WILD Develops Natural Colors for the Confectionery Market

11 Sep 2014 --- WILD has expanded its range of colors and now offers a prism of intense shades for use in confectionery products: the Rainbow Range of concentrates and extracts is available in red, orange, yellow, blue, green and purple.

“The new Rainbow Range from WILD can be used in a variety of applications but initially we wanted to focus on the confectionery market,” product manager for ingredients, Hélène Möller, told FoodIngredientsFirst.

WILD has successfully made use of extraction technologies in processing the microalgae spirulina, particularly in creating greens, and an even wider variety of powerful green tones can be generated by combining it with safflower. All of the shades are coloring foodstuffs and fulfill the growing consumer demand for clean-label products with natural ingredients.

The market for colors of natural origin continues to grow. Markets and Markets forecasts annual double-digit growth rates for the period from 2014 to 2019, both in Europe and around the world. The demand for natural color solutions is particularly high in Germany, France, England, Italy and Spain.

WILD’s Rainbow Range is the product of intense research and significant investment in new production technologies to develop particularly vivid natural shades for use in the confectionery industry. The colors are especially suited for fruit gums, coated tablets, and soft and hard caramels, explained Möller.

“The new range is especially suitable for fruit gums and candies because it satisfies the customers’ expectations due to the vivid and brilliant colors,” she said. “This is why it’s not surprising that the Rainbow Range is predestined particularly for this segment.

In addition all coloring foodstuff products are aligned to the specific technological challenges like pH-value, parameter of production, light, heat, effects of packaging and many more.”

She also told FoodIngredientsFirst that this is where customers could benefit from WILD’s extensive experience in color applications. “Each application has its own specific needs and WILD is the expert in developing the corresponding products.”

The company offers turn-key solutions from a single source – everything from manufacturing all the way to the final application – and it serves the industry as a trusted partner with years of expertise.

In its shades of red, WILD’s new blends are based on raw materials such as purple carrot, grape, elderberry or black currant. WILD’s spectrum offers a wide range of nuances and tints from a warm tomato red to classic dark red all the way to a deep purple red, all of which can accentuate the many different flavors of the confectionery products.

These red blends also satisfy the increase in consumer demand for more natural color solutions, and furthermore they allow manufacturers to replace carmine products in some applications.
WILD can ensure premium quality at every phase of production thanks to vertical integration and enhanced access to raw materials.

Brilliant orange: Orange is one of the most popular colors in the industry. By blending safflower and concentrates that contain anthocyanins, WILD has successfully produced a brilliant shade of orange that is highly stable. In addition, the company has managed to create high quality products from vegetable sources; these products are suited for almost all applications.

Sunny yellow: Yellow is another favorite among consumers. At its production site in Valencia, Spain, the company uses safflower blossoms to obtain a clear, fresh yellow. Working closely with suppliers and establishing strictly regulated contracts means that WILD can set the highest possible standards.

Light green, dark green and everything in between: New green tones are expanding WILD’s color portfolio. Depending on how they are blended, a combination of spirulina and safflower can yield a delicate mint color, a fresh apple shade or a bright pear color. These new nuances give manufacturers the option of providing visual complements to a variety of different flavors, which fully satisfy consumer expectations.

A broad spectrum from blue to light purple: Spirulina is also the cornerstone of the Ingredients Specialist’s palette of purples. By itself, the microalgae yields a strong shade of blue. When combined with other raw materials such as purple carrot or hibiscus, other purple tones are possible as well.

By Sonya Hook