Food Processing - August 2009
rePorT FroM IFT
Chef John Csukor, culinary expert for the Almond Board of California, created a delectable California Almond Crab Salad, which caused long lines during the show.
These Prototypes Deserve Shelf Space
Many samples created just for the IFT Show could be supermarket or foodservice stars. By Diane Toops, News & Trends Editor
A
tough economy didn’t prevent ingredient suppliers from coming up with some great prototypes at the 2009 IFT Annual Meeting & Food Expo, held June 6-9 in Anaheim, Calif. These products taste so good they should be in the supermarket with very little tweaking. This year we found 20 innovative options. Our apologies to those we missed because of limited time to wander or limited space here in the magazine. I couldn’t keep my hands off the Triple Chocolate Brownie in the booth of Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), Decatur, Ill. It combined the company’s Ambrosia chocolate chunks and DeZaan cocoa powder topped with chocolate fudge icing for true indulgence. But it was the Date & Almond Breakfast Bar that knocked my socks off. It contained VegeFull Cooked Navy Bean Powder, VegProlite wheat protein isolate to increase vegetable protein and NovaLipid soybean oil. Cargill Inc., Wayzata, Minn., had eight food and beverage prototypes demonstrating consumer benefits (heart health, energy, sweetness). I particularly liked Light Blueberry Yogurt, which combined all three benefits. Sweetened with Truvia, Cargill’s zero-calorie stevia leaf sweetener, the yogurt provides a health halo from the antioxidant-rich blueberries. One serving (170g) contains 14g of sugar compared to 30g for a typical low-fat yogurt. Also healthy and scrumptious were the Cherry Walnut Clusters with CoroWise. They combine ripe cherry, sweet, creamy vanilla flavors, and CoroWise plant sterol esters, clinically shown to lower LDL cholesterol and backed by an FDA health claim. I’m always looking for products that curb satiety, and found a great one at the booth of Parsippany, N.J.-based DSM. The
Blueberry Vanilla Crave Control Bar contains 6g of Fabuless DE powder, a natural ingredient clinically proven to create satiety and reduce calorie intake throughout the day. Before it had a chance to work, I scarfed down a Peanut Butter Dream Bar, which contains 1,000g of Tensvida milk protein peptide to help maintain healthy blood pressure. Gluten-free product sales are growing, but gluten-free in the bakery sector certainly has its challenges – particularly texture and shelf life. Bridgewater, N.J.-based National Starch Food Innovation’s Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies (with a longer shelf-life) were smooth, moist and chewy – with no hint of grittiness and crumbliness. National Starch’s culinologist Agnes Jones also served up two delectable Alfredo sauces made with Precisa Cream 50 to demonstrate how a dramatically fat-reduced sauce can still have appealing taste and texture. The mushroom Alfredo sauce was served over tricolor tortellini, and the chipotle manchego sauce was paired with black bean goat cheese ravioli. It was love at first bite for the Gluten Free Canape Chicken Walnut Salad made with 71 percent whole/multigrain, gluten free bread from ConAgra Mills, Omaha, Neb. Featured was ConAgra’s Gluten Free All-Purpose Multigrain flour. And for the latest in on-trend ethnic cuisines, Chapati Bread, made with ConAgra’s Mumbai Gold Fresh Chakki Atta, Chicken Tikka Masala and Sustagrain Flour, made us feel we were dining in India, at least for a few treasured minutes. P.L. Thomas, Morristown, N.J., transported attendees to Asia with a menu that included Traditional Sushi Rolls (surimi with Tomat-O-Red natural red color with lycopene, wrapped
August 2009 food processing • 53
foodprocessing.com
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