Newly formed Essentia Protein Solutions, a global ingredient provider, used the annual IFT expo to showcase its offerings for every food and beverage segment.

Essentia Protein Solutions, Ankeny, Iowa, was formed earlier this spring, following the merger of Proliant Meat Ingredients, BHJ Ingredients and Proliant Health. All three companies are owned by the Lauridsen Group Incorporated (LGI). Leveraging their combined strengths, newly formed Essentia has emerged as a strategic protein solutions provider to the food, beverage, health and nutrition industries.

“Our mission is to create and deliver value to customers and all stakeholders through novel protein solutions,” says Chris Snyder, Essentia president and CEO. “Our strategy is to leverage our combined expertise and innovation and be present in every aisle of grocery, health and nutrition stores.”

Protein Solutions for every Segment

Essentia offers its customers unique alternatives to traditional proteins such as whey, egg and soy proteins. It operates in four core business categories:

1) Functional Proteins: Functional proteins offer a number of advantages for the food and beverage industries by reducing costs and improving quality for a large number of food and beverage systems.

2) Stocks / Broths / Flavors / Fats (also called “SBFF”): SBFF products are natural protein ingredients with unique flavor and flavor enhancing benefits as well as label advantages.

3) Health and Nutrition: The health and nutrition category, called Essentia Metabolic Proteins (EMP), leverages LGI’s long tradition of investing in clinical research to support proteins and protein actions with novel amino acid profiles and proven health benefits. The sports nutrition segment has embraced EMP’s protein solutions as a powerful alternative to traditional commodity proteins.

4) Fish Products: Essentia’s newest business, the Fish Products category, seeks to leverage the company’s deep protein knowledge base in developing functional, flavor, and nutritional products from fish and fish proteins.

Real innovation

Snyder says the new organization’s mantra is “real innovation.”

“To us real innovation is two-fold,” he says. “Real, in the sense that we use natural ingredients in our solutions; and real in the sense that our solutions must fit closely to the needs of our customers and are able to provide real value for them in their production process or in their products on shelves.”

A proof that Essentia is serious about innovation can be found next to the headquarters in Ankeny, Iowa. That’s where officials commissioned a new 20,600-sq.-ft. research and innovation center last October. The “LAB,” as it is called, houses culinary test kitchens, research laboratories, training rooms, offices and a pilot plant facility where researchers can conduct controlled pre-production trials. “The LAB enables us to collaborate more closely with our customers in order to develop and deliver the type of solutions they need to stay ahead in today’s evolving global marketplace,” says Mr. Snyder.

In addition to the LAB, Essentia has technical centers in Gråsten, Denmark and Granollers, Spain. These centers serve both regional and global customers with innovative research and application services. Essentia’s application experts also regularly participate in on-site, full scale trials at customers’ plants.

Immediate Improvements, Services

Officials say that not only will effects of the business merger be evident in future innovative products—but customers will experience an immediate change. For instance, they will immediate access to the world’s widest range of high-quality products within proteins and proprietary protein fractions as found in the market leading brands ScanProTM and AProTM.

Customers also can access highly qualified customer service teams that are only a phone call away. Furthermore, there will be access to nearly twice as many industry experts that are prepared to back up and support customers, and are ready to step in anywhere in the world—when and where needed. And with a global network of state of the art production facilities, Essentia will be able to ensure reliable and flexible supply and logistics for customers.

“We see our role not merely as a supplier, but as a serious long term business partner filling an important role in the value chain of our customers,” says Snyder. “In other words, we are offering complete innovative protein solutions backed by an essential range of services. The aim is to ensure that we create and deliver real value for our customers.”

– Essentia Protein Solutions, www.essentiaproteins.com