Enzymes and cultures are critical for helping to ensure dairy products have the most advantageous flavor and appearance while staying fresher longer. And demand for these ingredients is ballooning.
Cultures and enzymes are the “secret ingredients” behind many of consumers’ favorite dairy products. They can influence attributes ranging from taste and texture to mouthfeel and shelf life.
Not only do cultures and enzymes impart unique product characteristics, but they also offer solutions for increased shelf stability and production efficiency.
Today's dairy processors have to cater to a group of consumers who want it all, from reduced-sugar and lactose-free products to long shelf lives and clean labels. So how could they create dairy offerings that meet so many different needs?
Seen from a certain angle, any challenge can resemble an opportunity. And by that reckoning, contemporary dairy developers are living in a land of opportunity.
Enzymes help to optimize the manufacturing process and minimize cheese waste. Cultures allow dairy producers to improve yields and get more out of their milk.
With the world’s population expected to exceed 9 billion by 2050, farmers and dairy processors have been on the hunt for solutions to feed so many people. One realization is that the same cultures and enzymes used to transform milk into cheese and yogurt can be warriors against waste.
Cultures, enzymes, and acidulants solve problems for dairy processors. They use these ingredients to shape dairy products into a nearly infinite variety of flavors and textures.
June 7, 2012
Dairy Foods: Tell us about your newest culture systems. What are their properties and benefits?Curic-Bawden: Our latest yogurt cultures are focused on improving the quality of nonfat and low-fat yogurts. They provide extra-high viscosity, a good “thickness” of mouthfeel, a high level of smoothness, high gel firmness and an improved creaminess.
Swiss cheese makers must ensure fast and controlled eye formation (formation of holes) in cheese types such as Maasdammer and Emmenthal. On top of this technological request, consumers prefer a distinctive nutty flavor together with a light sweet mouthfeel. To respond to these trends, Chr. Hansen now introduces the new propionic (organic acid) culture OpenITTM PS-60.
Though considered minor ingredients, with usage levels sometimes less than a percent depending on ingredient and application, acidulants, cultures and enzymes are the lifeblood of cheese, yogurt and many other dairy foods. Without these ingredients, these products would not exist.