Modified food starch, carrageenan and locust bean, guar, carob bean, xanthan gum and tara gums, along with a touch of sodium alginate, all worked in unison to provide the perfect texture to Aldi’s Belmont brand of Strawberry Cheesecake, launched in May 2010, according to Mintel’s GNPD. Such hydrocolloids are the “texture workhorses” of a broad range of foods, beverages and nutritional supplements found the world over.
According to Dennis Seisun, president, IMR International, a consulting and industrial market research company specializing in hydrocolloids (see www.hydrocolloid.com), hydrocolloids are a group of ingredients with a wide range of beneficial properties. Many provide viscosity -- such as in beverages or in lower-calorie table syrups -- and some provide stability, such as is needed for emulsions or to help prevent water separation in frozen foods such as frozen doughs. Others work to suspend particles, a prime function of xanthan gum in salad dressings, while others form gels such as in milk or water-based desserts. Lastly, there is a growing trend for hydrocolloids to be used in nutritional products for their health benefits.