Jul 21 2010 --- Blue Pacific Flavors, Inc., a leading innovator of natural and organic-compliant fruit flavors, launches its new California hRf Heirloom Sun-Ripened Fruit Flavor System as an extension of its proprietary hortRealfruit true-to-fruit technology platform. The company unveils three new flavors from its hRf Heirloom Sun-Ripened line.

The company’s California hRf Heirloom Sun-Ripened citrus flavors refer to the natural carbohydrate matrix that includes aroma, acids and carbohydrate fruit compound data of select locally-grown heirloom citrus varietals. When developed with indigenous California specialty citrus oils and by-products, the natural flavors offer authentic tasting whole fruit profiles expressing the unique genetic diversity of citrus fruits from California.

An extension of the hortRealfruit fruit flavor compound data platform, Heirloom Sun-Ripened Fruit Flavors offer distinctive and unique profiles when compared to traditional citrus fruit flavors that are based on juice or oil analysis primarily from existing commercial crops, many of which have been bred for yield and disease-resistance at the sacrifice of taste. Heirloom Sun-Ripened flavors are developed with high-quality, pure California citrus oils and specialty by-products. The flavors contain oil-phase and water-phase flavor volatiles and ratios of acids and carbohydrates from source fruits.

"Our Sun-Ripened Heirloom flavors offer a window into unique and indigenous fruit varietals that have been passed on from generation to generation. Today, many of these fruits can only be found grown on small family-owned farms or at private homes in Southern California," said Donald Wilkes, CEO of Blue Pacific Flavors. "We are creating these nostalgic flavor profiles through a new flavor delivery platform using state-of-the-art technology of the 21st century with our analysis of some of the lost and most admired heirloom fruits of the 20th century."

The Sun Ripened Fruit Flavor system is a proprietary solvent system engineered to offer the multi-dimensional sensory experience of intense aroma and flavor impact found in sun-ripened fresh fruit. The solvent contains no propylene glycol or alcohol, is completely water soluble and dispersible and heat stable in a variety of applications, including beverage, dairy, confectionery and baking.

The newest flavors from the Sun-Ripened Heirloom Fruit Flavor System include the:

* hRf Heirloom Sun-Ripened Orange flavor, based on an early cultivar of Valencia oranges first developed in Orange County, California. Cultivation of the Valencia orange ended in the mid-1990's due to rising property costs, which drove most of what remained of the Southern California juice orange industry into Florida.
* hRf Heirloom Sun-Ripened Lemon flavor, based on an early cultivar of Eureka lemons which was developed in California where the mild frost-free coastal climate supports a tender cultivar. This fruit became the breeding stock for many of contemporary commercial varieties of lemon.
* hRf Heirloom Sun-Ripened Grapefruit flavor, based on the white-fleshed Marsh seedless grapefruit cultivar which was principally grown in California's Coachella Valley in the 1970's.

The hortRealfruit flavor technology is based on a partnership formed between Plant & Food Research (formerly HortResearch) of New Zealand and Blue Pacific Flavors. Through an exclusive license agreement, Blue Pacific Flavors is the only flavor company with ongoing access to Plant & Food Research’s entire database of volatiles and aromas from fruits from all over the world. Blue Pacific is a leader in creative natural and organic compliant fruit flavors and sweet flavor delivery to a wide range of food applications including beverages, fruit preparations, dairy (yogurt and milk), soymilk, ice cream, frozen desserts, bakery and nutritional foods and confectionery products.