Maltodextrins are starches that have been partly hydrolyzed in order to obtain characteristic properties like increased solubility and certain viscosity properties.

It is a non-sweet, nutritive saccharide polymer that consists of a long chain of D-glucose units with a DE* of less than 20. Maltodextrin is prepared as a white powder or a concentrated solution at 50–75% DS** by hydrolysis of starch with a high content of amylopectin, such as waxy maize, potato starch or tapioca starch. Liquid maltodextrins typically have a limited lifetime due to the tendency to retrograde, forming cloudy syrups.

Maltodextrins have experienced an enormous growth during the last 20 years for speciality products within the food and pharmaceutical industries. Generally, maltodextrins can be tailored to a wide range of applications.