GB2356790A

GB2356790A - Carob germ emulsifier

Info

Publication number: GB2356790A
Application number: GB0029232A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Stig Groven; Charles Johansen
Original assignee: Danisco AS; Danisco US Inc
Current assignee: DuPont Nutrition Biosciences ApS; Danisco US Inc
Priority date: 2000-11-30
Filing date: 2000-11-30
Publication date: 2001-06-06
Also published as: GB0029232D0

Abstract

An process for the preparation of an emulsion comprises contacting oil, water and carob germ, wherein the carob germ comprises greater than 25 % by weight of protease inhibitor native to the carob germ. The carob germ is preferably not subject to heat treatment at conditions that would reduce the amount of protease inhibitor. The carob germ is preferably maintained at a temperature less than 180 {C prior to and during the process. The emulsion prepared by the process may be used in sauces, soups, salad dressing, fat spreads, baked good and dessert products.

Description

2356790 PROCESS The present invention relates to a process. In particular

the present invention relates to a process for preparing a emulsion of an oil and water.

As discussed in the prior art, the current tastes of consumers are increasingly oriented towards a low-fat diet. To this end, there has been developed, in the last 20 years, a wide variety of products for everyday consumption based on direct or reversed emulsion of oil and water emulsions such as margarine, salad dressing and mayonnaise, in which the concentration of fat is considerably reduced in favour of that of water. This has involved the parallel development of stabilising andlor emulsifying systems capable of conferring the required stability on these emulsions.

Among the emulsifying agents conventionally used, there may be mentioned more particularly egg (including egg yolk, egg white (proteins) as separate ingredients or as whole egg, both in liquid form and as powders), sodium caseinates and other milk protein derivatives and other protein sources with emulsifying properties All these agents are characterised by a high protein content which improves their emulsifying behaviour. For this reason, their use is very common.

US-A-5958473 discloses an emulsifier for use in foodstuffs comprising carob germ which has been heat treated to reduce the high content of protease inhibitor (such as trypsin) in the germ by at least 75%. According to the teaching of this document the high content of protease inhibitor can raise major nutritional problems and therefore prevents a generalised use of this compound in human foodstuffs. The inhibitor content is reduced by heat treating at a temperature of between about 180 and 2100C with dry air or with a microwave oven.

The present invention alleviates the problems of the prior art.

The present invention aim to provide a emulsifier obtained from carob germ and its use in fine food applications as a possible replacement of egg ingredients or milk protein derivatives.

In one aspect the present invention provides a process for the preparation of an emulsion of an oil and water, the process comprising contacting the oil, water and carob 2 germ, wherein the carob germ comprises greater than 25 wt.% of protease inhibitor native to the carob germ.

Aspects of the invention are defined in the appended claims.

We have found that carob germ may provide good emulsifying properties in a foodstuff without the need to heat treat the carob germ before use to reduce the content of protease inhibitor.

The carob tree produces a fruit. This fruit consists of two parts, the pod and the seed.

The carob seed, and more particularly the enclosperm fraction of this seed, is already widely used in the food industry under the name "carob bean gum". Adjacent to this endosperm fraction is the germ which is a by-product obtained in large quantities during the production of carob bean gum (also known as locust bean gum). In contrast to the prior art we have found that carob germ may be utilised in a further application, namely as an emulsifier without the need for the carob germ to undergo the high cost of removal of protease inhibitor, for example by heat treatment of the germ.

In one aspect the carob germ is not subject to heat treatment at conditions capable of reducing the amount of protease inhibitor native to the carob germ.

In one aspect the carob germ is maintained at a temperature of less than 118TC prior to and during the process of the invention.

In one aspect the oil, water and carob germ are at a temperature of from 60 to 11 00C, preferably from 70 to 1 OOOC, preferably from 80 to 9TC, preferably approximately 85,C.

In one aspect the carob germ is present in an amount of no greater than 5 wt.%, including 0.4 to 0.8 wt.%, including 0.5 to 0.7 wt.%, including approximately 0.6wt%, based on the amount of oil, water and carob germ.

In one aspect the carob germ is present in an amount of 1.0 to 2.0 wt.%, preferably 1.0 to 1.4 wt.%, preferably 1.1 to 1.3 wt.%, preferably approximately 1.2 wt%, based on the amount of oil.

In one aspect the water and oil are present in a ratio of 1:1.5 to 1.5:1, preferably in a ratio 3 of approximately M.

