Gelling agents focus: Let’s talk texture

Confectionery Production examines how the latest in gelling agents and thickeners are helping confectionery manufacturers to create products that cater to a variety of subsectors, from fortified gummies to vegan candy, without compromising on taste and texture. Daisy Phillipson reports

Whatever the demographic, a food’s texture plays a vital role in consumer satisfaction and can be the difference between a buyer embracing or rejecting a brand – and this is particularly true for confectionery products, where mouthfeel descriptions such as ‘chewy’, ‘crunchy’ and ‘soft’ make their way onto the front of packaging.

For products such as jellies, gummies and marshmallows, thickeners, stabilisers and gelling agents are essential for delivering exciting new textures, offering a consistent taste and mouthfeel while also maintaining quality and shelf life. Today, we’re here to examine the latest in these key confectionery components and how they’re helping manufacturers to cater to market trends.

 

Holistic health

According to Innova Market Insights’ latest Lifestyle & Attitude Survey, the health of the planet has taken over as the top global concern ahead of population health, even amid the pandemic. New product development has shifted focus to meet expectations, with the market research firm highlighting that ethical claims regarding the environment increased their share of total food and beverage launches from 4.4 per cent in 2016-2017 to 6.6 per cent in 2020-2021.

This is one of the reasons vegan confectionery has been on the rise. “Demand for vegan and better-for-you confectionery has grown significantly in recent years as consumers have developed an elevated holistic view on ‘healthy me, healthy planet’,” said Tricia Hayes, global senior director, emulsifiers, texture systems and gum acacia at ingredients specialist the Kerry Group. “Confectionery manufacturers are responding to the rise of vegan consumer groups by replacing animal-based ingredients such as egg and gelatin and developing vegan versions of their traditional products that can open up this market.”

While egg and gelatin are two ingredients that can be replaced by plant-based options, application expertise is needed to ensure taste, texture and quality aren’t affected. Kerry, which will be participating with a presentation at this year’s World Confectionery Conference, is able to offer candy manufacturers its formulation expertise alongside a range of solutions such as Hyfoama, a plant protein ingredient to support vegan and vegetarian aerated confectionery recipes.

Hayes emphasised that the ingredient can provide consistent whipping performance and can replace the aerating properties of egg white or gelatin. As discussed, while taste is the number one driver of purchases, an unpleasant texture can lead to a significant decrease in repeat buys. Kerry’s texturing systems are said to use the structuring components inherent in plants to create the desired texture, and can also build back the mouth feel that is compromised when gelatin is dropped as an ingredient.

“Customers can use a combination of Kerry’s gelatin-free Sherex texture system with Hyfoama to create delicious aerated vegan sweets,” explained Hayes. In the rising sugar-free confectionery category, the company highlighted its acacia solution, which can be used to achieve a variety of textures ranging from melt-in-mouth to soft or chewy. “It compensates for texture loss caused by a reduction in sugar content and is compatible with and approved for most sugar-free confectionery ingredients,” said Hayes.

In addition to functionality, acacia gum addresses environmental concerns. The sustainable harvesting of the natural tree exudate in Africa is carried out by local farmers in a way that does not damage tree growth and forms an important source of secondary revenue, making it a critical income generator among harvesters. “Also important, acacia trees benefit the environment by combating ‘desertification’ through their role as a nitrogen-fixing legume species helping balancing soil nutrients and enhancing soil fertility,” added Hayes.

A company that specialises in acacia gum is Alland & Robert, which has been investing in research and development for several years in order to develop plant-based alternatives to gelatin in gummies through its acacia gum offerings.

As explained by Isabelle Jaouen, R&D director at Alland & Robert: “A complete substitution of gelatin, with an alternative providing similar organoleptic properties, will involve the use of blends of vegetable hydrocolloids – some hydrocolloids bring viscosity and others, like acacia gum, bring chewiness. Our research centre is perfectly equipped to conduct practical studies dedicated to customers and developing new applications.”

 

Fortified and functional

Amid the ever-changing health movement, fortified gummies are on the rise, with sales driven through online health and wellness apps and shopping channels. According to industry insights firm MarketsandMarkets, the global gummy vitamins market was valued at around $5.9 billion in 2020, and is expected to reach $10.6 billion by 2025, growing at a CAGR of 12.5 per cent. The trend was accelerated by the pandemic as consumers sought to take a more proactive and preventative approach to their physical and mental wellbeing.

A key growth area in this category is products with skin health claims, including collagen-fortified gummies. Gelita – which specialises in gelatin, collagen and collagen peptides – explained that producing food with a high collagen content can be challenging, as the recommended daily intake is relatively high. This can lead to application issues which can impact the texture, taste and mouthfeel of gummies.

To overcome this hurdle, Gelita (below) developed Verisol HST, which can reportedly replace the regular gelatin and collagen source required to create collagen-enriched candy products. The firm stated that the ingredient, which contains Bioactive Collagen Peptides that have been optimised for physiological benefits, is capable of ramping collagen levels in fruit gummies up to 33 per cent. Ingredients business Rousselot, part of the Darling Ingredients group, also offers innovative collagen-based solutions and gelatin ingredients for functional gummies.

The company reached a major milestone in the nutraceutical gummies arena with the creation of its fast-setting SiMoGel gelatin solution, which enables the production of soft and even centre-filled gummies without traditional starch depositing. A number of developments have been made since SiMoGel’s launch in 2017, including the recent news that it received a granted patent by the European Patent Office. To extend the application possibilities in terms of shape and texture, Rousselot (main image) also recently unveiled what it named ‘gummy caps’ – an innovation in the SiMoGel range that allows brands to create centre-filled soft gummies that combine evolving consumer preferences for chewable dosage forms with the ability to include a broad range of nutrients at adequate dosage.

The perfect blend

Whether creating fortified gummies or vegan jelly sweets, gelling agents and texturisers are integral components. But finding the right solution is only half the battle, as there are a number of factors to consider including how it interacts within a recipe. As noted by the Cargill group, it’s also important to consider regional differences when it comes to recipe formulation. “The European sugar confectionery market is very regional in its composition, with different texture requirements,” explained Hannah Keenan, business manager at Infuse by Cargill. “This means that certain markets will now require plant-based alternatives to gelatin, while others have traditionally used starches, pectins and carrageenans in confectionery from the offset.”

Keenan went on to note that pectin and gelatin are polar opposites in terms of texture – while pectin is a short bite with little elasticity, gelatin leads to a hard bite and lots of elasticity. “It just depends on consumer preferences in the specific market,” she added. “Having said this, it’s important to stress that even if there are some differences between European countries, gelatin is present in all the markets, with its texture enjoyed by most people.” For challenging recipe reformulations, the company recently launched Infuse by Cargill, a service offering model that centres on tailoring ingredient blends to answer specific customer requests. The service allows manufacturers to create recipes such as reduced sugar or vegan confectionery without sacrificing on texture or mouthfeel. As well as regional differences, ingredients company Thew Arnott commented on how confectionery is driven by the indulgence factor as producers strive to deliver new textures and flavours that will both excite and surprise consumers.

“To achieve these textures, it is quite common to blend different gelling and thickening agents,” said Sue Allis, group technical leader at Thew Arnott, which offers a full range of solutions including starches, agar, alginates, konjac and locust bean gum. “With careful selection of the right gelling agent combination, manufacturers may achieve desired textures such as velvety, chewy, melted, soft or liquid

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