Passionate about fibres sanacel add Vegan minced meat alternatives with healthy dietary fibre concentrates From vegetarian to vegan, from artificial to natural Abstract In the past few years the number of people, who are consuming vegetarian and vegan products has grown constantly. In Germany approximately 9 million people are vegans or vegetarians according to a GfK Consumer Panel [www.gfk.com]. On top of these 9 millions are the so called flexitarians who generally eat meat, but try to reduce their meat consumption by switching to meatless alternatives on some days during the week. Most of the vegetarian and vegan food is loaded with different artificial thickeners, stabilizers and other additives. They are mostly high in fat and calories and low in their nutritional benefit, e.g. dietary fibre content among others. In this paper the is introducing their development of clean label vegan burger alternatives without additives, compared to products which are already on the market. In the burger healthy SANACEL add fibre blends are used. SANACEL add are natural ingredients with the same or similar functions like food additives, however without E number. The texture analysis as well as the analytical examination of vegetarian and vegan burger patties will show, that it is possible to produce meat-free alternatives without artificial ingredients. Page 1
Introduction The DGE (German Society for Nutrition e. V) recommends a daily fibre intake of 3 g per day but according to several studies the daily intake of the Europeans is significantly lower [dge.de]. SANACEL products have a dietary fibre content of up to 97 %. Dietary fibres are well known for their health benefits. They fill the stomach without providing calories, enhance satiety and improve the gut health by stimulating the intestinal perestalsis. The SANACEL product range includes insoluble and partly soluble fibres as well as blends of both. The SANACEL add blends are able to replace undesired food additives and various binding agents. SANACEL blends are highly functional, they are allergen free and 1 percent plant based. They are suitable for a vegetarian and vegan diet. Fibre in vegan burgers The food industry uses lots of artificial thickeners and stabilizers in their products. The most common additives which can be found in vegan meat substitutes are: Carrageenan (E 47) Locust Bean Gum (E 41) Guar Gum(E 412) Gum Arabic (E 414) Xanthan Gum(E 41) Methylcellulose (E 461) Ethylcellulose (E 462) All these ingredients are non clean label products and they have to be declared with an E number. The nutritional awareness of consumers is growing every day. More and more people are carefully reading the ingredients list of the package for finding any additive or artificial ingredient on the list. With their blends develops solutions for all kinds of individual applications. The trial related to this paper is focusing on the development of a vegan burger without any artificial thickeners and binders. It was the target to meet the consumer s expectation regarding texture and bite as well as a high nutritional value. The main ingredients of the vegan burger developed by CFF are legumes, texturized and shredded wheat protein, oil, water, starch, seasonings and SANACEL add 3 or SANACEL add 2. SANACEL add products are often used as a binding and bulking agent. They give texture to the product for a firmer bite. This is especially required for the production of vegan meat alternatives. Multifunctional fibre blends SANACEL add 3 and SANACEL add 2 Insoluble fibres are helping to imitate a meat like structure, by giving more texture to the product. Soluble and partly soluble fibre are increasing the succulence of the product and are working as a binder. SANACEL add 3 is a fibre combination of bamboo fibres, potato fibres and highly soluble fibres. SANACEL add 2 is a mixture of potato and apple fibres with a high soluble fibre, which is very well able to imitate binding properties. Besides that, the blend of potato and apple fibres brings natural color and flavor into the food. SANACEL blends have different important advantages: free from allergens, clean label, no E number manufactured from natural raw materials easy process ability: the dry blend can be added to the mixture Earlier the developed a vegetarian burger with fibres to imitate the texture. In these trials egg was used as a binder and the question came up if it would be possible to develop a vegan burger by using a SANACEL blend in exchange for the egg with the target to reach the same texture. The recipe of the burger is based on wheat protein, water and a mixture made out of chickpeas and oil. The goal was to develop a vegan burger without artificial binders, replace the E numbers and reach a high content of dietary fibre in the final product. The produced burger patties called Vegan 2 and Vegan 3 were analysed concerning the nutritional value and texture in comparison to three vegan and two vegetarian burgers which are already on the market. The nutritional value of all the burgers is measured in regards to fat, protein and fibre. Fat is necessary when it comes to the imitation of a juicy mouth feel and the taste of a product, because fat is an important carrier for flavors. The proteins are measured and displayed to show on one hand how much protein is in a burger and on the other hand, which kind of protein is mainly used. Fibres are measured to increase the nutritional value of the product and how the different fibres can influence the composition of the product. Page 2
