WO2016001099A1

WO2016001099A1 - Coated frozen confection

Info

Publication number: WO2016001099A1
Application number: PCT/EP2015/064582
Authority: WO
Inventors: Paul Edward Cheney; Andrew Hoddle; Jeffrey Underdown
Original assignee: Unilever NV; Conopco Inc
Current assignee: Unilever NV; Conopco Inc
Priority date: 2014-06-30
Filing date: 2015-06-26
Publication date: 2016-01-07
Anticipated expiration: 2016-12-30

Abstract

The present invention provided a product comprising a frozen confection coated with a coating characterised in that the frozen confection comprises: at most 20 wt% total digestible mono- and/or di-saccharides; at least 0.45 wt% stabilisers; and at least 0.01 wt% non-saccharide sweetener, wherein total sugars have an average molecular weight of at least 350 g/mol, and wherein sugars are selected from the group consisting of digestible and non-digestible mono-, oligo- and polysaccharides, and mixtures thereof.

Description

COATED FROZEN CONFECTION

Technical Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to coated frozen confection products. More particularly it relates to coated frozen confection products having coatings that are resilient to mechanical impact and damage. Even more particularly it relates to coated frozen confection products having coatings that are resilient to mechanical impact and damage at elevated temperatures in the supply chain such at temperatures higher than -18°C. Background to the Invention

Frozen confections which consist of ice cream, frozen yoghurt, or the like coated with chocolate, frozen fruit juice, or other coatings are popular products. These products are often supported on a stick so that they can be conveniently consumed without being held directly. Chocolate-coated stick products are one example of this type of product that have been known for many years.

Frozen confection products, including those on sticks are often produced by an "extrude and cut" process. The frozen confection can then be coated by dipping into a bath of liquid coating to form the coating or they may also be spraying or enrobed with liquid coating. Once coated, the frozen products are typically blast frozen and moved from the production area to the storage areas in the factory prior to distribution. When ready for distribution the coated products can be moved from the factory storage areas into refrigerated transport vehicles (typically trucks or vans) for distribution to an intermediary distribution centre. At the distribution centre the products are unloaded from the refrigerated transport vehicles and moved to storage areas in the distribution centre prior to being sent to retail outlets such as ice cream parlours, shops, supermarkets and the like. After delivery to the ice cream shops or retail outlets using further refrigerated transport vehicles, the products are stored in freezers prior to purchase by the end consumer who may consume the product at the point of sale (e.g. if purchased from an ice cream parlour or van) or the product may be further transported from the point of sale to the consumer's home where it is further stored in a domestic freezer until later consumption.

As can be readily appreciated, there are many stages in the supply chain of coated frozen confections at which issues can arise, in particular the products can suffer mechanical impacts which cause damage to the coating through denting, cracking or other impact based stresses. Moreover, the temperature of the supply chain should be no more than - 18°C, ideally no more than -25°C but there are many points in the supply chain from production through to final consumption when the temperatures can be as high as -10°C, or -8°C, or even higher. These elevated temperatures can particularly occur in the final stage of the distribution chain between the retail outlet and the consumer's home. At this stage the products are typically no longer in a refrigerated container and are transported with the rest of the shopping and therefore particularly exposed to mechanical damage especially because the frozen confection and the coating is softer than intended and therefore more susceptible to damage. This type of damage is unacceptable to consumers who expect and demand high quality products with no imperfections and there is therefore a need for coated products that are resilient to damage.

