Emerging Food R&D Report

Browse past and current articles from this publication.

Fiber, antioxidants affect bread rheology and performance.
Functional foods that have elevated phenolic antioxidant and dietary fiber levels are in high demand by consumers because of the health benefits they are believed to offer. Bakery products have foun . . .

Date fiber has potential as a functional ingredient.
In the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.), where dates are a major component of individual diets, the fruit's fiber is playing an important role in baked goods. By reducing the amount of flour and replac . . .

Amino acids under various pH conditions impact the pasting properties of rice starch.
Scientists at Louisiana State University investigated how different pH treatments, in combination with amino acids, might affect the pasting properties of rice starch. It appears that different pH l . . .

Whey protein isolate solution reduces oil absorption in deep-fried, battered, breaded chicken patties.
As consumers have become more aware of the deleterious effects of a high-fat diet, many companies have responded by lowering the fat content of some of their products. Research at Ohio University . . .

Ginger extract inhibits lipid oxidation in ground beef.
Ground beef is a popular grocery commodity in the United States, constituting more than one-third of total beef sales and generating $12 billion in revenue annually. The process of grinding accele . . .

Generate antiangiogenic peptides by the action of B. polymyxa protease.
Antiangiogenic peptides, such as angiostatin, are of major interest in the field of cancer research. These peptides reduce and impede cancer cell growth, as well as the spread of metastasis, by inhi . . .

Starch-lipid composites eliminate syneresis in yogurt.
Yogurt is formed by the fermentation of the lactose in milk and the formation of gel structure. Syneresis is a defect in yogurt in which the liquid separates from the yogurt and forms a layer on the . . .

Characterize aroma profile of thornless blackberry.
Black Diamond is a thornless blackberry cultivar recently released from the USDA-ARS blackberry breeding program. This cultivar has a number of outstanding characteristics, including large, uniforml . . .

Evaluate enriched agar medium for routine isolation and enumeration of bifidobacteria.
Probiotic supplements play an important role in helping establish a healthy diet. The number of commercial products claiming to contain a high number of viable counts of bifidobacteria has grown. In . . .

An infusion.(Executives ... FYI)
An infusion of a mix of organic acids and extracts from plants, combined with a dose of irradiation, may significantly reduce pathogenic bacteria in and on chicken breast meat. Researchers found t . . .

A key bacterial compound.(Executives ... FYI)
A key bacterial compound that inhibits the growth of the plant fungus F. verticillioides has been identified by scientists. The compound could help protect plants, livestock and poultry from fusariu . . .

Food packaging.(Executives ... FYI)
The primary purpose of food packaging is to protect the product. Once that is accomplished, the package has to protect a product's sensory quality. One challenge to meeting the second goal involves . . .

Modified whey protein concentrate affects texture of frozen dough.
Modified whey protein concentrate is an important functional ingredient that has a wide range of applications in food products. These whey proteins have important functional properties. They are hyd . . .

Increase dietary fiber levels in extrusion-puffed cereals.
Insoluble fibers are inexpensive, plentiful and have uniquely nutritional properties. However, incorporating them into extruded puffed products severely limits their ability to expand and reduces th . . .

Monitor biochemical changes during cheese ripening with infrared microspectroscopy.
Cheese ripening is characterized by a series of complex physical, chemical and microbiological changes that lead to the development of unique flavor characteristics. Adding adjunct cultures can help . . .

Potential of light transmission to measure whey fat losses, improve cheese yield.
Optimizing cheese yield is of economic importance to the cheese industry. You can improve cheese yield by minimizing the loss of various milk components, such as fat, and by precisely controlling th . . .

Fat makes us feel fuller.
Scientists at the U.K.'s Institute of Food Research and colleagues elsewhere have designed a fatty formulation that can make us feel fuller for longer periods of time. When the fat remains stable in . . .

Artificial gut to facilitate healthy product development.
Growing concerns over the incidence of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease have caught the awareness of the food industry. Many companies have set their sights on developing products that h . . .

Extruder operating conditions affect the production of edible films.
Edible films sealed into pouches can increase a product's shelf life and decrease the use of conventional packaging systems for foods. Edible films are often made by a solution casting process in wh . . .

High hydrostatic pressure enhances resistance to thermal denaturation, improves enzyme stability.
High-pressure processing has potential food preservation applications because it can inactivate microorganisms and enzymes. Before we implement this new technology, we need to understand the mechani . . .

Consider yogurt ice cream alternative using inulin, isomalt.
Yogurt ice cream offers sensory and physical properties that are similar to those of ice cream and yogurt. Yogurt adds a pleasing liveliness to ice cream and makes it very refreshing too. Turkish . . .

Green leaf lettuce.(Executives ... FYI)
Growing the right type of green leaf lettuce during winter in a greenhouse--and exposing it to the right type of ultraviolet light--can boost levels of nutritionally beneficial carotenoids. Supple . . .

Trehalose.(Executives ... FYI)
Trehalose as a novel drying aid for producing freeze-dried strawberry puree was compared with conventional drying aids for fruit purees, namely sucrose and maltodextrin. Scientists determined glas . . .

Starch-lipid composites.(Executives ... FYI)
Starch-lipid composites were used to replace milk solids in yogurt mixes. The effects of the composites on yogurt fermentation and rheology were studied by researchers. The rate of fermentation wa . . .

Consumers may accept high-protein yogurts.
Food products and diet regimens that offer more protein, less fat and less caloric content have been developed and introduced into the market in recent years to help those of us who have weight loss . . .

