South American cultures: DuPont N&H launches strains for fermented milk

30 Oct 2018 --- The DuPont Nutrition & Health (N&H) team in South America have introduced DuPont Danisco Lactobacillus Plus, which is the balanced combination of robust strains of L. paracasei, helveticus and acidophilus to produce fermented milk. The robust strains promote an excellent balance between flavor and acidity, in addition to optimizing the production process with a rapid time of fermentation, according to the company. 

This culture’s combination was developed to facilitate and optimize the process, as it reduces the number of items in stock and reduces the risk of contamination, maintaining the high-quality standard of the fermented milk and guaranteeing the quantity of Lactobacillus alive. What differentiates Lactobacullus Plus solution is the maintenance of a balanced taste during products' shelf-life, says DuPont N&H.

“The taste of fermented milk with Lactobacillus Plus is excellent. It is a product with a superior performance to those currently found in the market, offering great practicality during manipulation with a fast fermentation and low post acidification,” says Marcellus Carvalho, Dairy Technical Specialist of DuPont N&H.

Another significant advantage of this solution is that it is produced in a freeze-dried format, cooperating with the environment, since it does not require refrigeration during transportation, reducing the logistic cost. In addition, it enables a lower energy expenditure throughout the value chain, including in the storage of crops.

“This launch is yet another sustainable innovation within our range of dairy cultures, associated with the constant technical service of our dairy experts who support our customers in the development of new products,” explains Adriana Apuzzo, Manager of the Dairy Cultures at DuPont N&H. 

“Fermented dairy is category keen for innovation. There are many trends beyond new flavors, like new categories such as skyr and kefir were recently launched in South America. Kefir is very much on the spotlight because the consumer is associating it with multiple health benefits. Today it is home-made, but many manufacturers are working to launch new brands,” Cintia Nishiyama – Marketing Leader at DuPont N&H South America, tells FoodIngredientsFirst. 

“High protein is a hot topic, many launches already done in fermented dairy and considering manufactures interest it seems there are many more to come. Protein is passing from sports nutrition consumers only to more mainstream,” she continues. “Sugar reduction is also top on the agenda, due to legislation enforcement that are already in place (like Chile stops signs) or to be implemented soon (Brazil and Peru).”

“Category has always been innovative compared to other categories. Of course, it has been affected by the difficult economic scenario we have been facing in South America last years, but still, the category has implemented innovations,” Apuzzo explains to FoodIngredientsFirst. “What we also observe is that the speed of innovation has changed. In the past, whatever was trendy in the US in three or four years would come to South America. Now, with digitalization and increase connectivity this has been reduced to a couple of months. Connected consumers mean more access to information, meaning more demanding consumers and manufacturers need to respond to that.”

“At DuPont N&H, we have a strong commitment to sustainability and our sustainability strategy is based on three pillars: Sustainable Sourcing, Sustainable Operations and Sustainable Solutions for our customers. When it comes to fresh dairy cultures, it is mainly on the operations and solutions pillars that we can contribute.”

“Indeed, we have a unique expertise in the production of high-quality freeze-dried cultures at our production facilities in the US and Europe. DuPont was the first Cultures supplier to complete a third-party reviewed ISO 14044 compliant Lifecycle Analysis of (LCA) of freeze-dried and frozen cultures. The conclusions were that our customers can obtain significant carbon footprint reductions when choosing freeze-dried cultures over frozen cultures because the transport from our manufacturing facilities to the ones of our customers in distant location does not require refrigeration and is much more energy and CO2 efficient than for frozen cultures. Therefore, our new freeze-dried DuPont Danisco Lactobacillus Plus Cultures are an environment-friendly solution for the Latin American market,” Apuzzo explains. 

Another advantage towards sustainable operations is that Lactobacillus Plus offers to our customers is quicker and more consistent fermentation time than other cultures based on Lactobacilli strains. This allows better productivity and reduction of energy usage at our customers’ plants, which implies resources and cost savings, according to Apuzzo. 

“Our Cultures Innovation strategy is to use our global knowledge and production footprint to develop new solutions answering the local market needs. DuPont Danisco Lactobacillus Plus was specifically designed for the South American market. Traditionally Brazil is an important market of fermented milk with Lactobacilli strains and a need for easier processing and better productivity while still delivering a typical and appealing flavor profile. We will also promote DuPont Danisco Lactobacillus Plus to Chile. Others countries in South America are being developed and present great opportunities to be explored,” Apuzzo says. 

“Asia is another market with a strong tradition of fermented milk, and we will investigate if Lactobacillus Plus can answer the needs of the local producers,” she adds. 

By Elizabeth Green