Ferré & Consulting Blog (English Version)

A non-dairy ice cream made from purely plant-based ingredients, including lupin proteins, has been developed for the market by a team of German researchers.

For many, a summer without ice cream is unthinkable, but it is a harsh reality that consumers who suffer from milk or lactose-intolerance must go without.

However, the newly developed ‘Lupinesse’ is made purely from plant based ingredients and contains proteins from the seeds of blue lupin. The researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV in Germany, said that the product is completely free of lactose, gluten, cholesterol and animal proteins and fats.

“This non-dairy ice cream is a first; there has never been a product like this on the market until now. It will certainly meet with wide acceptance,” said Hans Georg Maier, Managing Director of German supermarket EDEKA Suedbayern, which has brought the Lupinesse ice cream to market.

Lupin protein

The German research team used high-quality protein from the seeds of the blue sweet lupin to produce the ice cream.

The blue sweet lupin is particularly rich in protein, and has a balanced flavour, which the researchers said is vital to the ice cream. They noted that the secret behind the flavour lies in the selection of the lupin variety, combined with a special production method.

“The high portion of protein is important for the creamy consistency,” said Klaus Mueller of Fraunhofer.

Muller added that the cholesterol-regulating effects of the lupin protein make the new ice cream “nutritiously valuable at the same time.”

Development

The researchers at Fraunhofer worked in partnership with Spanish artisan ice-cream company Helados Alacant and EDEKA Suedbayern.

The ice cream is now produced by Helados Alacant, according to recipes devised by Fraunhofer researchers, and is available to consumers in EDEKA outlets.

“We are very pleased to be able to offer our customers a brand new food product in the form of Lupinesse ice cream, providing nutrition-conscious people, people allergic to dairy protein and lactose-intolerant people a safe way to enjoy ice cream,” said Maier.

Source: Food Navigator Usa

Ice Creams lupin protein, non-dairy ice cream

A new emulsifier/stabilizer can boost the quality and enhance the storage stability of artisan ice cream without requiring further processing, such as heating and homogenisation, according to Danisco.

Made with cold-soluble, vegetable-derived components, the company said Cremodan 500 Coldline Emulsifier & Stabiliser System is the outcome of a targeted project that aimed to overcome artisan process challenges such as low creaminess, poor flavour release, fluctuating quality and high costs.

Challenges

Most emulsifiers and stabilisers used in ice cream production have little or no functionality without proper heat treatment, Torben Vilsgaard a spokesperson for the company told DairyReporter.com.

“Therefore finding a matrix that keeps monoglycerides in the active alfa-crystal form that allows for usage in a cold processing was a challenge,” he added.

Taste

According to Vilsgaard, one of the improvements the ingredient offers is taste, delivering a “fresh and clean” mouthfeel with “an excellent flavour release”.

“This is a crucial quality trait of the artisanal produced ice cream, where the high quality ice cream needs to present the detailed and delicate flavour profiles,” he said.

Low dosage

In addition, Vilsgaard said the ingredient can be added at a low dosage, making the formulation process more flexible and cutting costs for manufacturers.

“The Cremodan 500 Coldlineis made using a new process, where the functional ingredients are optimised and selected to give a tailored functionality where synergies between the ingredients are exploited,” said Vilsgaard.

The company said the new ingredient can be used for small-scale and industrial artisan production and is suitable for ice cream mixes or ice cream powders.

Designed for the European market, the new ingredient is a development of Danisco’s existing Cremodan 100 Coldline.

Source: Confectionary News

Ice Creams, Ingredients artisan ice cream, Cremodan 500 Coldlineis, emulsifier

For applications such as coatings, fillings and chocolate shells, ADM Cocoa has expanded the deZaan range with a selection of low saturated fat ice cream coatings that provide around 43% less saturated fat than coconut oil and offer the same characteristics when used in a chocolate flavour ice cream coating.

In addition, ADM has launched Chocovit Extra, an extension of the company’s cocoa butter equivalents. Chocovit Extra was developed in collaboration with ADM’s Oils and Fats division and can be used in applications such as fillings, coatings and chocolate shells to improve functionality and reduce costs.

Source: Confectionery Production

Ice Creams ADM Cocoa, deZaan, low saturated fat

Ice creams with added pre- or probiotics can be formulated to have good nutritional and sensory properties, according to research, with careful balancing of the recipe to ensure acceptable taste, texture and colour.

