Dr Gail CHANG Jinhui, Member of the Research Institute for Future Food (RiFood) and Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Food Science and Nutrition, was interviewed by Ming Pao Daily in March about her innovative fat replacer AkkMore™.
Akkermansia muciniphila (Akk), a beneficial gut bacterium linked to reduced risks of obesity, diabetes, fatty liver disease, cardiovascular issues and inflammation, is not naturally abundant in the human gut. Historically, there have been no simple methods to boost the bacterium’s growth. However, Prof. Chang and her team discovered that polysaccharides extracted from mushrooms can be used to create AkkMore™, a prebiotic that nourishes Akk.
This innovation also doubles as a plant-based fat substitute in food production. The team found that AkkMore™’s thickening and emulsifying properties allow it to partially replace animal fats like butter and cream in products such as ice cream and biscuits. For example, Cream Mate, an AkkMore™-based cream substitute, reduces ice cream fat content from 15–16% to 2.7%, cutting calories by over 50%. Similarly, Butter Mate lowers biscuit fat from 36% to 18%. These substitutes mimic the texture of animal fat, and small amounts of fat, sugar, or salt are strategically added to enhance the flavour of food products without compromising health benefits.
Commercialised via Bo InnoHealth Biotechnology, the products have gained recognition at international innovation exhibitions and are used by businesses like Hotel ICON and Pacific Coffee. While primarily sold business-to-business (B2B), low-fat cookies and pineapple pastries are available for public purchase via PolyU’s platform. The team aims to balance health benefits with sensory appeal, avoiding artificial additives like margarine while keeping costs competitive.
