Synonyms

N-[n-(3, 3-dimethylbutyl)-l--aspartyl]-l-phenylalanine 1-methyl ester

Cas No. 165450-17-9
The u. S. Food and drug administration approved it in 2002. It is also approved for use in Australia and New Zealand.

As it is heat stable. This means that it can be used in baked goods. At this time, neotame is not available directly to consumers; Instead, it is being used in several hundred different food products, often blended with other synthetic sweeteners. For example, in tabletop sweeteners, frozen desserts, chewing gum and candy, baked goods, fruit spreads, and ready-to-eat cereals.

Neotame is about 8,000 times sweeter than sugar, so only 6 milligrams is needed to sweeten a typical 12 ounce soft drink.

Neotame is an artificial sweetener made by NutraSweet that is between 7,000 and 13,000 times sweeter than sucrose (table sugar). In the European Union it is known by the E number E961. Neotame is moderately heat stable and extremely potent. Neotame is rapidly metabolized, completely eliminated, and does not accumulate in the body.^[1]

The major metabolic pathway is hydrolysis of the methyl ester by esterases that are present throughout the body, which yields de-esterified neotame and methanol. Because only trace amounts of neotame are needed to sweeten foods, the amount of methanol derived from neotame is much lower than that found in common foods, such as fruit and vegetable juices. It has the characteristic aftertaste common to artificial sweeteners.

The product is attractive to food manufacturers as its use greatly lowers the cost of production compared to using sugar or high fructose corn syrup (due to the lower quantities needed to achieve the same sweetening)^[2] while also benefitting the consumer by providing fewer "empty" sugar calories and a lower impact on blood sugar.

It is chemically similar to the artificial sweetener aspartame, but is used at vastly lower levels and is more stable. Chemically, it has a 3,3-dimethylbutyl group attached to the amino group of the aspartic acid portion of the molecule. Peptidases, which would typically break the peptide bond between the aspartic acid and phenylalanine moieties, are effectively blocked by the presence of the 3,3-dimethylbutyl moiety, thus reducing the production of phenylalanine, thereby making its consumption by those who suffer from phenylketonuria safe.^[3]

Neotame was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for general use in July 2002, but is not yet widely used in food products. Neotame also is approved for use in Australia and New Zealand. Neotame is assigned the International Numbering System (INS) food additive code 961^[4]