US4603051 discloses that filler material can be added to the coating in an amount sufficient, on the one hand, to prevent cracking of the coating but on the other hand not so much as to adversely affect the moisture barrier properties of the fat or emulsifier. However, it would be preferred to avoid the use of additives, especially for chocolate coatings which have strict regulatory rules as to the ingredients of such coatings and products. JP61074544 discloses a method of preventing a coating chocolate from cracking, by undercoating the surface of a food with fats and oils, and applying the chocolate to the undercoated surface. However, it would be preferred to avoid the use of such additives in products as they can have negative organoleptic qualities. US7867537 discloses that a starch hydrolyzate may be included in a coating to provide uniform expansion and to help maintain the edible core material in the center. The starch hydrolyzate apparently contributes to crispness, helps to provide a continuous phase, reduces elasticity during heating and helps to prevent cracking of the expanding coating and escape of the edible core. US2006193951 discloses the use of a plasticizer to increase the flexibility of a coating, thereby preventing cracking after cooling and prior to use. However, it would again be preferred to avoid the use of additives, especially for chocolate coatings which have strict regulatory rules as to the ingredients of such coatings and products. Moreover, the use of a plasticiser can negatively impact the desired snapping properties of such coatings for frozen confections. US20071 10799 discloses the use of a secondary film-forming agent which has a reinforcing covering role and is alleged to make it possible to prevent possible cracking of the coating formed, including its detrimental change during subsequent handling operations. Again, it would be preferred to avoid the use of such additives in products as they can have negative organoleptic qualities. It can therefore be seen that the prior art has concentrated on reformulating or reconfiguring the coating itself or has utilised specific intermediary buffering layers between the frozen confection and the coating with all the disadvantages alluded to above. Moreover, none of the prior art documents deal with the issue of preventing damage to the coating of a frozen confection as it experiences higher than optimal temperatures in the supply chain. It has now been found that coated frozen confection products having coatings that are resilient to mechanical impact and damage can be achieved by using a specific frozen confection formulation. Crucially, it has been found that the claimed frozen confection formulation provides coated products that are resilient to mechanical impact and damage at elevated temperatures in the supply chain such as temperatures higher then -18°C.

Summary

Accordingly, in a first aspect the present invention provides a product comprising a frozen confection coated with a coating characterised in that the frozen confection comprises: at most 20 wt% total digestible mono- and/or di-saccharides;

at least 0.45 wt% stabilisers; and

at least 0.01 wt% non-saccharide sweetener,

wherein total sugars have an average molecular weight of at least 350 g/mol, and wherein sugars are selected from the group consisting of digestible and non-digestible mono-, oligo- and polysaccharides, and mixtures thereof.

Preferably the frozen confection is a frozen yoghurt or an ice cream. Preferably the frozen confection comprises at most 17.5 wt%, more preferably at most 15 wt%, more preferably still at most 12.5 wt%, yet more preferably at most 10 wt%, even more preferably at most 7.5 wt%, more preferably at most 6wt% total digestible mono- and/or di-saccharides. Preferably the frozen confection contains at least 1 wt%, more preferably at least 2 wt%, more preferably still at least 5 wt% total digestible mono- and/or di-saccharides.

Preferably the average molecular weight of total sugars is at least 400 g/mol, more preferably at least 450 g/mol, more preferably still at least 500 g/mol, even more preferably at least 600 g/mol. The average molecular weight of the total sugars is preferably at most 1500 g/mol, more preferably at most 1000 g/mol, more preferably still at most 750 g/mol. Preferably the stabilisers are selected from a list comprising of tara gum, guar gum, locust been gum, carrageenan, gelatin, alginate, carboxymethyl cellulose, xanthan and pectin. Preferably the frozen confection comprises at least 0.5 wt%, more preferably at least 0.55 wt%, more preferably still at least 0.6 wt%, even more preferably at least 0.75 wt%, yet more preferably at least 1.0 wt%, still more preferably at least 2.0 wt%, most preferably at least 5.0 wt% of stabilisers. Preferably the frozen confection contains at most 20 wt%, more preferably at most 15 wt%, more preferably still at most 12.5 wt%, even more preferably at most 10 wt%, most preferably at most 7.5 wt% of stabilisers.

Preferably the non-saccharide sweetener is selected from a list comprising of aspartame, saccharin, acesulfame K, alitame, thaumatin, cyclamate, glycyrrhizin, stevioside, neohesperidine, sucralose, monellin, neotame, hydrogenated starch hydrosylate, eythritol, arabitol, glycerol, xylitol, sorbitol, mannitol, lactitol, maltitol, isomalt, and palatinit.