In one aspect the present invention provides an emulsion obtainable or obtained according to a process of the present invention.

In one aspect the present invention provides a foodstuff obtainable or obtained according to a process of the present invention.

In one aspect the present invention provides a foodstuff comprising oil and water, and carob germ; wherein the oil and water are in the form of an emulsion; and wherein the carob germ comprises greater than 25 wt.% of protease inhibitor native to the carob germ.

In one aspect the foodstuff is selected from mayonnaises, hot and cold sauces, soups, salad dressing, fat spreads, baked goods and dessert products including gelled and semi-gelled (dairy) desserts and frozen dessert such as ice-cream.

The present invention will now be described in further detail by way of example only with reference to the accompanying figures in which:

Figure 1 shows a flow diagram.

The present invention will now be described in further detail in the following examples.

EXAMPLES

The objective with these Examples was to screen the functionality of carob germ focusing on emulsification capacity, acid stability and heat stability.

The results show good emulsification properties of carob germ, when the water phase of the emulsion is heated to min 850C. No change in functionality was observed with regard to the acid environment, and the emulsion was stable during sterilisation.

SET UP Carob germ was produced in accordance with traditional production processes for locust 4 bean gum (LBG). Carob germ is obtained as a byproduct when dehusked or non dehusked carob kernels are split up. A typical process for producing LBG is shown in Figure 1. L13G can be purchased from DaniscoCultor, Denmark.

To test the carob germ, a basic 50% mayonnaise formulation was used. All examples were performed on Koruma equipment. Other types of processing equipment could be used as well such as Schrbcler, Fryma, Herbot etc.

EXAMPLE 1

Objective Test of emulsification properties and optimisation of dosage for further trials.

Investigate the influence of processing (warm/cold production).

Example 1.1

The results of this trial showed that carob germ had no/low emulsification properties without heat-treatment to approximately 850C; probably due to very low solubility at ambient temperatures.

With heat-treatment to 850C, carob germ showed very good emulsification properties at a dosage of 0.60% of the total product, equivalent to 1.20% of the oil phase. A higher dosage did not improve the degree of emulsification but contributed to increased viscosity. A dosage of 0.60% should be used in further trials.

Example 1.2

Composition in percentages 12 13 14 Water 60.05 40.70 31.70 oil 30.00 50.00 60.00 Salt 1.00 1.00 1.00 Sugar 2.00 2.00 2.00 Carob-Protein 0.60 0.60 0.60 GRINDSTEDTm FF 5102 Stabiliser System 0.35 0.20 0.20 Starch, E-1442 2.50 2.00 1.00 Mustard 1.00 1.00 1.00 Vinegar 10% 2.50 2.50 2.50 Total 100.00 100.00 100.00 Process:

1. Mix water, salt and sugar 2. Blend starch, protein and stabiliser with some of the oil and add it to the water phase 3. Mix until all ingredients are fully dissolved 4. Emulsify the rest of the oil into the water phase 5. Add vinegar and mustard 6. Heat the water phase to 850C and hold for 4 minutes 7. Pack into cans and autoclave at 1210C for 30 minutes Example 1.3

Composition in percentages 1 2 3 4 5 Water 37.80 40.20 39,90 39.50 39.00 Oil 50.00 50.00 50.00 50.00 50.00 Salt 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 Sugar 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 Egg Yolk 3.00 - - - Carob-protein - 0.30 0.60 1.00 1.50 Vinegar 10% 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 GRINDSTEWm FF 5102 0.20 0.20 0.20 0.25 0.20 Stabiliser System 1 Starch E-1442 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 Mustard 1.00 1.00 1-00 1.00 1.00 Egg Yolk Flavouring 0.30 0.30 0.30 0.30 Total 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 Process:

1. Mix water, salt and sugar 2. Blend starch and stabiliser with some of the oil and add it to the water phase 3. Mix until all ingredients are fully dissolved 4. Emulsify the rest of the oil into the water phase 5. Add vinegar and mustard Sample 2-5:

6. Heat up to 900C for 2 minutes and cool down to 201C 7. Pack EXAMPLE 2

Objective Observations of the influence of the acid environment before and after emulsification 6 of the oil phase To test the influence of the acid environment, trials were conducted with controlled adjustment of the pH with acetic acid at two levels (5.0 and 3.5). pH was adjusted in the water phase to test the solubility of carob germ in an acid environment and as another trial, in the emulsion after emulsification of the oil. At both pH-levels no changes in solubility/emulsification nor viscosity were observed. This was found for both levels of addition.

