DuPont Nutrition & Health Combines Fibers for Appealing, Healthier Bakes

30 Oct 2013 --- DuPont Nutrition & Health has overcome the sensory challenges in added-fiber bread and sponge cakes using combinations of soluble and insoluble fiber. Drawing on the fiber ingredients DuPont Danisco Litesse and FIBRIM, the solutions bring new opportunities for bakers to produce healthier products with high appeal.

Fiber has become one of the ingredients that consumers regularly look for on product packaging. But efforts to develop bread and cakes with a high-fiber claim have hit a wall of sensory issues, such as reduced crumb softness, poor texture and low volume. Bakery application specialists at DuPont have tested a series of solutions to resolve the problems.

The latest trials show that combinations of the soluble fiber Litesse and insoluble fiber FIBRIM produce the best result, giving bread and sponge cakes a volume similar to a control recipe, along with a comparable crumb softness and resilience over a 14-day shelf life. FIBRIM also contributes to improved surface browning.

Xue Si-Ying, bakery group innovation manager and application specialist at DuPont Nutrition & Health, comments: “This is an exciting finding. We can now overcome the volume and texture challenges that we used to have with high-fiber breads and cakes. This means consumers can enjoy the goodness of fiber in baked goods without having to compromise on product quality.”

A fiber-rich diet can help avert constipation, hypertension and the growth of intestinal pathogens. However, despite extensive awareness campaigns by national health authorities, fiber intake in most parts of the world is still much lower than the 25-30g recommended daily intake (RDI). Added-fiber bakery products with high consumer appeal can play a part in reversing this trend.

DuPont Danisco is the brand for a range of products that help provide enhanced bioprotection, an improved nutritional profile, and better taste and texture with greater cost efficiency and lower environmental impact, meeting the needs of manufacturers of food and beverages, dietary supplements and pet food. Through the work of the global network of food scientists and technologists in DuPont, the Danisco range is supported by a uniquely broad spectrum of know-how across applications and processing.