SBIR Phase I: Imparting Soluble Polysaccharide Functionality to Insoluble Fiber Found in Food Processing Byproduct Streams

这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是创造一种新的基于纤维的成分，其特性：1)使食品和饮料口感更好，成本更低，2)具有易于理解的清洁标签成分声明，而不是人为的，3)使用符合食品成分良好生产规范的可持续工艺生产。与目前销售的其他增稠、悬浮或水胶体成分（如果胶、羟丙基甲基纤维素和/或羧甲基纤维素）相比，拟议的新技术将从天然原料中制造功能性食品成分，并提高可持续性。生产产量，通过从给定数量的原材料生产的最终产品的数量来衡量，是普通水胶体的两到三倍，而原材料是从果汁和/或食品生产中产生的纤维副产物流，否则将被浪费或用于其他低价值目的。即使在栽培作物短缺期间，全球也能以合理的价格获得充足的原材料。尽管来自食品加工的废弃植物材料丰富，但由于经济、感官（味道、质地、气味）和技术限制，例如保水能力、悬浮性能、口感等，它们在食品中的应用有限，而拟议的技术将克服这些限制。在用于悬浮和增稠目的的水胶体成分的12亿美元潜在市场中，对具有本项目概述的性能的具有价格竞争力的成分的市场需求为2.4 - 3.6亿美元，而这种基于纤维的技术平台的成功商业化将满足这一需求。这个第一阶段研究项目的技术目标是将一种转型、高功能、低成本和清洁标签的新型纤维平台商业化，这种平台在果汁、汤、蛋黄酱和沙拉酱等食品和饮料中保持稳定，不会随着时间的推移而发生化学、微生物或感官降解。拟议纤维的典型使用率预计低于1%，但在最终食品或饮料产品中具有重要的技术功能，例如悬浮，增稠，乳化。与其他水胶体成分的流变学和感官比较将证明其在一系列应用中的有效性。由于其天然成分，纤维平台可以承受pH 2-10的碱性和酸性条件，热稳定性高达100℃，并且可以承受多次冻结/解冻循环。原料将含有15-45%的天然果胶，5-20%的半乳糖醛酸，并将从柑橘、甜菜和土豆的生产过程中采购。所提出的纤维平台将产生比现有增稠剂大三到四倍的悬浮和增稠力，这将导致更低的使用率，更清洁的味道，更低的成本。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project is to create a new fiber based ingredient with properties that: 1) makes foods and beverages that taste better and cost less, 2) has a clean label ingredient statement that is easily understood and not artificial, and 3) is made utilizing a sustainable process consistent with good manufacturing practices for food ingredients. The proposed new technology will make functional food ingredients from natural raw materials and improve sustainability compared to other thickening, suspending, or hydrocolloid ingredients sold today, e.g. pectin, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, and/or carboxymethylcellulose. The production yields, as measured by the amount of final product produced from a given amount of raw material, is two to three times greater compared to common hydrocolloids while the raw materials are fibrous byproduct streams made from juice and/or food production that would otherwise be waste or used for other low value purposes. The raw materials are also available globally in sufficient quantities at reasonable prices even during periods of cultivated crop shortages. Despite the abundance of waste plant materials from food processing, they have limited use in foods due to economic, sensorial (taste, texture, smell) and technological constraints, e.g. water holding capacity, suspending properties, mouthfeel, without intense chemical modification, which the proposed technology will overcome. Of the $1.2 billion addressable market for hydrocolloid ingredients used for suspending and thickening purposes, there is a $240-360 million market demand for competitively priced ingredients with the properties outlined in this project and a successful commercialization of this fiber based technology platform will meet this demand. The technical objectives of this Phase I research project are to commercialize a transformational, highly functional, low cost, and clean label new fiber platform that remains stable without chemical, microbiological, or sensory degradation over time in food and beverages such as juice, soup, mayonnaise, and salad dressing. Typical usage rates of the proposed fibers are expected to be less than 1% yet having a significant technical function, e.g. suspending, thickening, emulsification, in the final food or beverage product. Rheological and sensory comparisons to other hydrocolloids ingredients will demonstrate the effectiveness in a range of applications. Due to its natural composition, the fiber platform will withstand alkaline and acidic conditions ranging from pH 2-10, be thermally stable up to 100 oC, and withstand multiple freeze/thaw cycles. Raw materials will contain native pectin levels from 15-45%, galacturonic acid levels of 5-20%, and will be sourced from citrus, sugar beet, and potato production processes. The proposed fiber platform will produce suspending and thickening power three to four times greater than current thickeners, which will result in a lower use rate, cleaner taste, and lower cost.