Ingredient challenges: Losing Fat, Formulating Back
The quality of reduced-fat meat products with starch, gums or proteins and water systems has improved over the years. “We realized regulations that classified [water-added meat] as inferior is counterproductive,” says Abe Bakal, president of ABIC International Consultants Inc. (Fairfield, N.J.). For one, the addition of proteins such as soy and whey can increase the biological value of meat.
“Consumers are becoming more knowledgeable about the health benefits of soy,” says Mian Riaz, head of the extrusion technology program at Texas A&M's Food Protein Research and Development Center (College Station, Texas). Soy proteins have proven beneficial to heart health, while whey proteins provide the highest source of branched-chain amino acids and leucine, which certain studies have associated with weight loss. Additionally, some ingredients that help reduce fat also can increase a product's fiber content. Nevertheless, with the obesity issue looming over every manufacturer's nutrition label, the most obvious reason to add water to meat is to reduce the fat.