Tate & Lyle expands instant clean label starch offering

16 Aug 2017 --- Tate & Lyle PLC has announced further expansion on its line of CLARIA Functional Clean-Label Starches with the introduction of two new instant starch products: CLARIA Instant 340 and 360. According to Innova Market Insights, claims such as “smooth”, “luscious” and “velvet” continue to grow, manufacturers are eager to develop textures consumers love. In addition, almost one-third of products launched in 2016 carried one or more clean-label claim.

“While consumers are demanding simpler ingredient labels, they are not willing to sacrifice the eating experience,” says Vicky Stencel, Global Category Marketing Director, Tate & Lyle. “That is why Tate & Lyle has introduced CLARIA Instant Functional Clean-Label Starches, to help food manufacturers meet consumer demands for cleaner labels without having to make trade-offs in taste, texture, color and performance.”

Stencel told FoodIngredientsFirst: “Texture is the foundation of most food and beverage products. Because it is tied so closely to other attributes in formulations, such as flavor and sweetness, it is one of the most challenging attributes to optimize for food and beverage manufacturers.”

Given that the textural profile of foods and beverages has a profound impact on consumer acceptance, it’s important to understand how to control texture to maximize product likeability,” she explains. “Formulators often start by formulating a product to specific textural criteria, then optimize attributes such as flavor and sweetness in later steps. Due to the influence of texture on the ease-of-processing, taste and flavor, it is one of the most challenging aspects of the formulation.”

She adds: “When dairy formulators develop a yogurt, they may begin with the base or white mass. This typically incorporates texturizing ingredients that provide functional benefits, such as starches. Once the texture of the base is correct and meets all label and nutritional requirements, formulators then optimize the fruit or flavor prep of the product. This step is necessary because flavors and sweetening ingredients can be impacted by the texture of the product.”

Like every starch in the CLARIA line of clean label starches, these new instant starches are versatile enough to help solve formulation challenges in a broad range of applications and processes.

“We developed the CLARIA Instant line of starches to deliver on several attributes, including process tolerance for use in demanding applications, rapid viscosity build for soups and gravies, and boil-out prevention characteristics for fillings,” said Jim Smoot, Senior Manager Texturants R&D, Tate & Lyle. “It also had to be as easy to use as comparable modified starches, while possessing the required white color and clean flavor profile consistent with our other CLARIA starches. We are excited to say that our new CLARIA Instant starches deliver on that promise.”

The CLARIA Instant line is ideal for applications such as salad dressings, instant gravies and soups, and pastry fillings and creams. It provides process tolerance suitable for various temperatures, acidity, and shear, harsh processing conditions. CLARIA Instant also provides immediate viscosity in high-solids systems such as fruit fillings and easily builds texture in cold-processed applications such as salad dressings. In addition, it offers excellent bake stability control compared to traditional modified food starch.

Like the other CLARIA Functional Clean-Label Starches, CLARIA Instant line delivers a clean taste and neutral color. It's unmatched sensory attributes make it easier to formulate clean-label foods as they closely match the attributes of traditional instant modified food starches.

In 2016, one in every five new clean label launches was in the bakery category making it a top category for clean label innovation across all regions. CLARIA Instant is well positioned to help address manufacturers’ clean label bakery formulation needs resulting from this trend.

In addition to these new instant functional clean-label starches, the CLARIA line features CLARIA Bliss, a tapioca based clean label functional starch, and three corn-based, clean label functional starches including CLARIA Essential, CLARIA Plus and CLARIA Elite. Launched globally in October 2014, these starches leverage the same proprietary technology as CLARIA Instant Functional Clean-Label Starches – enabling functionality and sensory attributes similar to modified starches while allowing for simpler ingredient lists.

By Elizabeth Green