Following a research and development process involving access to more than 13,000 strains, Müller discovered the combination of two specific yogurt strains, Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus bulgaricus, created a less sour-tasting yogurt which means less sugar is required to be added to create a better taste.
Having already reduced total sugar by 13.5%, the dairy company is also removing all added sugar from its core Müllerlight range, reducing the total sugar content by up to 28%.
Müller has worked for the last 18 months to develop the new culture and the new recipes, which will be available from May 2019.
The discovery is part of Müller’s £100m investment to innovate, develop, manufacture and market a new generation of yogurt and desserts products.
Sugar reduction challenge
Having recently reformulated Müllerlight Greek Style and Müllerlight Fruitopolis so that they include no added sugar, Müller had also previously reformulated the Müller Corner Strawberry flavor so that it has 19% less sugar and launched Müller Corner Plain, the dairy company’s first ever Müller Corner made with unsweetened natural Greek style yogurt.
Michael Inpong, chief marketing officer at Müller said the challenge was how to reduce sugar without compromising on taste.
“By changing the culture we use to make our yogurt we’ve created something completely unique. Not only does the new Corner yogurt recipe have a thicker and creamier texture, but it has less sugar. It’s backed by our consumer sampling, and we’re very excited to bring this new recipe to market.”
Müller UK & Ireland is wholly owned by the Unternehmensgruppe Theo Müller which employs 27,500 people throughout Europe. In the UK, Müller develops, manufactures and markets a wide range of branded and private label dairy products made with milk from more than 1,700 British farmers.