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Agave nectar (more accurately called agave syrup) is a sweetener commercially produced from several species of agave, including ''Agave tequilana'' (blue agave) and ''Agave salmiana''. Agave syrup is sweeter than honey and tends to be less viscous. Most agave syrup comes from Mexico and South Africa. Agave syrup has been marketed as a "healthful" sweetener, but this fact has been the subject of criticism due to its very high fructose content (which is even more than high fructose corn syrup in its fructose content by weight) and its potential to lead to insulin resistance and significantly increased triglyceride levels (a risk factor for heart disease). ==Production== To produce agave syrup from the ''Agave americana'' and ''A. tequilana'' plants, the leaves are cut off the plant after it has aged seven to fourteen years. The juice is then extracted from the core of the agave, called the ''piña''.〔 The juice is filtered, then heated to break the complex components (the polysaccharides) into simple sugars.(to cite reference for production process ) The main polysaccharide is called inulin or fructosan and is mostly fructose. This filtered juice is then concentrated to a syrupy liquid, slightly thinner than honey. Its color varies from light- to dark-amber, depending on the degree of processing. ''Agave salmiana'' is processed differently from ''Agave tequiliana''. As the plant develops, it starts to grow a stalk called a ''quiote''. The stalk is cut off before it fully grows, creating a hole in the center of the plant that fills with a liquid called ''aguamiel''. The liquid is collected daily. The liquid is then heated, breaking down its complex components into fructose and glucose and preventing it from fermenting into pulque. An alternative method used to process the agave juice without heat is described in a United States patent for a process that uses enzymes derived from the mold ''Aspergillus niger'' to convert the inulin-rich extract into fructose.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 title=Method of producing fructose syrup from agave plants (United States Patent 5846333) )〕 ''Aspergillus niger'', a fungus commonly used in industrial fermentations, is "generally recognized as safe" (GRAS) by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Agave nectar」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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