FrieslandCampina launches whey isolate for clear beverages, plus a micellar casein isolate, at SupplySide West

Photo © iStockphoto.com/gbrundin

FrieslandCampina Ingredients (Amersfoort, The Netherlands) discussed its new whey protein isolate-a first from the company-at November’s SupplySide West show. The ingredient, Nutri Whey Isolate, can be used to make clear high-protein beverages, such as protein water, with an extreme level of clarity even in acidic beverages with a higher pH level. Typically, it can be difficult to formulate high-protein acidic beverages without experiencing sedimentation or cloudiness.

At SupplySide West, the company sampled Nutri Whey Isolate in a fruit punch protein water containing 40 g of protein per 20-oz serving. “The benefit of our ingredient is that it’s very neutral tasting, which make it easier to formulate since you don’t need to go as low in the pH, and you can ensure lower astringency and less of a dry mouthfeel,” said Diderik Moerdijk, marketing segment manager at FrieslandCampina Ingredients’ Performance Nutrition division, at SupplySide West. “We’ve gotten a lot of good feedback on the taste and the clarity.”

Part of the ingredient’s neutral taste stems from its source and treatment throughout the company’s supply chain, which it manages entirely. The ingredient undergoes minimal processing and the latest microfiltration techniques, reducing heat treatments (e.g. multiple pasteurization steps), which helps to protect the isolate’s clean taste and nutrition properties. “We manage the entire supply chain,” Moerdijk said. “As a big dairy cooperative, we manage the supply chain ‘from grass to glass,’ as we say. So, we manage the entire quality as well. We have short distribution times as well as proprietary filtration techniques that give our ingredients these beneficial features.” The ingredient is suited for powdered beverages, ready-to-drink beverages, and snacks.

At SupplySide West, FrieslandCampina Ingredients also introduced another new ingredient, its new Micelate Prestige, a native micellar casein isolate that offers good dispersibility, heat stability, and emulsification, as well as low viscosity. The company says Micelate Prestige contains the highest level of casein in the market (a casein-to-whey ratio of 95:5), while maintaining a pleasant mouthfeel and good drinkability. The instantized ingredient undergoes gentle processing to protect the micellar structure and comes from a grass-fed dairy source.

The company points out micellar casein’s slower digestion rate and longer release time compared to other dairy proteins. “You can use it for overnight recovery, for instance, because it provides a sustained release of amino acids,” Moerdijk said, to support muscle recovery during sleep. At the show, the company sampled Micelate Prestige in both a chocolate coconut high-protein beverage, as well as in high-protein cookies also formulated with Nutri Whey Native whey protein.

In a press release, the company said: “Just as with regular micellar casein, the Micelate Prestige extraction process starts with fresh milk, but that is where the similarities end. Micelate Prestige micellar casein isolate is obtained through microfiltration and cold processing, which results in a native protein, meaning that the structure of the casein micelle is comparable to that of milk.”