The experimental ice creams made for a new study published in Journal of Dairy Science had counts of viable bacteria after frozen storage that met the minimum required to achieve probiotic effects. Moreover, most of the formulations of pre- and probiotic ice creams showed good nutritional and sensory properties.

“With a standard ice cream dietary intake (about 80 grams), it is possible to obtain at least 107 viable cells per day, which is necessary to achieve temporary intestinal colonization,” stated the authors, led by Dr. Di Criscio from the Università degli Studi del Molise, Italy.

“The benefits associated with soluble dietary fibre, probiotic microorganisms, or both, could bring attractive novel products to fulfil market niches. [Probiotic bacteria] … showed high survival at the end of production and good survival during frozen storage,” they stated.

Probiotic delivery

Milk and dairy produce make up some of the main products in the functional food arena, and are the major vehicles for the administration of probiotics and prebiotics in the diet.

The authors had observed that many new, and innovative functional dairy products are currently in development, including cheeses, yogurts, fermented milks, frozen yogurt, cheese-based dips, probiotic fermented lactic beverages, and probiotic fibre-enriched fermented milks.

They decided to evaluate the survival of probiotic microbial strains during ice cream storage because although ice cream has been deemed a potentially interesting vehicle, the effects of the freezing, thawing and storage process were unknown.

They also set out to see how the addition of these microorganisms and inulin affected the chemical, physical, and sensory characteristics of the ice cream.

Previous work

Several previous studies have suggested the potential for probiotic ice cream formulations, with a recent Brazilian study suggesting that probiotic ice cream shows ‘great potential’ , but successful formulation was dependent on overcoming the technical challenges of freezing probiotics

Another study suggested prebiotics could boost the texture of lower fat ice creams , offering potentially health friendly summer snacks.

Functional formulation

Counts of probiotic bacteria were found to be much higher in enriched ice cream than in control samples, reported the researchers.

No significant reduction in bacteria was observed after freezing and during the storage period, indicating that the storage temperature of minus 20°C did not negatively affect survival of probiotic microorganisms.

Ice cream with added probiotic microorganisms showed no significant variations of composition or functional properties. However, probiotic vanilla ice cream shown to have slightly lower taste intensity compared with the control ice cream.

Also, probiotic inoculated fruit ice creams had higher firmness than vanilla ice creams, due to the lower fat and higher sugar levels influencing the hardening process and storage.

The addition of prebiotic inulin altered the texture and functional characteristics of the ice creams. In particular, in ice creams with five and ten per cent inulin the overall firmness was seen to significantly increase, by up to 50 per cent.

Poor results were also observed for colour, which appeared more opaque with the addition of inulin, whereas better evaluations were found for flavour ratings.

The researchers stated the optimal formulation of prebiotic ice cream, with the best firmness characteristic, was found to be with 2.5 per cent inulin.

Synbiotic potential

Dr. Di Criscio and colleagues concluded that using formulations with 2.5 per cent inulin, it is possible to cover the 40 per cent intake needed for beneficial effects on intestinal microorganisms.

“Finally, it should be possible to produce a functional ice cream (synbiotic) with inulin (minimum 3 per cent) and potentially probiotic microorganisms,” stated the authors.

However they added that in vivo investigation into the effects of a synbiotic ice cream would be needed.

Source: Journal of Dairy Science

Ice Creams Functional formulation, inulin, prebiotic ice cream

Consumer goods giant Unilever has managed to break Nestle’s ice cream monopoly on the beaches of Rio de Janeiro, it has been reported.

For 30 years, Nestle has been the sole seller of ice cream in the city’s public spaces but now, Unilever has been granted a license to sell its products in major sites around the city, reports the Rio Times.

Unilever owns Kibon and it currently has around a 70 per cent share of the ice cream market in the Brazilian capital but this could increase its share.

Recently, the consumer goods giant announced it would be running a marketing campaign in the UK with fashion retailer ASOS.

Called the Temptation 100 campaign, it will centre around a game featuring clothing items specially selected by ASOS’ fashion team and is the second drive by Unilever on the retail website in recent months.

The winner of the game will receive ASOS items and runners-up will take home discount vouchers for Magnum Temptation.

Companies, Ice Creams ice cream monopoly, Nestle, Unilever

These additives provide the specific density and texture in milkshakes, ice creams or sauces.

