Wacker is presenting a pair of new candy innovations at the ProSweets Cologne 2017 fair; one includes 3D printed chewing gum.

Does anyone remember what happened to Violet Beauregarde from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory? This isn’t one of those stories.

Wacker has been a supplier of food-grade polyvinyl acetate solid resins for over 60 years. These solid resins are an important component in many modern gum bases. In other words, these folks know everything there is to know about chewing gum.

At the ProSweets Cologne 2017 fair, Wacker plans to showcase an exciting new innovation; the world’s first 3D printing process for chewing gum. They claim their candy can now be printed in a variety of different shapes.

In addition, the company has developed another new product called CANDY2GUM. This is confectionery with a completely new “mouthfeel”, so after chewing a piece of candy for a short time it will magically transform into gum.

The tradeshow in Cologne will take place in late January. Here, Wacker will present both the 3D printed chewing gum and the CANDY2GUM technology.

Chew Wacker’s Gum Fresh from the 3D Printer

With their new technology, Wacker says they can fabricate chewing gum in new and innovative shapes. Want to chew your name, logo, or even a lifelike figurine? Soon the days of boring, stick shaped gum will be gone.

How does it work? A product formulation was developed specifically to print gum by the company’s experts. To do this, “they have optimized the software and hardware for this sophisticated food matrix.”

The company also claims that the technology allows them to offer gum in a wide range of flavors and colors too. This allows you to further personalize your candy.

And as for CANDY2GUM, the process both changes the texture of candy and paves the way for a variety of new flavors.

By boiling the confectionery rather than using a traditional dry kneading process, a range of new flavors can be used. This includes water-based, fat containing ingredients that were previously unusable. In the future, you can expect candy flavored with coffee, milk, caramel, fruit juice, chocolate, and even plant extracts.

If you’re keen to see these innovations in person, the ProSweet trade show in Cologne, Germany is open for business from 29 January until 1 February 2017.

Source: Wacker