Corn Syrup

Corn syrup is a food syrup made from corn starch, containing varying amounts of glucose, maltose and larger oligosaccharide sugars, produced by an enzymatic process in which alpha amylase first breaks starch into oligosaccharides and glucoamylase then converts them into glucose; it can be processed further into high fructose corn syrup using the enzyme D-xylose isomerase to convert some of the glucose into sweeter fructose. It functions as a thickener, keeps foods moist and prevents sugar crystallization, and is widely used in commercial table syrups, candies, soft drinks and processed foods, often chosen in the United States because it costs less than maple syrup or cane sugar; about 2,300 liters of corn are needed to produce one metric ton of glucose syrup, and a 25 kilogram bushel of corn yields roughly 15.1 kilograms of finished syrup. Light corn syrup is flavored with vanilla, while dark corn syrup adds caramel coloring and refiner's syrup for a deeper flavor and color.