General Mills unlocks secret to keeping protein bits crunchy in moist fruity snacks
In the patent application, filed in December 2012 and published on June 5, 2014, General Mills says that unless snacks containing fruit pastes are consumed rapidly, “excessive moisture from the food base will migrate into the protein particulates, thereby changing the entire consistency and texture of the food product”.
In some applications, this might be acceptable, it says. “However, in accordance with the invention, it is actually desired to provide crunchy protein particulates and maintain the crunchy nature of the protein particulates for extended periods of time.”
To tackle the problem, General Mills has developed a syrup coating (from honey, maple, tapioca, agave, brown rice, date or sorghum) for non-dairy and non-soy protein particulates (eg pea protein) in snack products that ensures they retain a crunchy texture over a 10-month shelf-life.
Click HERE for full details.
Click HEREto read about General Mills' latest product launches, which include: Cheerios Protein cereal with soy protein, new EDGE with protein cereal (in Canada only), and Cascadian Farm protein granola with pea protein.
