Kerry unveils enzyme for rye bread optimization to trim cost and tackle food waste

06 Mar 2024 --- Kerry has unveiled a novel enzyme solution for rye bread in Europe that it claims can improve dough processability, leading to an increased bread volume by up to 24% and crumb softness by 55%. It is also expected to ease the bread’s sliceability for a sustainable reduction in energy and operational costs for rye bread manufacturers.

In Europe, rye or rye-wheat blended breads are a significant category, comprising 17% of the almost 15,000 new bread launches that occurred globally between 2021 and 2023.

Kerry’s ingredient — Biobake Fibre — is a patented solution marketed as having no negative impacts on the traditional taste and authentic aromas of rye bread formulations over their shelf life.

“The Biobake Fibre enzyme solution works on rye’s high concentration of non-starch polysaccharides (NSPs) — important functional components, certainly, but ones that tend not to be process-friendly during dough handling,” Deborah Waters, PhD, global product director, enzymes at Kerry tells Food Ingredients First.

Ancient grain and wholemeal breads with claims such as ‘naturally high fiber’ are growing in appeal, says Waters.“NSPs negatively affect water distribution during dough production because of their water-binding properties, resulting in a dough that is difficult to process; this ultimately leads to reduced bread volume and limits final bread quality.”

“Biobake Fibre is an innovative enzyme solution designed to ensure superior volume, excellent crumb softness and good machinability in rye and rye-wheat bread formulations,” says Deborah Waters, PhD, global product director, enzymes at Kerry.

“This technology delivers improved finished product quality, optimized slicing and good dough machinability.”

She adds that the enzyme system can also help to reduce process downtime and support bakers in being “more cost-efficient” and reducing bread waste.

Consistent dough rheology
Typically manufacturers face several challenges when processing rye bread because rye's chemistry sets it apart from other cereals and grains, flags Waters.

“Rye dough is rich in NSPs, in particular glucan,” she remarks. NSPs tend to compete with protein for absorption of water, negatively impacting dough consistency.

In rye dough, NSPs are “functionally more important than protein,” since rye proteins are unable to form gluten like wheat proteins can.

NSPs can cause “dough stickiness” due to their water binding properties, making it difficult to process. This in turn leads to reduced bread volume and limits in final bread quality, she explains.

“However, over-hydrolysing NSPs also negatively impacts dough handling properties, machinability and the final bread quality.  If this happens, particularly in a wheat-rye mix dough, there is a high risk of collapse and crumbling.”

Non-starch polysaccharides in rye can cause “dough stickiness," making processing difficult, unlike wheat dough that can form gluten.The Biobake Fibre enzyme solution reduces the NSP water-binding capability and allows for “better hydration and dough development.” This leads to consistent dough rheology, improving tolerance and gas retention, ultimately enhancing the bread’s specific volume. 

The enzyme also enables improved crumb texture while preventing the creation of tiny crumb bubbles that can hinder the slicing process. 

Overcoming bread waste
Nutritionally, rye bread is considered a quality source of healthy fiber — an increasingly rising food ingredient in global F&B launches, with a 3% growth from October 2018 to September 2023, indicates Innova Market Insights’ data. 

“Growing scientific evidence and improving awareness of the health benefits from consuming a fiber-rich diet is fueling the trend of naturally high-fiber or fiber-fortified staple foods in the diet,” says Waters.

Bread that is naturally high in fiber rather than being fortified tends to be deemed “more appealing” by consumers, she observes, adding that ancient grain and wholemeal breads with claims such as ‘naturally high fiber’ or ‘healthy gut support’ are significantly growing in appeal due to this reason.

But being high in nutrition makes bread susceptible to staling and spoiling. Hence, its wastage is likely to be ubiquitous.

With a global annual production of over 100 million tons, studies estimate that over 900,000 tons of all manufactured bread is wasted annually, substantially impacting a country’s environment and economy.

Rye is naturally rich in fiber, a rising food ingredient in global F&B launches (Image credit: Kerry).For instance, the economic loss of bread waste accounts for over US$ 464 million in the Netherlands, over US$ 17.3 billion in France and US$ 502.25 million in Turkey.

According to Waters, using Biobake Fibre can help formulators save costs which come from “reduced dough waste, better bread quality and improved slicing” that ultimately lead to less bread damage and waste.

“This clean-label, vegetarian and organic-suitable enzyme solution can help manufacturers meet their operational cost and sustainability targets.” Additionally, it is organic, kosher, halal and vegetarian.

“The high-quality taste and appearance of the finished rye bread has been confirmed by sensory trials conducted over product shelf life,” she reveals.

Bread is a staple that has been a focus of innovations in the past year, with companies incorporating seaweed into bread, scientists unlocking enzymes for better baking and even tapping into “sensomics” to find the critical flavor compounds behind sourdough bread’s unique smell and taste.

Meanwhile, Kemin Food Technologies introduced its plant-extract blend last month to help bakery formulators tackle rancidity and oxidative deterioration in dry bakery products in the EMEA region.

By Insha Naureen