Preferably the frozen confection comprises at least 0.02 wt%, more preferably at least 0.03 wt%, more preferably still at least 0.04 wt%, yet more preferably at least 0.05 wt%, yet more preferably still at least 0.10 wt%, even more preferably at least 0.15 wt%, yet more preferably at least 0.20 wt%, more preferably at least 0.25 wt%, most preferably at least 0.50 wt% of a non-saccharide sweetener. Preferably the frozen confection contains at most 2.5 wt%, more preferably at most 2 wt%, more preferably still at most 1 wt% of a non- saccharide sweetener. Preferably the product comprises at least 30g, more preferably at least 40g, more preferably still at least 50g, yet more preferably at least 60g, yet more preferably still at least 70g, even more preferably at least 80g, more preferably at least 100g, yet more preferably at least 125g, still more preferably at least 150g, even more preferably at least 200g frozen confection. Preferably the product comprises at most 500g, more preferably at most 350g, more preferably still at most 300g, still more preferably at most 250g, most preferably at most 225g frozen confection.

Preferably the product comprises at least 5g, more preferably at least 10g, more preferably still at least 15g, yet more preferably at least 20g, still more preferably at least 25g, even more preferably at least 30g, yet more preferably at least 40g, most preferably at least 50g of coating. Preferably the product comprises at most 100g, more preferably at most 80g, more preferably still at most 70g, most preferably at most 60g of coating.

Preferably the coating is chocolate.

Preferably the product is fully coated. Preferably the product is stick based. Detailed Description of the Invention

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art (e.g. in frozen food manufacture). Definitions and descriptions of various terms and techniques used in frozen confectionery manufacture are found in "Ice Cream", 6th Edition R.T. Marshall, H.D. Goff and R.W. Hartel, Kluwer Academic / Plenum Publishers, New York 2003.

Frozen confection means a confection made by freezing a pasteurised mix of ingredients such as water, fat, sweetener, protein (normally milk proteins), and optionally other ingredients such as emulsifiers, stabilisers, colours and flavours. Frozen confections may be aerated. Frozen confections include ice cream, frozen yoghurt and the like. In a preferred embodiment the frozen confection is an ice cream.

The present invention provides coated frozen confections in which the coating is resilient to mechanical damage and has found that this can be achieved through the use of a specific frozen confection formulation in combination with said coating.

The present invention therefore utilises a frozen confection having at most 20 wt% of digestible mono- and/or di-saccharides. The total sugar content of a frozen confection is thus the sum of all of the digestible and non-digestible mono-, oligo- and polysaccharides, and mixtures thereof present within the frozen confection, including any lactose from milk solids and any sugars from fruits.

In preferred embodiments the frozen confection has at most 17.5 wt%, more preferably at most 15 wt%, more preferably still at most 12.5 wt%, yet more preferably at most 10 wt%, even more preferably at most 7.5 wt%, more preferably at most 6wt% digestible mono- and/or di-saccharides. Preferably the frozen confection contains at least 1 wt%, more preferably at least 2 wt%, more preferably still at least 5 wt% digestible mono- and/or di- saccharides. The total sugars of the inventive frozen confection composition have an average molecular weight of at least 350 g/mol. The number average molecular weight (Mn) of the total sugars is calculated using the following formula:

<M>n = (∑ Wi) / (∑ (Wi/Mi)) where Wi is the mass of each mono-/di-saccharide component "i" and Mi is its molar mass, i.e. the molecular weight of component "i". In a preferred embodiment the average molecular weight of the total sugars is at least 400 g/mol, more preferably at least 450 g/mol, more preferably still at least 500 g/mol, even more preferably at least 600 g/mol. The average molecular weight of the total sugars is preferably at most 1500 g/mol, more preferably at most 1000 g/mol, more preferably still at most 750 g/mol.

