Food companies are seeking to replace egg white in their products for many reasons: cost and supply chain concerns, transitioning to plant based/vegan ingredients for improved sustainability, as well as consumer demand for 'free from' foods. Whilst there are ingredients already available to provide some of the functionality of egg white, they often have associated issues such as odour, or simply aren't sufficiently functional and/or cost effective. For many food producers a genuine alternative to egg white is still a 'holy grail'. This project seeks to further improve the functionality of a fava bean based egg white replacer already developed by Nandi Proteins. As well as looking to access new applications, the work will also further improve production economics and seek to identify a route to a complete UK-based supply chain from 'seed to food'.

no public description

Protein technology SME Nandi Proteins and food scientists from Heriot-Watt University have reported that collagen proteins structured following a novel innovative process can mimick the properties of fat in sausage products. Nandi Proteins and Heriot-Watt University have now teamed up with collagen processor Devro and sausage producer Kerry Foods to produce collagen fat-replacer ingredients on a large scale and to formulate novel high-protein fat-reduced sausage products with maintained mouthfeel and taste when compared with full-fat products.

To develop a predictive modelling system able to demonstrate the outcomes of appication of technology in improving the functional properties of food ingredients.

The processing of food materials for the consumer market results a variety of surplus or waste streams, which currently have low value uses, for example for animal feed, or for anerobic digestion. The project will focus on the innovative recovery and transformation of wet perishable process streams, such as peel, stalk, grain, and fruit waste, into higher value functional and textural ingredients for incorporation into food products. Outcomes will demostrate exploitation rather than simple management of food waste, of strategic importance for security of food supply, also delivering direct commercial benefit. Technological solutions will be developed for stabilisation and manipulation of biproduct materials frok key selected feedstocks, supported by a consortium with synergistic skills, representing the full supply chain.Investigations will involve innovative coupling of process steps and novel combination of transformed materials from different sources.

Obesity is a major health challenge facing the UK. The main factors are a combination of diet and lifestyle. There is a wealth of evidence to show that consumers will not choose healthier foods and drinks that have inferior taste and mouthfeel to the less healthy equivalent. Thus delivering less energy dense products with the same taste and flavour that consumers expect, along with lifestyle changes help reduce incidence of obesity. Food emulsions and foams in which the fat is mixed with air or water to form small droplets or bubbles are a way of reducing the fat content but maintaining the mouthfeel. Ingredients that allow smaller stable foams and emulsions will help reduce the fat content further. Some modified proteins have been shown to be highly effective in both stabilising oil in water emulsions and producing highly stable foams. This project will evaluate a range of commonly available proteins that have been modified, in a controlled way to improve their emulsifying and water binding properties in oil/water emulsions delivering potential fat replacement. The modified proteins will be screened for the functional properties, evaluated in product formulations and tested for their sensory delivery in model products. The most promising candidates will be incorporated into low fat , clean label, aerated foods as a way of reducing the fat content whilst maintaining the product eat experience.