Meat+Poultry - March 2023 - 54

INGREDIENT ISSUES
households and families. We are seeing
convenient innovation targeting children play
out in popular kid-friendly food items such as
meatballs and chicken nuggets. "
" Fully cooked
items are
often not reheated
to lethal
temperatures,
which makes
food safety a
top priority. "
- MICHAEL CROPP
Some of these products are showing up in
lunch kits. They are formulated to taste great
right out of the refrigerator, or after sitting in a
backpack for six hours.
" Ultimately, parents want to see their
kids healthy and happy, " said Michael Cropp,
technical services manager, Kemin Food
Technologies, Des Moines, Iowa. " While
kids have always been picky eaters, it has
become increasingly easier to purchase food
and beverage items that meet youngster
preferences. "
In addition to RTE deli meats, popular
go-to convenience kids' meals include chicken
nuggets, meatballs and hot dogs. These
products may be refrigerated or frozen and are
pre-cooked. They just require warming.
" The convenience aspect increases the
protection factors required to safeguard these
foods to prevent illness, " Cropp said. " Fully
cooked items are often not re-heated to lethal
temperatures, which makes food safety a top
priority. Parents expect these foods to be
safe and typically wouldn't even consider an
alternative scenario. This further increases the
importance manufacturers must make on food
safety regarding kid-friendly foods. Maintaining
the trust of parents will guarantee repeat
purchases and a loyal consumer base. "
INGREDIENT TOOLBOX
There are a range of ingredients that may be
used to ensure food safety. Processing may
also assist.
Corbion has a variety of food safety
solutions, including conventional and
clean-label options, that can deliver the
same food safety functionality. Clean-label
ingredients, including vinegar and cultured
sugar, are recognizable to consumers, yet
maintain food safety and are non-allergenic.
" Consumers are paying more attention
to food ingredients and labels, seeking
simpler, recognizable ingredients when
making purchase decisions, especially when
it comes to purchasing products for kids, "
McCoy said. " Our ferment portfolio allows
for simple labeling as cultured sugar, cultured
corn sugar or vinegar, which helps satisfy
consumer needs. "
An added perk with cultured sugar is the
increased yield for the processor. This results
in better eating quality for the consumer. Some
food safety ingredients may help processors
achieve sodium reduction in the end product
without sacrificing flavor or food safety.
" We developed a powerful tool (Corbion
Listeria Control Model) that can predict the
outgrowth of Listeria in food products, as
well as other modeling tools to speed up the
product development process, " McCoy said.
" A manufacturer can use this tool, along with
their own validations, to ensure their Listeria
control strategy well exceeds the intended
shelf life of the product. "
Kemin also offers synthetic and clean-label
antimicrobial ingredients for meat and poultry
products. For clean labels, the company has
focused innovation toward developing higher
concentration options that also contribute less
sodium to the finished food product.
" Along with our extensive portfolio of
vinegar options, these clean-label products
can meet the demands of various formulations
and market goals, including meeting standards
set by parents and Kindergarten through
12the grade school lunch programs to provide
nutritious options to kids, " Cropp said.
Antimicrobial solutions from Kemin are
organic acids derived with active molecules
such as propionic acid and acetic acid. Organic
acid mode of action for food safety depends on
the amount of undissociated (non-ionized) acid
present to penetrate the bacterial cell walls
to disrupt the pH equilibrium of the interior
bacterial cell environment. With organic acids
being present inside the bacterial cell, it spends
its energy reserve to restore a neutral pH
rather than for growth.
54 MEAT+POULTRY | 03.23 | www.meatpoultry.com
Mara Zemgaliete - stock.adobe.com
http://www.meatpoultry.com
Meat+Poultry - March 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Meat+Poultry - March 2023
