Whey protein's star is rising: whey protein is quickly becoming the ingredient of choice for many formulators. The ingredient's resume contains an impressive list of functional and nutritional properties—a neutral, mild taste chief among them—leading to its inclusion in formulations that span every aisle in the supermarket

Prepared Foods, May, 2005 by Bill Haines

* Lower-carb, higher-protein products. It seems that just as a dietary trend is evident almost everywhere, it begins to wane. Such is the case with "low-carb" lifestyles, now followed by an estimated 4% to 5% of American adults, compared with 8% to 9% at the trend's peak. However, the eternal quest remains: to formulate higher-protein, low-fat, nutritious foods that taste good.

Here, whey proteins fit the bill nicely, offering a wide range of protein possibilities for products from sweet to savory. Any number of food and beverage product formulators seeking a higher protein profile can turn to whey ingredients for a natural source of great-tasting protein.

* Beverages. Predicting that protein will be an excellent platform for innovation in the beverage aisle, the Beverage Marketing Corporation (New York) recently reported that by 2008, whey proteins and other dairy ingredients have the potential to appear in products in which one would not expect to find dairy, such as energy drinks, isotonics, enhanced waters and fruit drinks. Dairy also is projected to remain strong in more expected areas such as sports nutrition drinks, yogurt drinks/smoothies and meal replacement beverages.

WPI is the ingredient of choice to make a clear sports nutrition beverage because it contains less than 1% fat, the main contributor to cloudiness. For an optimal clear drink, "drop the pH of the drink to between 3.0 and 3.2 for a ready-to-drink beverage," advises Kimberlee "K.J." Burrington, whey applications program coordinator at the DMI-supported Wisconsin Center for Dairy Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Formulators can achieve about a 7% protein level before running into issues with gelation or cloudiness.

* Baked goods. Carolyn Podgurski, dairy ingredients applications specialist at the DMI-supported applications program at the Dairy Products Technology Center at California Polytechnic State University (San Luis Obispo, Calif.), advises that whey proteins, In general, can help reduce cooking and baking losses to improve yield. Whey helps improve shelflife by increasing moisture and water retention. This also will enhance mouthfeel and improve the texture of the end product. "Don't forget that whey products help with browning, or the Maillard reaction," says Podgurski.

Acid whey, a small percentage of the total amount of whey produced, makes an appearance in some baked goods such as sourdough.

Podgurski notes that her applications lab has received multiple requests to replace some of the flour in bakery formulations and reduce total carbohydrates. She has achieved success in removing as much as 25% of total carbohydrates in various formulations, replacing much of the sugar with sucralose and a portion of the flour with whey protein, resulting in nutritious breads, cookies, muffins and brownies.

* Snacks. New whey products such as the textured whey ingredient not only serve as great additions to certain snack products, but also can be formulated to stand alone as high-protein snack items. Whey ingredients appear in many seasoning blends, such as those used in flavored potato or corn chips. The lactose content can help bind the seasoning to the chip.