IFT 2018: Beneo on the clarity US dietary fiber ruling brings to its customers

19 Jul 2018 --- Big news on the agenda for many suppliers this year was the US Food and Drug Administration’s guidance identifying eight specific fibers that can be classified as “dietary fibers” on the upcoming Nutrition Facts Label. At IFT 2018 in Chicago, NutritionInsight spoke with Jon Peters, President at Beneo, about what the guidance means for the company.

At this year’s expo, held 15-18 July, Beneo featured its inulin and oligofructose prebiotic fibers from chicory root, which were among the ingredients added to the established list of FDA-approved dietary fibers. These prebiotic fibers can be used in a variety of food products and contribute to texture and taste of sugar-reduced products.

“It’s welcome news, one that we have been expecting,” Peters says. “As pioneers in the fiber industry over the years, it moves us to the next chapter, and really allows us to get back on track with fibers and fiber enrichment. We know there is a fiber gap in products on the market today. The ruling clears the way for us to move forward with our customers to close that gap,” he says.

“There is a huge amount of science on inulin and oligofructose, as one of the only prebiotic and only vegetable source prebiotic fibers,” he says. “[The ruling] makes it possible for customers to go forward with clarity, related to what they can do, dietary fibers and labeling requirements. All those issues that for the last 18 months to two years were really up in the air.”

“The biggest need we have in the market these days are a number of digestive health issues related to fiber. Of course, a continuing trend is reduction in sugar. The ruling makes it clear that inulin can be used as a replacement for sugar as we have been promoting it for many years. You get the double benefit of the replacement of sugars with dietary fibers, bringing those health benefits to consumers.”

At this year’s IFT, Beneo also featured its functional carbohydrate Palatinose, sourced from sugar beet. According to the company, it is the only fully digestible carbohydrate with a low-glycemic index that provides a prolonged and balanced energy supply.

“As a science-driven company, Beneo makes significant investments in R&D that continues to result in natural, clean label ingredients that give manufacturers the opportunity to develop new and improved foods and beverages,” says Peters.

“Given consumer preferences for products they consider to be clean label, Beneo’s products can contribute to product label simplification and clarity as they are all naturally sourced from nature and backed by scientific studies attesting to the health benefits of each,” he says.

The company has recently opened its North American Application Center in Parsippany, NJ. The 3,000 square foot facility is equipped with “state-of-the-art” equipment to test formulation aspects of its functional ingredients, including fiber enrichment, sugar or fat replacement, as well as taste and texture improvements. The center features a variety of versatile benchtop scale and pilot scale equipment that can be used alone or in combination, giving Beneo the ability to cover a wide range of applications. 

“It’s part of our long-term strategy in that we always wanted to build out our application abilities into the marketplace. We have been able to do that now with the addition of this center,” Peters explains. “It allows us to more quickly respond to customer needs and needs related to our ingredients and solutions in the marketplace, and collaborate more fully with customers,” he says.

Remypure
Beneo also unveiled its new Remypure S52 clean label rice starch at this year’s show. This new ingredient, the second clean label native rice starch in the company’s portfolio, is touted as providing food manufacturers an opportunity to create “unique textures and excellent product stability” even under harsh processing conditions. For more on this, read the following article on NutritionInsight’s sister website, FoodIngredientsFirst.

By Lucy Gunn, Interview by Robin Wyers at IFT Food Expo 2018.