Loders Croklaan launches heart health bakery fats from new enzymatic technology
Company application and technical manager Hangkam Man told BakeryandSnacks.com that the new range comes under the Crokvitol brand name, an extinct brand the firm used for a consumer margarine product in the 1960s. The new fats utilize innovative manufacturing techniques to produce bakery fats, making its latest range completely different.
She said the fats industry was noticing more market demand for interesterification, a process using heat treatment to cause an exchange of fatty acids between glycerol molecules thus altering the properties of the fat.
Hydrogenisationout,enzymatic interesterification in
IOI-Loders Croklaan has previously only offered chemically-interesterified oils, but the launch of its new range is the first to use the enzymatic process, a technique said to save energy and generate less water pollution.
Man said the enzymatic process, which uses the natural processing aid enzyme lipase, is carried out at temperatures of 70°C, while the reference chemical process, is undertaken at 100°C. She refused to enter into details about how much savings this gave, saying there were more factors influencing the process.
“The enzymatic process is an continuous one,” she added, “whereas the chemical process is batch wise,” consequently consuming more energy through heating up and cooling down.
Two weeks ago, the company opened a new factory in Rotterdam, Netherlands, where modernised facilities have allowed it to process fats using this technology on a much larger scale than any other competitor in the market, according to Man.
Some companies have been supplying smaller quantities to the market in the past, but that the new plant has a capacity exceeding 100,000 tonnes a year, said the firm.
Hydrogenation transforms fats that are liquid at room temperature into solids, but the process also produces trans-fats, which are universally considered to be very unhealthy for the heart
Applications and demand
Man added that the new fats could have applications in any bakery item containing fat, including industrial and artisan bakery. The product range can also be used in margarine.
She did not note any particular geographic locations where demand might be strong, but anticipated demand all across Europe as she maintained competition in the sector was weak.
