Canadian-headquartered Bartek Ingredients is making a welcome return speaking at our World Confectionery Conference. Neill Barston quizzes Milad Moshfeghian, vice president of applications and innovation, about its core ranges centred on malic acid and his upcoming event appearance

The business made its debut at our event in Brussels last year, showcasing its capabilities across the segment with its core series of malic acids that have served a strong purpose in masking and improving flavours. 

Significantly, the business is entering a notable new phase of its evolution in the wake of a $90 million acquisition by the ICL group, specialists in minerals and agricultural technology solutions, completed earlier this year, which will secure its long-term operating future.

As Mild Moshfeghian of Bartek explains in our interview below, the market for malic applications remains strong on a global level, noting that he is keenly awaiting a return for the business to play its part in our event on 10 September. Registration for our 2026 event is now open at the following link.

pic: Bartek’s canadian facilities under development. Pic: Bartek

Q: How are you feeling about being part of this year’s event as it moves
from to London?
A: I was unable to make it physically last year, so I will be presenting in
person this year. I’m looking forward to catching up with some of the other
folks in the industry who have been working on similar things, and different
areas within the world of confectionery, so I am very excited.

Q: We were recently introduced by the companyto its slogan “malic mania” – how do you explain it those who haven’t encountered these ingredients?A: Companies in this space typicallyoffer a wide range of products. Bartek
prides itself on the fact we’ve really made malic and fumaric acid our focus
for over five decades now, which it’s crazy to say out loud. We’re crazy about
malic acid, as well as about fumaric acid, and the term itself was officially
coined by my colleague Pieter Paul, which came to life last year. This was
really about sharing our excitement and getting the getting the industry as
excited about these wonderful pair of acidulants.

Q: How did you get into the industry, and what is it like as a sector to work within?
A: I would say that I have a relatively unique path in that I we went to school and I studied neuroscience and biochemistry, and was not intending in working in the chemical industry. Through a friend of mine, got introduced
to Bartek, where I’ve worked my way up in the operation. Its plants are
situated in a city called Stoney Creek, Hamilton, Ontario, and it has been  a feature of that township since its founding in the late 60s. Although it
is a world leader, it is it has a small business feel. It’s a 24/7 operation,
and so at most, you have, a few dozen people working at a time, and so it’s
never felt like a large organisation. The company has a genuine family vibe.

Q How are malic acids most commonly used within the sector?
First and foremost, if you’re in sour confectionery, or if you’re trying to catch the trend of intense sourness, which I’ve seen to have been seeing pop up and continue to grow over the last few years, you need an acidulant. That is what gives your confections sourness. So, whether you’re using citric acid for an intense sharp sour or you’re using malic acid for a linger, the acidulants that you work with will affect or modulate your flavours such that you get different kinds of sourness, and that’s something we really like to speak about. Malic acid has a very unique feature in that it remains sour for longer on the on the palate, and so as a result, people often pair these with artificial sweeteners, to help mask the bitter aftertaste or the perception of those tastes. I think that the entrepreneurial spirit of our founders was such that if there was a problem that malic acid could solve, they would get it into your hands, and as a result, that’s why we distribute to over 50 countries now.

• This year’s World Confectionery Conference features keynotes from Ferrero, Caobisco European confectionery trade association, Euromonitor International, and Cargill. To register for our key annual event on 10 September, visit confectioneryconference.com