WACKER Presents Alpha-Cyclodextrin as a Stabilizer for New Applications

CAVAMAX W6 acts as a whipping agent and effectively stabilizes oil-in-water emulsions, allowing manufacturers to produce stable foam in a huge variety of desserts without using fat or protein. Because the mouthfeel of these products can be made to vary from creamy to solid, their organoleptic properties are excellent. As water-soluble dietary fiber, alpha-cyclodextrin has been shown to have a positive effect on blood cholesterol and can reduce the spike in blood sugar occurring after meals (health claim). Cyclodextrins are 100% vegetarian-grade, low-calorie, cholesterol-free, nonfat and non-allergenic, and are produced entirely from renewable raw materials. The IFT Annual Meeting & Food Expo will be held in Chicago, July 13–16.

WACKER will be present at IFT 2013, where the company will show-case CAVAMAX W6 alpha-cyclodextrin for use in novel icings and coatings for desserts, cakes and baked goods. Commercially available cake icings and creams are usually made with solid fats whose components can include saturated fats and, in some cases, trans fats. Both can raise cholesterol levels and contribute to cardiovascular diseases.

 

Thanks to CAVAMAX W6, WACKER now has a solution for replacing solid fats in cake icings with vegetable oil. The product effectively stabilizes the oil-in-water emulsions found in cake icing without the use of additional emulsifiers. Moreover, using vegetable oils instead of solid fats improves the nutritional profile of the icings. CAVAMAX W6 also allows manufacturers to fine-tune the texture from creamy to spreadable – even when straight from the refrigerator – to a hard sugar glaze. Yet another advantage of this product is the increased temperature stability that it lends to icings, thus extending the shelf life of baked goods, even when shipped long distances or when sold in warmer climates.

 

Using alpha-cyclodextrin allows to produce new formulations for desserts and baked goods that not only eliminate the need for emulsifiers but mean that they can also be prepared without fat or eggs.

 

Because commercially available desserts such as creams and chocolate mousse are based on fat or protein, they often have to be stabilized with emulsifiers or require additional proteins as whipping aids. With CAVAMAX W6, however, a great variety of foods, such as fruit juices, fruit purées, yogurt or even honey, can be whipped to produce fluffy, stable creams – with no added fat or protein. Many confectionery products, such as nougat or marshmallow fillings for chocolates, are usually made with the help of whipped egg whites. When used as an innovative whipping aid, CAVAMAX W6 completely eliminates the need for aerated egg whites.

 

And by improving the air content during aeration, this product also ultimately enhances the texture of the end product. Plus, the same initial quantity yields a higher whipped volume. Because alpha-cyclodextrin is also quite resistant to heat and acidic environments, it can be processed in starting products in which the pH is low, thus allowing manufacturers to produce entirely new kinds of fillings, creams and mousses. CAVAMAX W6 is also well-suited for whip-ping fat-containing dairy products, such as yogurt or buttermilk, into foamed fillings.

 

Not only is alpha-cyclodextrin low in calories, cholesterol-free and nonallergenic – it also represents a plant-based alternative for a number of different foods. When starches such as corn or potato starch break down, a natural product yielded is alpha-cyclodextrin, which WACKER produces entirely from renewable raw materials using biotech methods. Additionally, the European Commission has certified the proven health benefits of alpha-cyclodextrin (health claim). The EU opinion confirms that alpha-cyclodextrin can reduce the spike in blood sugar that follows starchy meals. This means that, when food manufacturers use alpha-cyclodextrin as a source of dietary fiber, they will be permitted to indicate on the packaging that the product can lower blood sugar. Furthermore, alpha-cyclodextrin does not have an E number.