Characterizing Ingredients in Baked Products Sold in the U.S.

Abstract

Abstract Objectives To develop a dataset of top ingredients used in baked products and to examine the scope of use of emulsifiers, leavening agents and sweeteners (nutritive and non-nutritive) in baked products. Methods We identified top-selling baked products using 2016 Information Resources Inc. market share data, and obtained ingredient lists for the top-selling products from the publicly available USDA Global Branded Food Products Database and manufacturer's websites. Individual ingredients were then parsed using a custom program in R, a statistical computing language. We performed several pre-processing steps before parsing, as ingredient lists were inconsistent and varied. For example, the additive Azodicarbonamide is listed in 9 different ways including spelling errors. We then reviewed the parsed ingredients reported more than once, to identify terms which were equivalent, such as synonyms, spelling and usage variants, common names, possible errors etc., and assigned a preferred descriptor and its technical use (eg. emulsifiers, leavening agents, sweeteners etc.). Results For the 4 baked product food categories, there are over 40,000 products available, of which ingredient lists were obtained for ∼79% of the total volume sold. These baked products use ∼6000 uniquely described ingredients (as listed on the labels). Preliminary results from grouping based on technical use shows, for example, ∼60 kinds of sweeteners were used; top nutritive sweeteners: sucrose, dextrose, high fructose corn syrup; top non-nutritive sweeteners: sucralose, stevia extract, Reb-A. Conclusions The ingredient dataset for baked products provides insight into ingredients used in commercially packaged baked products. This information can also be used to prioritize ingredients for which food composition data are needed and help in the development of computer programs and Artificial Intelligence tools. Funding Sources None.