Food Processing - August 2008 - (Page 29)

SEND IN THE REPLACEMENTS For every ingredient challenged by consumers, ingredient suppliers have an alternative. By Mark Anthony, Ph.D., Technical Editor oday, many shoppers carry with them a “hit list” of ingredients they target on food labels. Hit list ingredients are deal breakers. If they’re present in any signiﬁcant quantity, the consumer is likely to leave that product on the shelf. Of course, health-minded consumers are by no means a monolithic block, so the hit list varies from person to person. It’s complicated by individual concerns over substances in foods that are likely to stimulate an allergic response and whatever general media report that consumer most recently read or heard. e hit list is a consumer’s ﬁrst line of defense against the unknowns in processed foods, and manufacturers should consider healthy alternatives when formulating new products. But the list of alternatives also is there. Ingredient suppliers have come up with alternatives for every objectionable ingredient we could think up. e No. 1 item on most hit lists is trans fat. Consumers may not know exactly what the term means, but many are aware of trans fat’s association with hydrogenated oils and, ultimately, heart disease. So they look for “clean” fats on the label. Food processors have gone to great lengths to replace trans fat-rich oils with healthier substitutes and to announce that eﬀort on the package to assure consumers that one of the most risky ingredients is no longer part of the formulation. But there are more items on the hit lists. Mystery formulations T Hit list ingredients often appear to consumers as mysterious formulations that sound like they belong on a chemistry quiz; ingredients used to preserve ﬂavor, taste and appearance of foods. Processors are looking for simple alternative ways to maintain the integrity of products. One solution may come from the humble herb rosemary, known for its powerful antioxidant properties. Recently, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) proclaimed rosemary extract safe for use as an antioxidant in food. Oxidation is something meat and poultry processors, especially, struggle to avoid. FOODPROCESSING.COM Jones Soda in April 2007 converted its entire full-sugar soda line, both bottles and cans, from high-fructose corn syrup to cane sugar, calling the latter more natural. AUGUST 2008 FOOD PROCESSING • 29 http://FOODPROCESSING.COM

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Food Processing - August 2008

Food Processing - August 2008 Contents Editor’s Plate NewsBites Special Report Rollout Food Biz Kids The Top 100 Ingredients Show Report Plant Operations MRO Q&A Case History New Supplier Products Toops Scoops

Food Processing - August 2008

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