The already available market products are called MS numbered from 1 to. In the following, and are vegan burger patties and and are vegetarian burger patties. Most of the advertising related to these products focuses on high in protein or rich in unsaturated fatty acids. In these products mostly methylcellulose, carrageen, xanthan and ethyl cellulose are used as binders. Analysis methods For analysing and comparing the burger patties there are two different methods in use. First the nutritional value of the vegan burger patties is measured by using the following certified methods: fat content according to method ASU 64 LFGB L 6.-6 fibre content according to method ASU 64 LFGB L.-18 protein content according to method ASU 64 LFGB L 6.-7 Secondly the texture is analysed by using the TA.XT plus 1 from Sable Micro Systems. The bite was imitated by running the measuring body into the burger with constant speed. When the burger is breaking apart, the graph is showing a peak. The higher the peak, the more force the Texture Analysis needs to break through the burger. Results Nutritional value Figure 1 shows that the fat content of all burgers varies. For the new developed burgers Vegan 3 and Vegan 2 (graphs in blue) the fat content shows a quite big difference, although the recipe is nearly the same. The variation results from the different oil binding capacities of the fibres in the blend. Insoluble fibres are taking up more oil than soluble fibres. That affects the mouthfeel of the final product. When the burger requires a fatlike and juicy mouthfeel, then the best solution would be SANACEL add 3. For a less succulent product SANACEL add 2 would be the right choice. Both SANACEL add products help to reduce the shrinkage during the frying process. The high fat content of the Vegan 2 und Vegan 3 burgers compared to other MS, can be explained by additional oil during a pre frying process of the burgers. For all MS the producers recommend to fry them before eating, which increases the fat content of the MS furthermore. On the other hand, the new developed burgers of CFF are having a fat free surface, by using the fibres in the product. Figure 1: Fat content in 1 g of the burger patties Figure 2 shows the protein content. The content in the vegetarian products where egg white is used as a binder is higher (graphs in dark grey). The vegan market products (graphs in light grey) contain wheat protein as well as soy protein while the burgers developed by CFF (blue graph) with a mixture of chickpea and oil are produced without soy protein. Soy protein can have a strong aftertaste if it is overdosed and it is furthermore not GMO free. 4 4 3 3 2 2 1 1, 4, 4, 3, 3, 2, 2, 1, 1,,, Vegan 3 Vegan 2 Vegan 3 Vegan 2 Fat Protein Figure 2: Protein content in 1 g of the burger patties Page 3
The additional nutritional value gained by the use of the fibres is shown in figure 3. According to the European legislation the burger patties Vegan 3 and Vegan 2 where the SANACEL add fibre blends are used as a binder are rich in fibre ( 6 g dietary fibre/1 g food) while the other vegan market samples are merely fibre enriched ( 3 g dietary fibre/1 g food). The vegetarian products are not qualified for a claim as their fibre content is below 3 g dietary fibre/1 g burger. 9 8 7 6 4 3 2 1 Vegan 3 Vegan 2 Figure 3: Fibre content in 1 g of the burger patties Texture analysis Fiber Figure 4 shows the results of the break through to imitate the bite. All seven burger patties were measured under the same conditions, without preheating and at room temperature. The texture and firmness of the different products vary widely. Vegan 2 and the are both soft burgers. Their break through is very low of a force below 2 kg. In methylcellulose is used as a binder while in Vegan 2 the blend SANACEL add 2, a combination of insoluble and soluble fibre, is used. Vegan 3 and have a firmer texture. To imitate the bite, the texture analyser shows a force of 2. kg. In burger patty egg white is used as a binder. In Vegan 3 SANACEL add 3 accomplishes the binding properties. In two different stabilizer are used, carrageen and methylcellulose. This burger patty is with 3. kg even firmer than the ones mentioned before. and are both very thick burgers. That explains why the texture analyzer needs a force up to 8 kg to break through these products. The peaks of the graph show the structure of the burger patties. The more linear the graph is the more homogenous is the product. shows a curve during the penetration. This is an indication, that the burger has some bits and textures, which are harder than the rest of the burger. The burger is therefore considered as less homogenous. force[kg] 9 8 7 6 4 3 2 1 Texture analysis - bite imitation 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 time [sec] Figure 4 :Peaks after measuring the texture to imitate the bite Trial Evaluation Vegan 3 Vegan 2 The results of the analytical test are showing that it is possible to use SANACEL add products to create a vegan burger with different textures and a variable fat content. Vegan 2 has a comparable fat content to products which are already available on the market, while Vegan 3 has a higher fat content, to create a product which is more succulent and to create a jucier mouthfeel. It can be used to declare a higher amount of unsaturated fatty acids bound by the fibre blend SANACEL add 3. The protein content is lower compared to the MS. This is the result of using different ingredients in the basic recipe, by avoiding the use of egg in order to create a vegan product and to avoid soy protein to ensure the GMO free claim. If the goal is to reach a higher protein content other protein concentrates could be used. By adding SANACEL add as binder and filler the health benefit of the final product is increased with respect to the fibre content. The texture of the MS varies in a wide range. The burgers developed by CFF are, however comparable towards the products on the market. Page 4
Conclusion The results of the analytical test and the texture analysis are displaying that it is possible to develop a clean label vegan burger without E numbers and to obtain a similar texture to already available market products. It is furthermore possible to create different solutions with different SANACEL add blends. For softer products with a lower oil binding capacity the SANACEL add 2 is a perfect solution. To imitate a burger with a firmer bite and a higher fat absorption SANACEL add 3 is the suitable option. The next step of the CFF development will be a new SANACEL add blend with a firmer texture and low oil binding capacity. Of course further innovations can be achieved according to the specific targets of producers. CFF R&D experts are keen to support new ideas. About CFF For 4 years is motivated by the remarkable application diversity of cellulose fibres. In the past and today it is the engine for the development and manufacturing of functional fibre products topcel, technocel, DiACEL, SANACEL and SensoCEL from natural and biodegradable raw materials. CFF products are eco-friendly and remain integrated into the natural cycle from nature back to nature. Authors: Francesca Köcher Food Technologist Product Manager Food International cff@cff.de Page