Component Weic ht % Water 43.20 43.20 43.20 43.20 43.20 43.50 Oil 50.00 50.00 50.00 50.00 50.00 50.00 Salt 1,00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 Sugar 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 Carob-Protein 0.60 0.60 0.60 0.60 0.60 0.30 GRiNDSTEDTm FF 5102 0.20 0.20 0.20 0.20 0.20 0.20 Stabiliser System Starch E-1442 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 Mustard 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 Acetic Acid Total 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 Acid Environment 6 7 8 9 10 11 Kev to Acid Environment 6) Neutral pH, no acid 7) Adjust pH to 5.0 after the oil has been emusified into the mayonnaise 8) Adjust pH to 5.0 before addition of the protein 9) Adjust pH to 3.5 after the oil has been emulsified into the mayonnaise 10) Adjust pH to 3.5 before addition of the protein 11) Adjust pH to 3.5 after the oil has been emulsified into the mayonnaise Each of the compositions was Heated to 900C for 2 minutes, cooled to 2WC and packed.

EXAMPLE 3

Objective Investigation of heat stability, during sterilisation in autoclave Further tests of emulsification capacity 7 To test the emulsification capacity of carob germ, mayonnaise with fat levels of 30, 50, and 80% were made with a dosage of carob germ of 0.60% of the total product.

Results showed that all mayonnaise samples were stable after one week of cold storage (50C).

To investigate the heat stability of carob germ the mayonnaise samples were sterilised at 121'C chamber temperature for 30 minutes in an autoclave with rotation. All samples, except those produced with 80% oil, showed complete stability without any oil separation and indicated that the carob germ was still intact. The 80% mayonnaise had a tendency to separate oil.

CONCLUSION

The examples show that carob germ is a highly functional ingredient, especially with regards to emulsification properties. Carob germ may be applied as an alternative to egg or milk derivatives for emulsification purposes.

All publications mentioned in the above specification are herein incorporated by reference. Various modificatio ns and variations of the described methods and system of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Although the invention has been described in connection with specific preferred embodiments, it should be understood that the invention as claimed should not be unduly limited to such specific embodiments. Indeed, various modifications of the described modes for carrying out the invention which are obvious to those skilled in chemistry or related fields are intended to be within the scope of the following claims.

8

Claims

1. A process for the preparation of an emulsion of an oil and water, the process comprising contacting the oil, water and carob germ, wherein the carob germ comprises greater than 25 wt.% of protease inhibitor native to the carob germ.

2. A process according to claim 1 wherein the carob germ is not subject to heat treatment at conditions capable of reducing the amount of protease inhibitor native to the carob germ.

3. A process according to claim 1 or 2 wherein the carob germ is maintained at a temperature of less than 1 WC prior to and during the process of claim 1 or 2.

4. A process according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the oil, water and carob germ are at a temperature of from 60 to 11 TC, preferably from 70 to 1 OTC, preferably from 80 to 9TC, preferably approximately WC.

5. A process according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the carob germ is in an amount of 0.4 to 0.8 wt.%, preferably 0.5 to 0.7 wt.%, preferably approximately 0.6wt%, based on the amount of oil, water and carob germ.

6. A process according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the carob germ is in an amount of 1.0 to 1.4 wt.%, preferably 1.1 to 1.3 wt.%, preferably approximately 1.2wt%, based on the amount of oil.

7. A process according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the water and oil are present in a ratio of 1A.5 to 1.5A, preferably in a ratio of approximately 1A.

8. An emulsion obtainable or obtained according to a process as defined in any one of the preceding claims.

9. A foodstuff obtainable or obtained according to a process as defined in any one of the preceding claims.

10. A foodstuff comprising oil and water, and carob germ; wherein the oil and water are in the form of an emulsion., and wherein the carob germ comprises greater than 25 9 wt.% of protease inhibitor native to the carob germ.

11. A foodstuff according to claim 9 or 10 selected from mayonnaises, hot and cold sauces, soups, salad dressing, fat spreads, baked goods and dessert products including gelled and semi-gelled (dairy) desserts and frozen dessert such as ice- cream.

12. A process as substantially hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the Examples.

13. An emulsion as substantially hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the Examples.

14. A foodstuff as substantially hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the Examples.