Ingredion unveils gelling starch for dairy and alternatives

Dive Brief:

• Ingredion has debuted a functional native corn starch ingredient designed to help achieve a gelled texture for application in dairy and dairy alternative products like yogurts, puddings and cheeses, called Novation Indulge 2940.
• The ingredients giant touted the better-for-you elements of the starch, which it noted as being minimally processed, non-GMO and “clean label.”
• According to Ingredion, application of the ingredient in yogurt products resulted in a 2.6% decrease in costs and added $6.1 million in projected revenue per 100,000 metric tons of product created.

Dive Insight:

The ingredient furthers Ingredion’s reach into the dairy and vegan spaces as it works to build out its portfolio to give formulators healthier options for their products.

In a press release, Ingredion revealed that their in-house Atlas consumer insights showed that consumers preferred “corn starch” as a gelling agent over gelatin, carrageenan, and other texturants.

“Consumers increasingly expect all of the products they buy to be made with recognized and accepted ingredients, and at the same time provide a satisfactory eating experience,” Nick Ferraro, the company’s global senior strategic marketing manager, said in a statement.

The starch provides a creamy mouthfeel and can help plant-based cheeses improve their stretch and melting characteristics, allowing them to better mimic dairy cheeses, Ferraro told Food Ingredients First.

The launch follows previous innovations from Ingredion that aim to further its reach in the ingredients space by building out its portfolio. The company’s specialty segment focuses on trendy categories through the creation of plant protein-based ingredients, honing in on the better-for-you attributes consumers increasingly seek. In an interview with Food Dive earlier this year, Ingredion’s global director of strategic marketing said customers often look for ingredients to serve multiple needs, such as being plant-based and sustainable.

Consumer interests continue to drive the company’s direction. Ingredion cited internal data which found 79% of consumers want to know the ingredients of the products they are eating and 62% said they always or usually read the back label of the food and beverage items they purchase. suggest moving this bit up higher

Other ingredient formulators are capitalizing on the growing plant-based dairy space to better replicate dairy products. Like Ingredion’s new starch, Pureture is also avoiding genetic modification in its ingredients, instead utilizing yeast protein to turn into a melty texture for cheese alternatives.