The frozen confection further contains stabilisers, the primary purposes of which is to produce smoothness in body and texture, retard or reduce ice and lactose crystal growth during storage, and to provide uniformity of product and resistance to melting. Additionally, they stabilize the mix to prevent wheying off, produce a stable foam with easy cut-off in the freezer, and slow down moisture migration from the product to the package or the air. The action of stabilisers in ice cream results from their ability to form gel-like structures in water and to hold free water. Iciness can be controlled by stabilizers due to a reduction in the growth of ice crystals over time, related to a reduction in water mobility as water is entrapped by their entangled network structures in the serum phase. Suitable stabilisers include one or more of tara gum, guar gum, locust been gum, carrageenan, gelatin, alginate, carboxymethyl cellulose, xanthan and pectin. The frozen confection contains at least 0.45 wt%, preferably at least 0.5 wt%, more preferably at least 0.55 wt%, more preferably still at least 0.6 wt%, even more preferably at least 0.75 wt%, yet more preferably at least 1 .0 wt%, still more preferably at least 2.0 wt%, most preferably at least 5.0 wt% of stabilisers. Preferably the frozen confection contains at most 20 wt%, more preferably at most 15 wt%, more preferably still at most 12.5 wt%, even more preferably at most 10 wt%, most preferably at most 7.5 wt% of stabilisers. The frozen confection also contains non-saccharide sweetener which as defined herein consist of: The intense sweeteners aspartame, saccharin, acesulfame K, alitame, thaumatin, cyclamate, glycyrrhizin, stevioside, neohesperidine, sucralose, monellin and neotame; and The sugar alcohols HSH (hydrogenated starch hydrosylate - also known as polyglycitol), eythritol, arabitol, glycerol, xylitol, sorbitol, mannitol, lactitol, maltitol, isomalt, and palatinit. The frozen confection contains at least 0.01 wt% of a non-saccharide sweetener, preferably at least 0.02 wt%, more preferably at least 0.03 wt%, more preferably still at least 0.04 wt%, yet more preferably at least 0.05 wt%, yet more preferably still at least 0.10 wt%, even more preferably at least 0.15 wt%, yet more preferably at least 0.20 wt%, more preferably at least 0.25 wt%, most preferably at least 0.50 wt% of a non- saccharide sweetener. Preferably the frozen confection contains at most 2.5 wt%, more preferably at most 2 wt%, more preferably still at most 1 wt% of a non-saccharide sweetener. The product may contain upwards of 30g, 40g, 50g, 60g, 70g, 80g, 100g, 125g, 150g or 200g of frozen confection, preferably up to at most 500g, 350g, 300g, 250g, or 225g of frozen confection

As discussed, the present invention provides coated frozen confections in which the coating is resilient to mechanical damage. Coating means any edible material which can be used to form a coating layer on a frozen confection. Coatings may be fat-based, such as chocolate (dark chocolate, white chocolate, milk chocolate), or a chocolate analogue or couverture. The term "chocolate" is not intended to be limited to compositions that can legally be described as chocolate in any particular country but includes any products having the general character of chocolate. It therefore includes chocolate-like materials which are made using fats other than cocoa butter (for example coconut oil). Chocolate usually contains non-fat cocoa solids, but it is not essential that it does so (e.g. white chocolate). The term chocolate analogue means chocolate-like fat-based confectionery compositions made with fats other than cocoa butter (for example cocoa butter equivalents, coconut oil or other vegetable oils). Such chocolate analogues are sometimes known as couvertures. Chocolate analogues need not conform to standardized definitions of chocolate which are used in many countries. In addition to fat and cocoa solids, chocolate and chocolate analogues may contain milk solids, sugar or other sweeteners and flavourings. A fat-based coating may consist essentially of vegetable oil and sugar, together with colours and / or flavours as required. The coating can also be water-based, such as frozen water ices, fruit juices and fruit purees. Frozen confection products, including stick based frozen confections, can be coated using various different techniques. The frozen confection can be dipped into liquid coatings for a certain time to form the coating. The most commonly used method of dipping, on an industrial scale, is to hold products upside down by their sticks on an indexing conveyor. The conveyor moves the products, stepwise, toward a dipping bath. When over the bath, the products are pushed down in to the coating, pulled back up and then indexed away by the conveyor. In a simpler and cheaper dipping method, the ice cream products are continuously moved though the bath. The products are initially held upside down by their sticks. They are then rotated into a horizontal position in order to clear the side of the bath. They are then rotated back to the upside down (vertical) position, thereby dipping the ice cream into the coating while the products are moved along the length of the bath. At the end of the bath they are rotated back to the horizontal position to clear the edge of the tank. Finally they are rotated back to the upside down position to allow the coating to set and the excess coating to run-off. As an alternative to dipping, spraying can be used to coat products, in particular stick based products. Enrobing can be used to coat products without sticks. The product is placed on a mesh conveyor belt and passed through a waterfall of coating (known as a curtain) typically formed by pumping liquid coating through an aperture in the form of a horizontal slot. This operation coats the top, front, back and sides of the bar. An air knife may be used to blow off the excess coating, which drains through the mesh conveyor. Finally, the mesh conveyor carries the product into a shallow bath of coating thereby immersing the bottom of the product and coating it.

