenses of shipment and storage space, and it can also perform in the kitchen in ways that water-based sweeteners cannot. Iidea USA sales director Grace Carter says that the powder can be easier to work with in baked goods and confectionery where surplus moisture would affect final product texture. Where agave powder is composed of 100% solids, agave syrup is around just 75%.

Another curious benefit of this agave powder is that it resembles powdered sugar. Manufacturers can thus use this ingredient to powder muffins, cookies, and numerous other treats. But while agave powder has a handful of uses specific to its powder structure, the powder is at the end of the day still quite similar to syrup in nature. Only 6% of the ingredient is corn maltodextrin, which is used as a carrying agent.

“Chemically the properties are maintained between the powder and the syrup,” says Grace Carter, Iidea’s U.S. sales director. “That is to say, the powder still has fructose, inulin and glucose.”

For an added fiber benefit, The Iidea Company has enriched this agave powder with even more inulin, a fiber that comes from the same plant.

Robby Gardner

Associate Editor

Nutritional Outlook magazine

robby.gardner@ubm.com