Lab talk: infinite fruity resolutions

Dairy Foods, Jan, 2003 by Donna Berry

Exercise more. Eat better. Give up a bad habit. Be a more understanding partner. Be a better parent. Be less judgmental. The list of the many pointless--because they seldom last a week-- New Year resolutions can go "to infinity and beyond." (Pardon the expression, but my three-year old and his new Buzz Light Year figurine--thanks Grandma Berry-- are bouncing around the house repeating this Toy Story phrase.)

But if you are a manufacturer of fruit-flavored cultured dairy products, you can resolve to do better with your fruit prep selection using the ideas below. It might seem trivial, but there is a world of opportunity available to formulators now that FDA has commenced the Consumer Health Information for Better Nutrition initiative.

The basis for the initiative is FDA recognizes that consumers are more likely to respond to health messages in food labeling if the messages are specific with respect to health benefits associated with particular substances in food. In the long run, FDA believes that if consumers incorporate beneficial foods into their diets, public health will improve.

Now it's not like food manufacturers can freely make all types of claims on food labels. There still is an FDA approval process. But the bar for approval no longer requires significant scientific agreement and countless supportive clinical tests. The petitioner need only demonstrate, based on a fair review by scientific experts of the totality of publicly available scientific information, that the "weight of scientific evidence" supports the proposed claim. Simply, the data must be sufficiently scientifically persuasive.

Industry experts speculate one of the first claims to be approved in this manner will be for omega-3 fatty acids in fish and reducing the risk of coronary heart disease.

The opportunities for cultured products containing fruit go (as my son would say) "to infinity and beyond." There are potential claims associated with bacterial cultures, dairy proteins and, of course, fruit.

Here are some fruity ideas:

1. Use high-quality fruit prep with piece identity. This conveys to consumers that real fruit is included.

2. Turn the fruit prep into a nutraceutical by fortifying it with standardized phytochemicals extracted from fruits and vegetables. By adding ultra-concentrates of fruits and vegetables to fruit preps, processors can provide consumers with high amounts of phytochemical antioxidants. This not only boosts the fruit prep's nutrient value, it makes a healthier end product and creates a point of competitive differentiation. For example, adding 1.6g (0.25 tsp) of wildberry phytochemical concentrate to a singe-serving of fruit prep for berry-flavored yogurt delivers 43.2mg of anthocyanins, providing the consumer with the nutrient equivalent of eating 100g (1 cup) of fresh mixed red berries. Adding 3g (0.5 tsp.) of a carotenoid-rich extract to a tropical fruit or orange-flavored fruit prep provides the consumer with 2.7mg of total carotenoids ([beta]-carotene, lutein and others), which is the equivalent of eating 50g (0.5 cup) of fresh carrots and pumpkin. The concentrates also naturally boost color.

3. In smooth, creamy, custard, drinkable and aerated yogurts, fruit piece identity is not necessary, and often not even desirable, from both a consumer and manufacturing perspective. Therefore, product developers can replace standard fruit prep with ultra-concentrates (liquids) of fruits and vegetables.

4. You can also boost antioxidants in red yogurts by using freeze-dried or belt-dried raspberries. These powders start out as whole berries and are individually quick frozen and dried. As a concentrated powder of red or black raspberry, the ingredient contains 10 times the amount of antioxidants per weight as the whole berry. It also acts as a potent colorant and flavorant. Because it is a dry ingredient, storage and shipping is very easy.

5. Speaking of dry, most processors think of fruit prep as coming canned, frozen, aseptically bagged or refrigerated. Using dried fruit in a "wet" application is not common practice. However, if moisture levels are properly adjusted, the freeze-dried whole or sliced berries currently used in dry applications such as breakfast cereal can be used in cultured dairy products. Because they are dry, you are not paying to ship water. Storage and shipping can also be done at ambient temperature.

6. Does an all-natural claim appeal to your customers? Use natural colors extracted from fruits and vegetables to make fruit prep look more appealing. Not only do natural colors from fruits and vegetables improve product appearance because they boost the color of the fruit prep and prevent browning, they also help the cultured dairy product maintain the desired color throughout shelflife. The added perks of using natural color extracted from fruits and vegetables are that they contain antioxidants and the colorant can be used to replace a portion of the actual fruit in the fruit prep.

Remember, the fruit opportunities go "to infinity and beyond!"