Develop low calorie products of high acceptance with GELITA

In the last few years we have seen a drastic increase in the demand for healthier food. Consumers looking to improve their diets due to poor health or obesity, and those simply looking to remain or become more health-conscious are seeking enjoyable foods, without the negative consequences.
The main job for food manufacturers as well as for ingredient suppliers is to look for possibilities to make healthy food with reduced calorie, fat and/or sugar content that taste good and find acceptance on the market. This is manageable when consumers as well as manufacturers are open to use multifunctional ingredients that fulfil several requirements at the same time - and gelatine plays a major role in this case.

Increasing water content​​

Gelatine can be used in some applications to bind water. Water has one big advantage, it has no calories. An increase of water in a food system leads therefore necessarily to lower calories. The limitations regarding maintaining an acceptable taste and texture that generally have to be taken into account can be reduced to a certain extend by using the right type of GELITA® Gelatine.

As the fat normally contained in foodstuffs is replaced by water, this must be effectively stabilized to prevent phase separation and syneresis during storage. As a fat emulsifier, gelatine improves consistency and enhances the structure of the food. In almost all fat reduced foods, like reduced fat margarines, mayonnaises and salad dressings, GELITA® Gelatine is able to provide creaminess and a mouth feel similar to fat, while assuring at the same time a stable emulsion during shelf life.

Increasing the volume​​

Consumers want to eat the same amount of food they are used to. Therefore something has to be added to the food that has no calories. An effective attempt is to increase the volume by foaming. This creates the impression that one serving size is as accustomed. The foaming and foam stabilization properties of GELITA® Gelatine are utilized all over the food industry e.g. for products like marshmallows, mousses and cream cheese preparations. Gelatine not only decreases the surface tension which facilitates foam formation, it also stabilizes the air/liquid phase interface by forming a film and avoids coalescence. At the same time, by setting, it prevents phase separation through drainage. In these ways, GELITA® Gelatine fulfills all the requirements of a typical foaming agent.