News

Carrot-based powder delivers brilliant yellows with a long shelf life

GNT Group has extended its range of yellow Exberry Coloring Foods with a new powder made from carrots. Available worldwide in addition to the existing liquid format, the Shade Yellow – Cloudy Powder enables manufacturers to deliver a brilliant yellow colour shade in a wider range of applications. The powder is ideal for bakery applications as well as dry mixes including custard, brioches and biscuits. The Shade Yellow – Cloudy Powder is pH-independent and provides good light and heat stability, along with a 12-month shelf life at <25°C.

Turn spent coffee grounds into upcycled flour

Kafflour is the first upcycled flour derived from defatted spent coffee grounds. Thanks to its unique composition, it brings value to baked goods, confectionery, sports nutrition and snacking products. By replacing malt, manufacturers can reach brown colours while reducing costs, improve the nutritional profile and shelf life with a clean label ingredient. The ingredient acts as a source of potassium, calcium and phosphorus under EFSA standards and is high in magnesium, fibre and protein and rich in BCAA (8/9 essential amino acids).

Another twist in India’s biscuit war

US-based Intercontinental Brands, makers of the Oreo biscuit are taking Indian manufacturer Parle to court citing that the design of one of its Parle Fabio biscuit is deceptively similar to that of Oreo. This is the latest case of alleged infringement in the highly competitive biscuit market in India. There have been multiple cases of trademark infringement among various companies. In 2020 Britannia Industries filed an infringement case against Kishore Biyani-led Future Consumer, alleging that it had copied the packaging of several of its biscuit brands. Britannia said that Future had used ‘Good Time’ on one of its products, similar to Britannia’s Good Day brand. In December, it filed a case against ITC for alleged infringement of its product packaging trademark.

Genome editing to reduce acrylamide in toast

UK scientists have used genome editing to develop a type of wheat that is less likely to produce acrylamide when baked. The compound classed as a possible carcinogen, forms during bread baking and its levels increase when the bread is toasted – the darker the toast, the more acrylamide it contains. A team led by Rothamsted Research with help from the University of Bristol have used a new technique of genome editing called CRISPR/Cas9. Using this technique leads to small changes in the DNA, such as the deletion or insertion of short sections of DNA, or changes to the DNA sequence. In this instance it halts the function of a gene involved in the production of asparagine.

It differs from the GM approach in that it doesn’t involve the introduction of novel, foreign or additional genes. Despite the differences between genome editing with CRISPR/Cas9 and GM, genome-edited plants are currently treated in the same way as GM under EU regulations, essentially blocking the use of a technology that is gaining official approval in many other parts of the world.

The food industry would benefit from the availability of raw materials with lower acrylamide-forming potential, and the determining factor for acrylamide formation in products made from wheat and rye grains, and probably those of other cereals, is the concentration of soluble (non-protein) asparagine. BR