Food coloring, preservatives or flavorings are some of the additives that are used more in nourishing industry in order to heighten particular qualities (color or flavor) or to prolong the life utility. But there is a seasoning more: stabilizers charged to give and to maintain one determined texture in food like the milkshakes, ice creams or sauces. The essence of this additive resides in its capacity to mix ingredients that would not do it of natural form, like fat and water. Thickeners or gelling are member of the most used stabilizers. Like all additives, before being approved, they are put under rigorous controls that credit their safety.

The paper of additives in feeding is very varied and, based on this activity; they are grouped in different categories. Food colorings “recover” the color of food and they make them more tempting at sight; flavor enhancers have the mission to fortify the taste; sweeteners as aspartame are used to sweeten foods with a contained minor caloric; and preservatives extend the life utility in optimal conditions. Others as the stabilizers allow mixtures of ingredients that in natural conditions are impossible, like the water and the oil. Among them, they emphasize gelling that are added to food like ice creams to give gelatinous consistency, and thickeners, that contribute greater viscosity.

Texture without cracks

Foods have many and varied consistencies. There are not two stabilizers, thickeners or gelling additives equal; one will be more effective for a particular use that another one. The phosphates conserve the natural juice, mainly in meat products, and they preserve them of the humidity during the cooked process. Stabilizers have the ability to act of reciprocal form with other components of foods: Carragenate, extracted of red marine seaweed, react with proteins of milk, an aspect that favors the formation of a smooth gel that avoids particles of separated cacao in hot chocolate.

With stabilizers ingredients in certain mixtures are not disaggregated

Foods like creams, sauces, shakes or frozen owe their uniform consistency and texture to additive action like agar-agar, pectin, guar gum or starches. Thickeners have the capacity, as carbohydrate agents, to absorb a part of the liquid of foods and to provide a more solid appearance which would naturally adopt. The main mission of stabilizers is to modify the water activity, an action that is translated in a change of the structure of foods, as well as its physical stability, without a modification of the nutritionals characteristics.

In this type of mixture, it is achieved that product ingredients are not disaggregated like margarine or mayonnaise and, even, in dressings for salads. Lecithin, monoglycerides or diglycerides are some substances that are added to give consistency to these foods. In industrial ice cream elaboration, one of the objectives is to obtain a very specific texture. The typical viscosity of this product is able with the use of thickeners like carragenate or guar, that make possible actions like to control ice crystals and the water to create the wished creaminess.

A specific control

All the nourishing additives, before being approved, must past through a rigorous scientific valuation that guarantees its safety. In the international scope, the Joint Expert Committee on Foods Additives (JECFA), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World-wide Organization of the Health supervise to the United Nations for (WHO). When they have been reviewed and analyzed the toxicological possible risks of a certain substance, as much in animals as in humans, if this valuation is positive, a “No Observable Adverseeffect level” (NOAEL) is fixed, that serves more ahead to establish the “permissible daily ingestion” . This amount is considered a safe reference, since the additive will comprise of the daily diet during all the life, without putting in danger the human health.

How it is known if a food contains additives? If the label includes the letter “E” and a number it indicates that the substance at issue account with the approval of the UE. Before, scientific committee must have evaluated it. This numerical form to label additives allows establishing a system of control harmonized in all the States members. The numbers are formed by three numbers. The corresponding one to the hundreds talks about the type of additive: 1 for colorings, 2 for preservatives, 3 for antioxidants ones and 4 for stabilizers.

Past and Present

The necessity to conserve food is very old. The salt and the smoking have been always two used techniques. Also after the harvests, were resorted to diverse techniques to store foods and to face long winters. In the same way, the improvement of the qualities has its roots in the past. The Egyptians used condiments to heighten the colors of their diet and the Romans used spices like colorings. Thanks to nourishing science and the technology, during century XX have been discovered and invented new substances that are added to foods for different aims, but with an only objective: to improve them.

At the moment, in agreement with Spanish Nourishing code, the additives are classified in four great groups:

• They modify the organoleptic characteristics: colorings, aromatic, booster agents of the flavor and aroma and artificial sweeteners.

• Physical stabilizers and aspects: gelling, emulsifiers and thickeners.

• Substances that avoid chemical and biological alterations: antioxidants and preservatives.

• Correctors: plasticizers, waxes and resins, helping technological and regulating of pH.

Ice Cream photo : Jessica_Merz

Ice Creams, Ingredients additive, colorings, nourishing industry, Stabilizers, texture, Thickeners