Cognis Launch Solution to Reduce Trans-Fats

Now Cognis has introduced a new emulsifier with very low trans-fat content – Nutrisoft 55. In addition to replacing the saturated standard emulsifier, the new product also increases the stability and quality of prepared foods.

12/02/07 With the global trend towards wellness and health, consumers are becoming more and more concerned about the amount of fat in their food, scrutinizing every gram of fat in desserts and prepared foods like chocolate mousse, ice cream, cake, or even bread. Nutrition experts, however, are just as interested in the different types of fat and their qualities as they are in the amount. Trans-fatty acids, for example, are known to significantly increase the risk of developing heart disease, and as a result manufacturers have tried to reduce the proportion of trans-fats in many products. Now Cognis has introduced a new emulsifier with very low trans-fat content – Nutrisoft 55. In addition to replacing the saturated standard emulsifier, the new product also increases the stability and quality of prepared foods.

Trans-fatty acids, which are present in partly hydrogenated fats as well as in animal fats (including milk fat and dairy products), can increase the levels of blood lipids, and have also been found to affect the ratio of HDL and LDL cholesterol – a major risk factor for coronary heart disease. Nutrisoft 55 is a distilled monoglyceride based on partly unsaturated vegetable fat, and contains less than one percent trans-fats. As such, it supports the development of prepared foods with very low trans-fatty acid contents, which are more attractive to health-conscious consumers and more acceptable to nutrition experts.

As well as offering excellent health benefits, the emulsifier also enhances the quality and appearance of food. When used in bread or yeast-raised products, for example, it interacts with the starch to improve crumb softness and increase bread volume – both of which significantly enhance the products’ overall appearance, making them more attractive to consumers. Nutrisoft 55 also stabilizes the helical structure of starch: this slows down the staling process, and greatly increases the shelf-life of bread – a major plus point for manufacturers, retailers, and consumers. In ready-to-eat (RTE) mousse desserts, the emulsifier makes for a more stable texture and structure, and increases the product’s volume. To achieve optimum results, Nutrisoft 55 should be used in conjunction with an aerating emulsifier, such as LACTEM (lactic ester of mono- and diglycerides, E472b).

For ice cream, highly unsaturated emulsifiers give the best results for extrusion and heat-shock stability. However, such emulsifiers have an iodine value of 40 or higher which makes them viscous and sticky, therefore difficult to incorporate into the ice cream mix and not practical for ice cream manufacturing. In contrast, Nutrisoft 55 has an iodine value of about 25, and is supplied as an easy-to-handle free-flowing powder – yet still provides superb extrusion and heat-shock stability in ice cream.

The development of Nutrisoft 55 is a result of Cognis’ strategy of focusing on wellness. “Nutrisoft 55 helps our customers to offer foods that are very low in trans-fatty acids, serving the global health and wellness trend”, says Andreas Funke, Product Group Manager Food Technology, Cognis Deutschland. “In addition to the health benefits, it is also a very easy and cost-effective way of improving the quality and appearance of prepared food products. As such, it provides multiple benefits for our customers.”