Chicory Fibre
Chicory fibre is the inulin type fructan extracted from the root of Cichorium intybus. Chemically it is a chain of fructose units linked beta-2,1 and terminated by a glucose residue, with the degree of polymerisation running from about three to sixty in the native material. Oligofructose, the short chain fraction, is produced from the same root by partial enzymatic hydrolysis.
Because the beta-2,1 bond is not cleaved by human digestive enzymes, chicory fibre passes to the colon where it is fermented by bifidobacteria, and it is used and declared as a soluble dietary fibre. Its technological behaviour depends on chain length. Short chain material is soluble, mildly sweet and behaves as a bulking agent, while long chain inulin forms a particulate gel when sheared into water, giving a fat like texture that is used to replace cream and fat in dairy and spreads.
The ingredient is a white to slightly off white powder or a syrup. Standard inulin dissolves readily in warm water, long chain grades disperse rather than dissolve at ambient temperature, and all grades are stable at neutral pH but hydrolyse under prolonged hot acid conditions.
We source bulk Chicory Fibre from top China manufacturers for our partners. The manufacturer is in Inner Mongolia. A smaller requirement can ship in a combined container with other ingredients.
Please send the grade you need, the volume and your destination port, and we will come back with a solution and a price.
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- Function
- Dietary Fibres
Specifications
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Appearance | White to slightly off white powder |
| Odour and Taste | Neutral to slightly sweet, no off notes |
| Inulin Content (dry basis) | ≥ 90.0% |
| Free Sugars (glucose, fructose, sucrose) | ≤ 10.0% |
| Average Degree of Polymerisation | ≥ 10 |
| Loss on Drying | ≤ 5.0% |
| pH (10% solution) | 5.0 - 7.0 |
| Sulphated Ash | ≤ 0.5% |
| Lead | ≤ 0.5 mg/kg |
| Arsenic | ≤ 0.5 mg/kg |
| Total Plate Count | ≤ 1,000 cfu/g |
| Yeast and Mould | ≤ 100 cfu/g |
| E. coli | Absent in 1 g |
| Salmonella | Absent in 25 g |
Common Markets Grades
Three grade families are traded. Native chicory inulin covers the full chain length range and averages a degree of polymerisation near ten. Long chain or high performance inulin has the short chains removed by physical separation, giving an average degree of polymerisation above twenty and the gelling behaviour used in fat replacement. Oligofructose sits at the other end, with chains of two to eight units, and comes as a powder or a syrup at about 75 percent solids.
Within each family the specification points are fructan content on dry solids, typically 90 percent and above for inulin and oligofructose powders and lower for native grades, residual free sugars, and particle size. Agglomerated and instantised powders are offered for cold water dispersion, and syrup grades are standardised on dry substance and colour.
Applications
- Yoghurt and fresh cheese, where long chain inulin forms a gel that mimics milk fat and allows fat reduction without loss of body
- Low fat spreads and margarine, where the inulin gel stabilises the aqueous phase and supplies creaminess
- Cereal bars and biscuits, where oligofructose syrup binds the mass and replaces part of the sugar
- Infant and toddler foods, where the fructan is used alongside galactooligosaccharide to influence intestinal flora
- Ice cream, where inulin contributes solids, limits ice crystal growth and supports fat reduction
- Bread and baked goods, where fibre enrichment is achieved with little effect on dough handling at moderate addition
- Nutritional and meal replacement powders, where the soluble fibre raises the declared fibre content
- Chocolate and confectionery with reduced sugar, where inulin powder supplies bulk in place of sucrose
- Processed meat and pate, where the inulin gel replaces part of the fat while retaining a smooth texture
Brands Using Chicory Fibre
Widely-distributed consumer products that list Chicory Fibre on the ingredient label.
- Catalina CrunchFruity Cereal ↗Chicory root fibre is listed inside the Catalina Flour blend with pea protein, potato fibre, corn flour and guar gum.Label verified 2026-08-31
- KINDZERO G Added Sugar Bar, Dark Chocolate Nuts and Sea Salt ↗Ingredient list names chicory root fibre alongside almonds, peanuts, allulose, tapioca fibre and alkalized cocoa.Label verified 2026-08-31
Brand names, product names and logos are the property of their owners. They appear here as published evidence that the ingredient is used, taken from the brand's own label or website. Their appearance is not an endorsement, and it does not mean the brand buys from us or from any manufacturer listed on this site.
China Manufacturers of Chicory Fibre
Top Chicory Fibre manufacturers in China.
Company names and logos are the property of the manufacturers themselves. They are listed here because our own directory records them as producing this ingredient. A listing is not an endorsement by them, and we do not represent them or speak on their behalf.
Regulatory Status
In the United States chicory root inulin and oligofructose are used under generally recognised as safe status supported by notifications to the Food and Drug Administration, and the agency has named inulin and oligofructose among the isolated non-digestible carbohydrates that may be declared as dietary fibre on the Nutrition and Supplement Facts labels. That listing is the reason the material is specified by fructan assay rather than by a general fibre method.
In the European Union chicory fructans are food ingredients rather than food additives, so no E number applies and they fall outside the additives Regulation. They have a long history of consumption in the Union and are not novel foods. Codex addresses inulin type fructans through the analytical methods recognised for dietary fibre determination, and JECFA has not needed to establish an additive specification for the material.
Manufacturing Process
Harvested chicory roots are washed, destoned and sliced into thin cossettes. The fructan is extracted from the cossettes with hot water in a countercurrent diffuser, the same principle used for sugar beet, giving a raw juice that also carries protein, pectin, colour bodies and minerals. The juice is purified by liming and carbonatation, in which added lime followed by carbon dioxide precipitates calcium carbonate that traps the impurities, and the precipitate is filtered off.
The clarified juice is polished over activated carbon and demineralised on cation and anion exchange resins, then concentrated by vacuum evaporation and spray dried to native inulin powder. Long chain grades are obtained by a physical separation step that removes the mono, di and short chain fraction before drying. Oligofructose is made by treating an inulin solution with endo-inulinase, which cuts the chains to two to eight units, followed by the same carbon, ion exchange, evaporation and drying train. Syrup grades are drawn off before the drier.
