Ulrick & Short launches new functional fibres

The new fibres extend the company’s Scilia flax fibre range launched in late September - initially targeted at the bakery sector - and aim to provide food firms with more finished texture options and possible nutritional declarations.

The company said these could include declarations such as ‘high in fibre’, ‘helps maintain healthy blood cholesterol’ and (for flax fibre specifically) a ‘natural source of Omega 3’.

Ulrick & Short said that “unlike other nutritional fibres”​ which left a grainy texture when added to products, its fibres were neutral in taste (thus not masking flavours) and provided a smooth, creamy finish to desserts, yogurts and various pre-made and shake-up sports and meal replacement drinks.

Processed meats and bakery​

Many other applications beyond dairy could include processed meats and bakery, Ulrick & Short director Adrian Short told DairyReporter.com, with interest in the fibres anticipated from the UK, France, Holland, Spain and Scandinavian markets in particular.

Asked how the new fibres differed from other solutions available on the market, Short said: “Different origins, such as wheat and oat, give different performance levels [in terms of] water binding and declaration possibilities.”​

The company had overcome traditional ‘grainy texture’ problems by producing “purer and finer”​ products with a smoother texture, he added.

Product constitution also enabled producers to achieve complex product structures by blending its various fibre grades, Ulrick & Short claimed.

Fibres could be used as standalone products or used in tandem with starches to deliver “robust, clean label stabiliser systems”​, the company added.

In addition to fibres, Ulrick & Short produces clean label starches, fat replacers, glazes, stabilisers, binders and emulsifiers.