Coatings are applied to the frozen confection as liquids, but solidify when they are cooled down, for example as a result of contact with the frozen confection. Chocolates have complex solidification behaviour because they contain mixtures of different triglycerides which can crystallize in different forms. For example, cocoa butter can exist in six different crystalline forms (polymorphs). As chocolate solidifies, triglycerides begin to crystallize. Within a few seconds the chocolate becomes dry to the touch and has plastic or leathery texture. Crystallization continues slowly, so that it typically takes several hours or days for the triglycerides to fully crystallize and so that the chocolate reaches its maximum brittleness. Chocolate made from fats other than cocoa butter displays similar behaviour, but typically crystallizes over a narrower temperature range and reaches maximum brittleness more quickly. Similarly, water based coatings freeze to create a lattice work of ice crystals around the frozen confection core. It will be readily appreciated that such brittle chocolate and frozen water-based coatings are particularly prone to mechanical damage.

The product can be partially coated but in a preferred embodiment it is fully coated. The product may contain upwards of 5g, 10g, 15g, 20g, 25g, 30g, 40g, or 50g of coating and preferably no more than 100g, 80g, 70g, or 60g of coating. It has been found that the frozen confection of the present invention is resistant to damage, particularly at elevated temperatures in the supply chain. At elevated temperatures as high as -17°C, more preferably as high as -15°C, more preferably still as high as -12°C, even more preferably at temperatures of -7°C the frozen confection of the present invention has the firmness that a standard ice cream only has at lower temperatures such as -18°C. As a consequence the frozen confection provides a stable structure upon which the coating is mounted. If the product undergoes mechanical impacts then the coating will be supported by the firm frozen confection structure beneath and is therefore less likely to suffer damages such as cracking, denting and the like even at elevated temperatures. It has been further found that the frozen confection of the present invention maintains higher levels of ice, even at elevated temperatures. As a consequence, at elevated temperatures as high as -17°C, more preferably as high as -15°C, more preferably still as high as -12°C, even more preferably at temperatures of -7°C the frozen confection of the present invention has the same amount of ice that a standard ice cream will only have at lower temperatures such as -18°C. As a consequence the frozen confection provides a solid stable structure and even if the product undergoes mechanical impacts at such elevated temperatures then the coating is less likely to suffer damage.

In a preferred embodiment the ice content of the frozen confection at -12°C is at least 40 wt%, more preferably at least 45 wt%, more preferably still at least 50%, yet more preferably at least 55 wt%, most preferably at least 60 wt%. Preferably the ice content of the frozen confection at -12°C is at most 70 wt%, more preferably at most 65 wt%, most preferably at most 60 wt%. In a further preferred embodiment the ice content of the frozen confection at -8°C is at least 40 wt%, more preferably at least 45 wt%, more preferably still at least 50%, yet more preferably at least 55 wt%, most preferably at least 60 wt%. Preferably the ice content of the frozen confection at -8°C is at most 70 wt%, more preferably at most 65 wt%, most preferably at most 60 wt%.

Importantly, the frozen confection has been found to have the same processability as a standard ice cream. It has the same rheology that a standard ice cream has at standard ice cream extrusion temperatures. Preferably the inventive frozen confection is extrudable at a temperature of from -5.5 to -4°C, more preferably from -5.0 to -4.5°C, most preferably at -4.7°C.

