Consumers these days are looking for products with less salt and other unwanted additives, as well as ingredients that maximize taste, texture, and health benefits. Fortunately, new ingredients have arrived to help the bakery industry respond to these trends.
Here’s a look at some of the latest-and-greatest innovations enhancing today’s baked goods.
Clean labels
Labels are important to today’s consumers. When they pick up a product, they’re hoping to see ingredients they recognize and evidence of minimal processing. Here are a few new ingredients that meet this clean label demand:
- Manildra Group launched three clean label wheat protein isolates to increase protein in bakery products without negatively impacting flavor. GemPro Plus has a protein content of 85%, and Prime-W and Prime-E have 90%.
- Pea TVP, from Cereal Ingredients, Inc., is a new textured vegetable protein. It’s a clean label and allergy-friendly addition to snacks and baked goods.
- Bensdorp, a brand of Barry Callebaut Group, recently released a 100% natural dark cocoa powder that’s made without the alkalization process. It gives a rich flavor and darker color to brownies, cookies, and other chocolate-flavored desserts.
- As a clean label mold inhibitor and pH controller, Corbion’s Verdad MP 100 is made with vinegar and natural flavoring. It rivals the effectiveness of calcium propionate at limiting mold, and it keeps baked goods fresh without flavor loss. Corbion also now offers Tortilla Suave CL, a clean label dough conditioner that reduces sticking and tearing.
Less sodium
Monitoring salt intake is still of importance to consumers. Especially since dietary guidelines recommend 2,300 mg a day, but the average American consumes closer to 3,400 mg.
- To solve the sodium challenge, Delavau Food Partners by SafPro created a dough conditioner called Accent 6500 that reduces sodium by up to 45%. It does this without causing sticky dough or negatively influencing processing and handling. It also adds a boost of calcium to formulations.
- In a partnership between Philadelphia’s Comprehensive Nutrition Standards and Drexel University’s Food Lab, researchers successfully formulated a reduced-sodium hoagie roll, containing just 210 mg of sodium. In a taste test, customers found only slight differences between the new and original bread.
Better taste and texture
There have also been a fair share of new products to satisfy consumer cravings for fresh and adventurous flavors:
- LeSaffre Yeast Corp. designed its Fleurage Seeds and Fleurage Semolina as toppings for breads, bagels, pizza, and more. The seeds and semolina give bakery products an aromatic flavor.
- Brolite introduced its Pane Bucato base to give ciabatta bread its signature open texture and chewy crust. Made from non-GMO wheat, it supports the structure of the bread in even the messiest of sandwiches.
- Ardent Mills’ White Sonora Wheat, an heirloom wheat, gives baked goods a buttery yellow color, lasting sweet flavor, and nutty texture. It’s available in flour, wheat berry, and individually quick frozen (IQF) formats.
Allergen-free alternatives
Food allergies have been increasing. For example, nut allergies among U.S. children tripled between 1997 and 2008. Several companies are finding innovative ways for consumers to enjoy the benefits of nuts without the allergy-inducing properties.
- In addition to allergies, nuts often face supply shortages. Inclusion Technologies formulated a line of nut analogs, extenders, and replacers that are 100% nut-free, the most recent of which is Nadanut Pralines. These have the same appearance, taste, and texture of real pralines, but not the high, unpredictable pricing.
- Eggs are another ingredient that fluctuates in price and is a common allergen for children. That’s why The Ingredient House and Renmatix teamed up to create Nouravant, a plant-based egg replacer. It has fewer calories and less fat content than eggs, is only a fraction of the cost, and supports moisture retention in formulations. (It’s also a clean label ingredient!)
Health boosters
Finally, consumers want healthy food. Bay State Milling’s Healthsense high fiber wheat flour is sure to delight health-conscious consumers hoping to increase their fiber intake. Healthsense flour contains more than 10 times the amount of dietary fiber of traditional wheat flour. It’s a cost-effective alternative that won’t negatively alter taste or texture or add calories to the final product.
A version of this article appeared previously on Food Industry Executive.