FONA International unveils flavors to watch in 2016

FONA International has released its 2016 Flavor Radar Watch List featuring 28 notable flavors. The company recently featured eight of the flavors to represent the burgeoning trends. The flavors include:

H- arissa — The garlicky chili paste from North Africa blends hot smoked chili peppers, garlic, olive oil, and spices like cumin, coriander, caraway and mint. Tomatoes and rose petals are also common ingredients.

- Lulo — The fruit, native to the Andes Mountains in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, has a pineapple and lemon-like taste and contains small, white edible seeds.

- Bergamot — Part of the citrus family, the fruit offers sweet, sour and acidic tastes and is known for its use in Earl Grey tea.

- Lingonberry — Native to arctic and subarctic regions, the berry has a sour, tart and slightly sweet flavor and is rich in antioxidants, vitamins A and C and magnesium.

- Matcha green tea — The finely milled green tea powder is used to flavor and dye foods like noodles and cookies.

- Fig — The fruit, native to the Middle East and Asia, offers a sweetness that is often used to complement savory flavors.

- Curry — The flavor features a complex combination of spices and herbs, usually including hot chilies that originate from East India.

- Blood orange — The variety of orange has red pulp and a tart, sweet berry-like flavor.

Beneo’s inulin receives European health claim authorization

The European Commission has authorized a 13.5 health claim with proprietary use for Beneo’s chicory root fiber inulin promoting digestive health. The official wording for the claim is “chicory inulin contributes to normal bowel function by increasing stool frequency.” From January, the claim is available for use by Beneo’s customers. The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union.

General health-related claims under European article 10.3 are also possible, including “chicory inulin promotes digestive health” or “chicory root fiber supports a healthy and balanced digestive system.” Manufactures using such claims must consider that the beneficial effect is achieved with a daily intake of 12 grams of chicory inulin and the consumer should be informed accordingly.

The science behind this health claim has been positively evaluated by the European Food Safety Authority and included six human intervention studies that consistently proved consumption of Orafti Inulin increases stool frequency and therefore supports digestive health. Significant results were demonstrated with a proprietary study of Beneo for a total intake of 12 grams per day.

Sethness introduces darker caramel color

Sethness Products Co. is introducing its darkest Class I Powdered Caramel Color – SB245. The color has a Tinctorial Power of 0.2350– 0.265 and is significantly darker than traditional Class I Powders. SB245 offers a brown hue, unlike the characteristic red tones of other Class I Powdered Caramel Colors. This allows food and beverage manufacturers to switch from brown-toned Class IV caramel colors to a more minimally-processed, clean label Class I.

Manufactured from non-genetically modified cane sucrose, SB245 is a non-G.M.O. caramel color that is low in sulfite, kosher and gluten-free. No 4-Mel is created during its production.

Flavorchem introduces Non-GMO Project verified flavors

Flavorchem Corp. is launching its new line of Non-GMO Project verified flavors. The line includes cocoa, coffee, orange, lime, peppermint and lemon, and the company plans to add more Non-GMO Project verified flavors to its product line.

“Flavorchem always takes a proactive approach by introducing new non-G.M.O. ingredients, as the demand for health and wellness products expands into all segments of the food and beverage industry,” said Edward McIntosh, marketing manager at Flavorchem.

Pizzey Ingredients expands flaxseed plant

An expansion of a Pizzey Ingredients’ flaxseed processing plant in Russell, Man., includes an extension of the company’s heat treatment capability. Currently, PurFlax branded products from Pizzey Ingredients undergo targeted heat treatment to provide microbial reduction while protecting flaxseeds’ natural stability, nutrition and function. Once the expansion is commissioned in the second quarter of 2016, all flaxseed produced by the company for both human and animal consumption will undergo a heat treatment step.

“While flaxseed itself does not present an inherent food safety risk, like any raw, natural product it can potentially become contaminated in the supply chain,” said Linda Pizzey, president and chief executive officer. “The expansion of our facility, which will enable us to heat treat all of our flaxseed, is a pre-emptive step that underscores Pizzey Ingredients’ dedication to producing the highest quality, safest flaxseed available on the market.”

Burcon’s Clarisoy commercialization progressing

Burcon NutraScience Corp. said the commercialization of its Clarisoy soy protein is moving forward. The company expects to have Archer Daniels Midland’s first full-commercial-scale Clarisoy soy protein production plant to be operational by mid-2016.

ADM has been promoting Clarisoy as a clean-tasting renewable plant-based protein ingredient that works especially well as a dairy alternative.

“We are excited to see ADM’s commercialization activities bearing fruit and believe we are well-positioned for the coming year as Clarisoy nears full-commercial-scale production,” said Johann Tergesen, president and chief operating officer of Burcon. “ADM has made significant progress in bringing Clarisoy to diverse markets and in particular, the dairy alternative market, and they are continuing to market potential applications to customers in both the U.S. and international markets.”

Kalsec plant achieves organic certification

Kalsec has achieved organic certification by Oregon Tilth Certified Organic at its Denver City, Texas, plant. The company’s Kalamazoo, Mich., manufacturing facility was organic certified in 2015. The certifications meet the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Organic Program and European Union standards.

“Achieving these organic certifications allows Kalsec the ability to expand our naturally-sourced ingredient portfolio to meet the increasing demand for cleaner label ingredients. This is an accomplishment of which all of our employees can be proud,” said Scott Nykaza, president and chief operating officer.

Kalsec’s Denver City plant specializes in the cultivation, harvest, dehydration and extraction of paprika, rosemary and carrot, as well as various herbs and spices. The plant manufactures expeller-pressed spice and herb extracts such as ancho, capsicum, cayenne, chipotle, ghost, guajillo, habanero, jalapeño and pasilla.

DuPont’s system certified for Salmonella detection

The AOAC Research Institute approved a method extension of Performance Tested Method #100201 to include DuPont Nutrition & Health’s BAX System X5 PCR Assay for Salmonella. The validation covers an array of food types, including meat, poultry, dairy, fruit, vegetables, bakery products, pet food and environmental samples.

The system provides next-day results for most sample types after a standard enrichment protocol and about 3.5 hours of automated processing. The assay runs on DuPont’s new BAX System X5 instrument, a PCR-based pathogen detection platform.

“Many customers rely on AOAC-RI and other third-party certifications as evidence that a pathogen detection method meets a well-defined set of accuracy and sensitivity requirements,” said Morgan Wallace, DuPont Nutrition & Health senior microbiologist and validations leader for diagnostics. “Adopting a test method that has received these certifications allows them to use the method right away, minimizing a laboratory’s requirements for expensive, time-consuming in-house validation procedures before they can begin product testing.”