Dairy alternatives: CP Kelco overcomes the formulation challenges of plant proteins

17 Oct 2019 --- The use of alternative sources of protein – such as soy, almond, oat, pea and rice – has been growing at a rapid pace in recent years as consumers gravitate towards products that are seen as more planet-friendly than animal-based as well as offering equal or superior nutrition. Globally, consumers are increasing their consumption of dairy alternatives such as spoonable non-dairy yogurt, dairy-alternative drinks, non-dairy cheese, ice cream and spreads. The hunger for non-dairy alternatives has given rise to increasing NPD, however, formulating with plant proteins comes with its challenges.

A recent Innova Market Insights webinar presentation focused on innovation in dairy alternatives and examined the factors that are driving consumers to this fast-growing market sector. Specifically, during the webinar CP Kelco, which manufactures nature-based solutions, presented some formulation requirements for optimum stabilization of dairy alternative products with a focus on beverages.

With its plant-based and fermentation-derived ingredients, CP Kelco applies problem-solving and innovation, starting with the sourcing of its raw material and connecting the science of nature to solutions. The end-game is to help manufacturers create products that meet consumers’ needs and preferences, including “better for you” and clean label.

“The current trends of health and wellness translate into a demand for more proteins and this means all the sources of proteins, not only animal-based. We have seen the start of dairy alternative products with beverages and plant milks, and this dairy alternative trend is now spreading to drinking yogurts, yogurt, ice cream, cheese and spreads. It appears that consumers want new solutions, but they don’t want flavor and texture to be compromised. “Our role is to enable manufacturers to deliver what they are hoping for,” says Anne Sinha, Global Segment Lead - Protein Segments, CP Kelco.

At the same time, there is a strong emphasis on clean label, on more naturally-derived products on the label and on shorter ingredient lists, she explains. “Working with plant proteins comes with its challenges. “These vary relative to the different proteins, isoelectric points, and hydration properties. It can be difficult to stabilize and suspend the proteins and other ingredients that need to also be suspended in the formulation.”

“At times, such as with lower protein and higher fat systems, especially in the case of almond and coconut, there is also the need to help with stabilization. All in all, it’s quite similar to what happens in dairy-based beverages but with always a need to adapt the formulation and the process.”

CP Kelco’s product lines can help with the various challenges in different ways and in different conditions. These include KELCOGEL gellan gum for long-term suspension with light mouthfeel, GENU Pectin, CEKOL Cellulose Gum and GENU Carrageenan for protein protection, and GENU carrageenan for enhanced emulsion stability. 

CP Kelco's solutions for creating stable protein beverages.

Why is suspension important?
Effective suspension is a key part of any beverage formulation but in the specific case of alternative milks, there is an additional need for fortification, mainly with calcium but also other minerals and vitamins.

“Adding additional calcium can destabilize proteins,” continues Sinha. “This is something that we have to face when developing these formulations. At the same time, insoluble calcium is heavy and dense. 

It’s also important to understand that not all proteins are the same. In the case of pea, soya and faba or fava, these proteins differ in their isoelectric points. For example, faba protein has an isoelectric point of pH of 5-6 while pea and soy have pH of 4-5. Moving away from the isoelectric point increases the solubility. Also, some proteins are more soluble than others – which means that plant proteins may require suspension.

Gellan gum 
Gellan gum has positioned itself as the “ingredient of choice” in alternative milk drinks. 

“It has a unique property to form fluid gels,” continues Sinha, “It creates a very weak gel network at very low concentration, enough to suspend but hardly noticeable in the mouth. It’s really a compromise of good suspension and very thin viscosity which makes gellan gum so unique.”

Gellan gum – which was discovered by CP Kelco 40 years ago – is a polysaccharide produced by fermentation of a pure culture of Sphingomonas elodea. After the fermentation process, it is dried and milled into powder for use in a variety of applications.

“Gellan gum displays all the right properties to stabilize plant-based milk, and it also ticks the clean label box which is important for this market,” adds Sinha. “The production process CP Kelco developed is a fermentation process, a natural process often used for foodstuffs, such as cheese, beer and yogurt. At the end of the fermentation, the gellan is dried, milled and standardized and tested for specific applications.”

Sinha wraps up her presentation by explaining how CP Kelco is going even further in clean label with non-GMO, vegan and organic compliance grades of gellan gum offered to manufacturers. “At the same time, with all our years of experience in fermentation, we are able to develop differentiated grades, further reducing the number of ingredients on the label or achieving better functionality for specific product needs.”

With the continued expected growth and market demand for dairy alternatives, CP Kelco also recently announced extension of capacity of two of its biogum plants in the US and China. Gellan gum is a polysaccharide discovered 40 years ago by CP Kelso in a lily pond in Pennsylvania, US.

Hunger for dairy alternatives 
“According to a 2018 Innova Market Insights’ consumer survey, significant percentages of consumers say they are increasing consumption of dairy alternative products,” asserts Tom Vierhile, VP Strategic Insights for North America, Innova Market Insights. 

“Between one-fifth and one-third of consumers in the US, Mexico and the UK say they are increasing consumption. For the US and UK, this percentage is higher than the percentage that say they are increasing consumption of meat alternatives. In the US this is 23 percent versus 20 percent and in the UK its 19 percent versus 18 percent,” he explained during the webinar. 

Companies are continuing to keep pace with the demand for non-dairy alternatives with a plethora of NPD across various food and beverage segments. According to the market researchers’ data, there has also been a 22 percent CAGR for dairy alternative launches (2014-2018). 

“Interestingly, this is triple the growth rate of global new food and beverage product launches overall. Clearly this is a market on the move,” adds Vierhile. 

Breadth of innovation
Factors that are driving the demand for dairy alternatives include health, dietary variety, novelty and sustainability. “There is a breadth of innovation as the hunger for dairy alternatives continues. This includes hybrid products that appeal to consumers who want to reduce consumption of animal-based products without avoiding them completely,” he continues.

“As the market has gravitated towards almond milk on the dairy alternative front, companies have been optimizing product formulations with a big focus on stabilizers,” Vierhile concludes.

You can listen to the full webinar here. 

By Gaynor Selby