Samyang Corporation Unveils Next-Generation Dietary Fiber 'Kestose' on International Stage

Minimizes Clumping and Dissolves Rapidly
Contains Over 99% Fructooligosaccharides

Samyang Corporation announced on March 21 that it has participated in the Future Food Tech San Francisco 2026 (FFT 2026) conference in the United States, where it unveiled its next-generation dietary fiber ingredient, Kestose, for the first time.

FFT 2026 is an international conference where global food companies, startups, investors, and research institutions come together to share innovative technologies in the food industry and trends in the future food market. This year, the event hosted more than 1,500 industry professionals from 200 companies across 40 countries.

Hyerim Kim, Senior Researcher at Samyang Corporation, is introducing the next-generation crystalline dietary fiber material at the Future Food Tech Conference (FFT 2026) in the United States. (Photo by Samyang Holdings)

Samyang Corporation participated in the event for the first time and introduced its proprietary next-generation crystalline dietary fiber, Kestose, through a session presentation. Hyerim Kim, Senior Researcher at Samyang Corporation, delivered a speech covering global dietary fiber trends, the physicochemical characteristics of crystalline Kestose, its functionalities, and case studies of applications by category.

Kestose, a type of fructooligosaccharide (FOS), is a prebiotic ingredient that serves as food for beneficial gut bacteria. Unlike conventional dietary fiber ingredients that are typically in powder or liquid form, Kestose can be formulated as a crystalline material. According to Samyang, Kestose is less hygroscopic, resulting in minimal clumping and quick dissolution, which makes it suitable for use in a variety of products such as sugars and powdered beverages. Kestose is composed of more than 99% fructooligosaccharides, making it effective as a dietary fiber supplement. It provides about 30% of the sweetness of sugar, while its sugar content remains as low as 1%.

During the conference, Samyang Corporation offered tastings of “ion beverage powder sticks” containing Kestose at its booth and discussed the potential for product application and utilization with global food companies and industry stakeholders.

Jung Sook Han, Head of the Food Research Institute at Samyang Corporation, stated, “This conference marked the global debut of Samyang Corporation’s next-generation crystalline dietary fiber, Kestose, developed in-house. Moving forward, we will strengthen our research and development of functional food ingredients, expand collaborations with global food companies, and further enhance our market competitiveness.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.