A&B and Hydrosol Form North American Strategic Alliance for Vegetarian Solutions

22 Nov 2016 --- A&B Ingredients, a leader in providing unique ingredients to the food and beverage industry, announced a strategic alliance with German-based Hydrosol GmbH & Co. for representation of its complete vegetarian meat alternatives systems within North America.

The Hydrosol system solutions let manufacturers offer a wide range of meatless products, including vegetarian sausages like wieners, hot dogs, turkey and emulsified meats, as well as vegetarian ground “meat” that can be used in various applications. Hydrosol GmbH & Co is headquartered in Ahrensburg near Hamburg, Germany.

In making the announcement, Gil Bakal, A&B Ingredients’ Managing Director, said, “Vegetarian alternatives remain a strong trend worldwide. In fact, within the US, the just-released Vegetarianism in America study, published by Vegetarian Times indicates that 3.2 percent of U.S. adults, or 7.3 million people, follow a vegetarian-based diet. And, 10 percent of U.S. adults, or 22.8 million people, say they largely follow a vegetarian-inclined diet. And that number continues to grow. To address the needs of this expanding target group, we are extremely pleased to join forces with Hydrosol to bring their complete meatless system solutions to food manufacturers here in the U.S.”

According to Bakal, the Hydrosol vegetarian meat alternative systems enable meat manufacturers to make semi-finished products for individual further processing, as well as ready to eat finished products. “With this complete solutions system, many different vegetarian ground meat alternatives are possible,” said Bakal.

For example, he notes, this vegetarian ground is an excellent basis for vegetarian bolognese sauce, hearty stews and soups, chili and lasagne. It’s also ideal for making “meat” crumbles for tacos, frozen pizza and ravioli.

A hydrocolloid-protein combination with emulsifying and stabilizing components, the complete vegetarian meat alternative systems contain all the ingredients for the complete formulation, including a mild basic seasoning that can be enhanced as desired. It needs only to be stirred together with water, salt and vegetable oil, formed, and then cooked. The vegetarian ground product is then ready for further processing.

“This new all-in compound allows easy production of a wide range of high-quality products that address the ongoing trend to meatless alternatives. Their high protein and low-fat content meet the highest nutritional demands, while the finished products offer excellent appeal. In fact, the vegetarian product has much the same taste as the animal product offering the same familiar mouth feel that consumers are accustomed to from conventional ground meat.” notes Bakal.

Founded in 1990, A&B Ingredients provides natural clean label ingredient solutions to the food and beverage industry with a focus on health and nutrition, food safety and quality. Ingredient portfolio includes pea protein, starch and fiber, shelf stable probiotics, low sodium sea salt, natural flavor enhancement, natural antioxidants, antimicrobials and yeast and mold inhibitors.