|
| | | | |
|
 | | RICE BRAN’S MEATY FUTURE | | | International Food Ingredients | | 06/06/2008 | | | - Only seen on www.ifi-onlie.com -
A new stabilised rice bran ingredient from NutriCea is aimed at the meat industry. The company claims RiBran Isolate will be a cost-effective and nutritious meat enhancer. It is available in both granular and powder forms.
The US Department of Agriculture has recently approved the use of stabilised rice bran in some meat products, including sausages, hot dogs, burgers, meatballs and chicken nuggets. This was backed by independent research from a team at Iowa State University, which showed that rice bran can give cost savings and an increased yield. It can also give products that have healthier nutritional profiles, with a minimal change in taste.
Rice bran is derived from the outer layer of brown rice kernels after the husk has been removed. Historically, it was considered that it was too unstable, its shelf-life was too short and it was too difficult to process into an ingredient for use in food products. This is because the enzyme lipase, which is naturally present in rice, turns the bran rancid by oxidation within hours of milling. NutraCea developed a process that deactivates the lipase, giving rice bran ingredients with a shelf-life of a year and, importantly, without affecting the nutritional profile.
Rice bran isolate contains both soluble and insoluble fibre fragments, and hypoallergenic nutritive protein, and saturated, mono- and polyunsaturated fats. It is cholesterol-free, and contains sources of antioxidants such as gamma-oryzanol, tocopherols and phytosterols. These can help prevent rancidity in processed meat products.
Distributors believe the new ingredient has great potential for use in food products in place of more traditional products such as soy protein isolate. ‘We believe that partial or substitution of RiBran Isolate in place of soy protein isolate, mustard flour, modified food starch, maltodextrin and other fibres will be very appealing to our broad base of customers,’ says Rick Crowder, vice president Richmond, Virginia-based ingredient distributor Industrial Commodities Inc. He estimates that by this time next year, his company will be providing about 20,000 tons a year of the isolate to the meat industry in the US.
A recent independent white paper by food expert Henk Hoogenkamp supports these projections for the ingredient’s success in the marketplace. Before the stabilisation process was available, rice bran was essentially viewed as a waste product. But now, it is showing ‘great potential’ in food and processed meat products, he says. ‘It is likely that rice bran isolate will soon start to challenge the leadership of soy protein isolate in emulsified meat as well as coarse ground meat products. It is no secret that meat processors are faced with a balancing act between choosing ingredients that deliver performance and getting the health positioning they want.’
A big advantage of rice bran over soy products, he adds, is its non-allergenic properties. ‘Meat processors who have replaced the soy protein in their formulas to eliminate allergic warning labels have discovered these rice derivative alternatives to be a favourable replacement.’ | |
|
| | | View similar articles: | | |
| | | |
|
 | People who viewed this article were also interested in |  | |  |
|
| Other articles from International Food Ingredients | | | |
|
|