It has also been found that the organoleptic properties of the inventive product are acceptable across a wider range of temperatures. At a temperature of -18°C (which is the normal, optimal eating temperature of an standard coated frozen confection product) is was found that the inventive product gives a similar eating experience in terms of coldness, mouth-feel and performance of the coating as compared to a standard coated product. Moreover, at a temperature of -12°C standard coated products were found to be far too soft and the coating slipped off and fell away from the frozen confection. In contrast, the inventive product provided an eating experience (in terms of coldness, mouthfeel and performance of the coating) that was entirely comparable to the eating experience of standard products at -18°C. Therefore in a preferred embodiment the product of the invention provides an eating experience at -12°C that is comparable to a standard coated frozen confection as determined -18°C.

The resilience of the coating can be assessed using a Vickers indentation test geometry on an Instron (type 5500R) testing machine. The product is held in a cradle to restrain the product and make sure that the indenter is arranged perpendicular to the sample to apply the load evenly. The product is placed centrally under the indenter and the crosshead is set in a position just above (approx. 0.1 mm) the product surface. The test parameters are: Load cell 1000 Newton; Crosshead speed 2mm / min. It was found that the force required to crack a chocolate coating was 1 1 N for a standard ice cream product at a temperature of -18°C. However, the when the temperature was raised to -12°C the force required to crack the chocolate coating of a standard ice cream product dropped to approx. 6.25 N. In contrast, at -12°C the force required to crack the chocolate coating of a product according to the invention was found to be 1 1 N which was equivalent to the force required for a standard product at the optimal temperature. Therefore in a preferred embodiment at a temperature of -12°C the product of the invention requires a force of at least 8 N, preferably at least 9 N, more preferably at least 10 N, more preferably still at least 1 1 N, most preferably at least 12 N to crack the coating. Preferably at a temperature of -12°C the product of the invention requires a force of at most 20 N, more preferably at most 17.5 N, most preferably at most 15 N to crack the coating.

Examples

Effect of temperature on chocolate cracking

The failure stress of chocolate was determined at varying temperature as follows. 50 x 10 x 2mm strips of chocolate were produced by molding and left to rest for a minimum of 2 weeks at -18°C before use. Chocolate strips (10 replicates per temperature) were placed in environmental chambers set to -33°C, -25°C, -18°C and -10°C one day before mechanical measurement. The measurement apparatus was enclosed in a temperature controlled cabinet set to the relevant testing temperature (-33°C, -25°C, -18°C and - 10°C). Chocolate strips were transferred from the environmental chamber to the cabinet immediately prior to measurement. Measurements were conducted using a modified 3- point bend test geometry adapted to evaluate thin layers of chocolate on an Instron (type 5500R) testing machine. The three points were replaced with circular cross section bars of 5mm diameter, arranged perpendicular to the samples to spread the load. For each test the moulded strip was placed centrally on the bars and the crosshead was set in a position just above (approx. 0.4mm) the strip surface. Test parameters were: Load cell 100 Newton; Crosshead speed 10mm / min; Test length 10mm; Span 30mm. The software used to record the failure stress of each sample was Bluehill2TM version 2.17.The average failure stress (MPa) for each temperature is given in Table 1 .

Table 1 - Average failure stress for chocolate vs. temperature

It was therefore surprisingly found that the pressure required to achieve failure stress for the chocolate itself did not significantly vary with temperature and that therefore simply changing the composition of the chocolate was not necessarily relevant to the problem of preventing cracking of chocolate at elevated temperatures.

Determining the failure strength of for chocolate coating on coated products An experiment was carried out to investigate the force required to crack a chocolate coating on a standard ice cream at the optimal supply chain temperature of -18°C and at an elevated supply chain temperature of -12°C. The experiment also investigated the force required to crack the chocolate coating on a coated frozen confection according to this invention at the elevated supply chain temperature of -12°C. The experiment was carried out as follows. Ice cream mixes according to the compositions in Table 2 were prepared with 65% overrun, extruded at -5.4°C, sticks were inserted to provide rectangular stick based frozen confection with dimensions of 45mm x 100mm x 25mm. The products were hardened to -25°C overnight, then dipped in molten chocolate which was at a temperature of at 45°C (pick-up weight = 25±1 g) and left to rest for 2 weeks at -18°C before use.

