John Fry

June 1, 2021
Speaker Biography Feature Image

John Fry, Ph.D., CChem, FRSC, FIFST, Director, Connect Consulting

John Fry is an internationally-acknowledged expert on low-calorie sweeteners. He directs Connect Consulting, one of the world’s foremost science management resources for sweetener manufacturers and users. John has been personally involved in the technical launch John Fry PHOTOand marketing of aspartame, acesulfame-K, aspartame-acesulfame salt (which he invented), sucralose and stevia-based sweeteners around the world. He speaks and trains widely on sweeteners, sweetness and calorie-control and earns high regard for his independent, thought-leading presentations.

Previously, John was Director of Scientific & Technical Services at Holland Sweetener Company, before which he managed the Science Group at the world-renowned Leatherhead Food Research in the UK.

Graduating with a First Class Honours degree, John has a BSc and Ph.D. in Food Science from Leeds University. He is also a Chartered Chemist and holds Fellowships of the Royal Society of Chemistry, the Institute of Food Science & Technology and the British Society of Flavourists.

Areas of expertise include:
• Diet, Low-calorie, intense/high-potency sweeteners
• Food additives and ingredients
• Food ingredient innovation and development
• Food science
• Technical presentation and presentation design
• Project management
• Research design
• Research management
• Specialty ingredients
• Technical marketing

Global Food Forums Presentations by Speaker

Beyond Stevia: Are Protein Sweeteners the Next Big Thing?

Protein high-potency sweeteners (HPS) are receiving increased attention. Over the years eight, structurally unrelated natural proteins have been proposed as potential HPS: thaumatin, brazzein, monellin, pentadin, mabinlin, miraculin, neoculin and lysozyme. To these can be added non-nature-identical “designer” protein sweeteners now under development. Currently, only thaumatin is a successful, if niche, commercial ingredient. This talk will examine critically the extent to which any of these compounds meets all the requirements of a practical sweetening agent, including safety, taste performance and processability. Possible winners will be identified.f

2021 Sweetener Systems Premium Webinar

Maximizing Success with High-Potency Sweeteners
The seemingly ever-growing list of high-potency sweeteners (HPS) complicates formulation. Whether reducing or eliminating sugar from established products, or creating completely new ones, the alternative sweetener world can be bewildering. This presentation concentrates on practicality: sweetener selection, deciding how much to use, assessing prototypes fairly, and dealing with sweetener defects. The approaches are applicable to all HPS, from the world’s oldest HPS, saccharin, to the latest sweetening proteins in development.

How High-potency Sweeteners Work and What to Do about It

High potency sweeteners (HPS) are key alternatives to sugar, but have unique sensory properties that can make their use difficult. This presentation looks at how we perceive sweetness, how HPS behave, and the consequences for those formulating reduced sugar products. It gives practical insights to address the limitations of popular sweeteners such as stevia, sucralose, acesulfame K and others, with the goal of creating successful foods, beverages and nutritional products.