Milling & Baking News - February 11, 2020 - 15

BA K I N G U P DAT E :

Baking with Probiotics
SPECIAL EDITION
Practical technology from Lallemand
Baking supplying bakers yeast to bakers
all around the globe

WHAT'S THE LINK BETWEEN PROBIOTICS AND
GUT HEALTH?

ased on scientiﬁc evidence, probiotics are
live microorganisms that provide beneﬁts
when consumed in suﬃcient amounts. Probiotics are often used to counteract antibiotic
side-eﬀects (diarrhea, constipation, cramping,
ulcers, and bloating) due to the good bacteria
being killed along with the bad bacteria.
They also promote gut health by encouraging
the proliferation of beneﬁcial bacteria in the
gastrointestinal tract (GIT) and play an integral
role in the immune function by preventing the
attachment and activity of pathogenic bacteria
The gut microﬂora also contributes to
in the intestinal walls.
the body's immune function as well as
The human body contains trillions of microorganisms with the majority being harmless,
to the maintenance of cognitive health
or beneﬁcial to the optimal functioning of the
through the gut-brain axis.
body. The human GIT is one of the areas of
the human body where there is the greatest
concentration and variety of living microorganisms. The number and diversity of these microorganisms
are what ensure a healthy gut, which helps digestion and metabolism and prevents gastrointestinal
problems. The gut microﬂora also contributes to the body's immune function as well as to the maintenance of cognitive health through the gut-brain axis.
A person's gut bacteria population is aﬀected by his genetics and diet. However, various stresses
such as disease, the use of antibiotics or environmental factors can alter the gut's beneﬁcial bacterial
population. It is possible however to restore the good bacteria population through diet and consumption of fermented probiotic-rich foods or probiotic supplements.

ADDING PROBIOTICS TO FOODS

ccording to a Markets and Markets report
published in January 2019, the probiotics
market is growing at an estimated rate of 7% per
year and is projected to reach a value of 69.3
billion US by 2023, with the main contributing
segment being food and beverage. A Mordor
Intelligence market study predicts the probiotic
market will increase annually by 7.5% reaching
a value of 76.85 billion by 2024. This steady
increase in the popularity seems linked to an
increased awareness among consumers of the
importance of diet in health. The mounting evidence on the safety and beneﬁts of probiotics
have also increased consumer's faith in their
eﬃcacy.
Because most probiotics are sensitive to
heat and oxygen, they have traditionally been marketed as supplements or in chilled products, and
more speciﬁcally in fermented dairy products such as yogurt or keﬁr. Given the increased demand
for a variety of probiotic-fortiﬁed foods, especially foods with lower cholesterol and lactose content,
new heat-resistant strains are being developed, widening the range of applications for probiotics in
foodstuﬀs.
The trend has already reached the baking industry with the launch of several products with added
probiotics. Some bakeries and companies are manufacturing probiotic enriched products such as
bread, cookies, pancake mix, muﬃns and bars, to only name a few.

SYMBIOTIC BENEFITS

n order to optimize their activity in the GIT, probiotics work in collaboration with prebiotics, in
what is called a symbiotic relationship. Prebiotics,
which are indigestible food components, act as
a food source for probiotics, contributing to their
growth and proliferation in the GIT. Prebiotics
can be found in a variety of ingredients, including
wheat, meaning that there are naturally occurring
prebiotics in baked products made with wheat
ﬂour. Thus, producing baked products with added
probiotics would naturally create a symbiotic eﬀect
between the added probiotics and the prebiotics
already found in the dough.
The addition of probiotics to baked products
therefore provides health beneﬁts on diﬀerent fronts
and through various mechanisms. In order to determine if your product will be eligible for certain health
claims, check with your country's regulatory body.

BAKING WITH PROBIOTICS

ost probiotics being heat-sensitive, they are
often added to baked goods after the baking
process, in order to ensure their viability. This is
done in two ways:
* Sprayed-on probiotic formulas which can
be added to the product at the last step before
packaging.
* Integrated into an icing or frosting or ﬁlling
added at the end of the baking process.
Although these methods are all good ways to add
probiotics, there is undoubtedly an advantage in
adding the probiotic directly into the product during
dough preparation.
This would not
only eliminated the
need for
an added
step at
the end of
the process, it
would also ensure
a more uniform distribution of the microorganisms. In addition, with this
method, probiotics can also be added to a greater
variety of baked goods, whether sweet or savory.
In order for a probiotic to be successfully integrated into the baking process, certain characteristics and conditions must be met. The strain of
microorganism used must be safe, remain stable
throughout the production process as well as
throughout the product's shelf-life, and not interfere with the inherent qualities of the product.

Milling & Baking News - February 11, 2020

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