Table 2 - Comparison of ice cream formulations

The ice creams were placed in an environmental chamber set to the test temperature one day before mechanical measurement. The test sets were as follows: 10 replicates of Standard Ice Cream at -18°C

10 replicates of Standard Ice Cream at -12°C

- 10 replicates of Example A at -12°C

The measurement apparatus was enclosed in a temperature controlled cabinet set to the relevant testing temperature (-18°C and -12°C). Products were transferred from the environmental chamber to the cabinet immediately prior to measurement. Measurements were conducted using a Vickers indentation test geometry on an Instron (type 5500R) testing machine. The product was held in a cradle to restrain the product and make sure that the indenter was arranged perpendicular to the sample to apply the load evenly. For each test the product was placed centrally under the indenter and the crosshead was set in a position just above (approx. 0.1 mm) the product surface. The test parameters were: Load cell 1000 Newton; Crosshead speed 2mm / min. The software used to record the first failure stress (the chocolate failing) of each sample was Bluehill2TM version 2.17. The average first failure stress values from the replicates are shown in Table 3.

Table 3 - Average first failure stress values

It was therefore observed that at an elevated supply chain temperature of -12°C the average force required to crack the chocolate coating on the standard ice cream formulation was only 6.25N whereas at the optimal supply chain temperature of -18°C the chocolate coating on the standard ice cream formulation was 1 1 .ON. Therefore it can be seen that at an elevated supply chain temperature of -12°C only 60% of the normal force is required to crack the coating. It can therefore readily be seen that this product is highly prone to damage when the temperature is elevated.

In contrast, at an elevated supply chain temperature of -12°C the average force required to crack the chocolate coating of the ice cream formulation of Example A was 1 1 .1 N which is equivalent to the standard formulation at the optimal supply chain temperature. It can therefore be appreciated that, even at elevated supply chain temperatures, the product of the invention has the same resilience to damage as a standard product under optimal supply chain temperatures.

Claims

1. A product comprising a frozen confection coated with a coating characterised in that the frozen confection comprises:

at most 20 wt% total digestible mono- and/or di-saccharides;

- at least 0.45 wt% stabilisers; and

at least 0.01 wt% non-saccharide sweetener,

2. A product according to claim 2 wherein the frozen confection is a frozen yoghurt or an ice cream.

3. A product according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the frozen confection comprises at most 17.5 wt% digestible mono- and/or di-saccharides.

4. A product according to any of claims 1 to 3 wherein the frozen confection contains at least 1 wt% digestible mono- and/or di-saccharides.

5. A product according to any of claims 1 to 4 wherein the average molecular weight of the total sugars is at least 400 g/mol.

6. A product according to any of claims 1 to 5 wherein the average molecular weight of the total sugars is at most 1500 g/mol.

7. A product according to any of claims 1 to 6 wherein the frozen confection comprises at least 0.5 wt% stabilisers.

8. A product according to any of claims 1 to 7 wherein the frozen confection contains at most 20 wt% stabilisers.

9. A product according to any of claims 1 to 8 wherein the frozen confection comprises at least 0.02 wt% non-saccharide sweetener.

10. A product according to any of claims 1 to 9 wherein the frozen confection contains at most 2.5 wt% non-saccharide sweetener.

1 1 . A product according to any of claims 1 to 10 wherein the product comprises at least 30g frozen confection.

12. A product according to any of claims 1 to 1 1 wherein the product comprises at most 500g frozen confection.

13. A product according to any of claims 1 to 12 wherein the product comprises at least 5g coating.

14. A product according to any of claims 1 to 13 wherein the product comprises at most 100g coating.

15. A product according to any of claims 1 to 14 wherein the coating is chocolate.