of the fructose value of the sugar to said levan under nutrient growth conditions which enhance levan production while suppressing ethanol production. Abstract: A water-soluble levan having a weight average molecular weight of about 10,000-40 million, preferably about 5-25 million and especially about 10-20 million which stabilizes a bovine serum albumin colloid having index (EAI) of about 3-100 determined according to the formula EAI=2T/OC wherein T is turbidity measured at 500 nm, C is the weight of emulsified protein per unit volume of the aqueous phase, and O is the volume fraction of a dispersed oil phase is produced by fermenting a nutrient growth medium feedstock having a carbon source consisting essentially of an assimilable sugar selected from the group consisting of sucrose, raffinose, or a mixture thereof with a microorganism capable of converting at least 50%.