High pressure and heat optimize rheology of yogurt model.
High-pressure homogenization (HPH) is a nonthermal technology that has been used in making dairy products to reduce the ripening times of cheese or to improve the shelf life of a product by decreasi . . .

Optimize microencapsulation of probiotic bacteria for stability.
Probiotics can be microencapsulated as a way to enhance their gastrointestinal transit and to prolong their shelf life in certain foods. Scientists in Australia have applied an extra coating of palm . . .

Compare stability of different hydrocolloid emulsions.
Many hydrocolloids are derived from natural sources. For example, carrageenan is extracted from seaweed, gelatin is produced by the hydrolysis of proteins of bovine and fish origin, and pectin is ex . . .

Pulsed electric fields can preserve juice quality.
The growing consumer demand for fresh-like juices with health-promoting compounds has drawn the attention of producers of red fruits such as watermelon. It is important for these producers to inacti . . .

Presoaking hurts rice flavor.
Water-soaking rice for 30 minutes or longer prior to cooking is traditionally practiced in Japan, Korea and other Asian countries. When soaked, rice grains hydrate, develop cracks, and water is abso . . .

Pyrazine compounds contribute to earthy-bell pepper flavor in Cheddar cheese.
British Farmhouse Cheddar cheeses with natural bandage wrappings have a distinctively appealing flavor profile. An earthy-bell pepper flavor (EBF) that varies in intensity is one of the characterist . . .

Milk, sucrose may reduce bitterness, astringency of polyphenolic extracts.
There is increasing interest in the development and use of polyphenolic-rich antioxidant extracts as functional ingredients. However, their bitterness, astringency and characteristic flavor could li . . .

Use gelatin hydrolysate as a natural ice modulator.
The growth of ice crystals when products are stored in cold environments causes quality concerns for frozen products such as ice cream. The strong direct relationship between the size of ice crystal . . .

A packaging system.(Executives ... FYI)
A packaging system has been designed and evaluated for its ability to extend the storage life and improve the quality of Rio Grande tomato fruits at ambient temperatures. Scientists packed freshly . . .

Lignin.(Executives ... FYI)
Lignin is a material involved in the formation of pits in stone fruit. Fruit pits consist of the seed and the hard woody material, or stone, surrounding the seed. Scientists are making progress in . . .

Increase growth, activity of probiotics using germinated soymilk.
There is an increased awareness of the role of dietary supplements and nutraceuticals--bioactive compounds--as regulatory compounds with hormone-like functions in the human body. Some natural foods, . . .

Amaranth grain extract may extend bread shelf life.
Amaranth is a very good source of vitamins including vitamin A, vitamin K, vitamin B6, vitamin C, riboflavin and folate, and such dietary minerals as calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, . . .

Flavor-enhancing properties of tagatose limited in bakery products.
Tagatose, an isomer of fructose, is a minimally absorbed carbohydrate with healthful prebiotic properties. There are some indications that tagatose can also function as a flavor enhancer in various . . .

Monitor composition, flavor quality of Cheddar cheese during ripening using rapid spectroscopy.
The composition and flavor of Cheddar cheese, which partly influence how consumers accept the product, develop during the ripening process. However, ripening is not well understood due to the comple . . .

Minimize banana puree color degradation by continuous flow microwave sterilization.
Banana purees are used as ingredients in a variety of food products, including baby foods and desserts. The preferred way to preserve them involves either freezing, sterilization or aseptic packagin . . .

Microencapsulated fish oil powder from purified red salmon oil.
Fatty fish like mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon are high in two kinds of omega-3 fatty acids: eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). As you kno . . .

Examine oxygen barrier performance of multilayer films.
Most studies involving water uptake and oxygen permeability in packaging films have been carried out at temperatures below 100 C, mostly around room temperature. Less attention has been paid to stud . . .

Develop nutritionally, organoleptically optimized papaya pulp nectar using mild heat and irradiation.
Papaya ranks highest among fruit for carotenoid, potassium, fiber and ascorbic acid content. But fresh papaya does not maintain a desired quality when it is shipped due to bruising and softening tha . . .

Research identifies new class of phytoalexin-enriched functional foods.
Many foods are derived from plants that naturally contain compounds beneficial to human health and which are believed to prevent certain diseases. Plants containing phytochemicals with potent antica . . .

Executives ... FYI.
The loss of quality in fresh-cut products can be caused by a number of issues, such as browning and other discolorations, softening, surface dehydration, water loss, translucency, the development of . . .

Develop fruit-flavored yogurts enriched with health-beneficial fish collagen.
Yogurt, an already healthy food, can further benefit from the addition of health-beneficial ingredients such as fish collagen. Collagen is fibrous protein that contributes to the physiological funct . . .

Peeling, blanching carrots improves the physicochemical and microbiological properties of juice.
Scientists at Tehran University wanted to see how blanching peeled carrots would affect the product's properties. Two peeled and unpeeled sections of whole carrots were blanched in boiling water c . . .

New techniques aim to improve peanut processing.
A new technology that grades peanuts faster and more accurately is under development by USDA-ARS scientists. These researchers were approached by the peanut industry, which was seeking help in solvi . . .

Peanut skins, shells are sources of antioxidants, nutraceuticals.
Peanut seeds are protected by a woody pod and surrounded by a thin testa or skin. These components are considered waste products of seed processing. But the high phenolic load of these components ma . . .

Improve color stability of bovine muscles using lactate, lactate dehydrogenase.
Prolonging the bright red color found on meat surfaces has been a major goal of the meat industry. Discoloration caused by the formation of metmyoglobin can be retarded by reducing equivalents, such . . .