Delivering Clean-Label, Gluten-Free Sandwich Bread on a Global Scale
A large and renowned bakery was tasked by a global fast-food chain to develop a clean-label sandwich bread with good texture, excellent mouthfeel, and a shelf life greater than seven days. After an extensive search, a representative from the bakery company inquired about our ability to formulate longer-lasting, clean-label products using our proprietary microencapsulation technology.
We detailed our capabilities and indicated that we’ve been delivering the functionalities they were looking for since 2004. At the end of the conversation, the bakery representative informed us that they were speaking with other encapsulation companies and would select a partner who they believed was the most capable of delivering on their needs. Weeks later, we received emails and phone calls stating that after a careful and thorough examination, Maxx was chosen for the job based on our track record of reliability, on-time delivery, industry knowledge, and overall adaptability and willingness to collaborate.
The bakery company understood that formulating a clean-label sandwich bread would mean eliminating the use of Calcium Propionate as a mold inhibitor, which at best was only producing a shelf life of four to seven days. So we sent samples of our slow-release Fumaric Acid, a clean-label, gluten-free ingredient, to the bakery for evaluation:
- After 30 days, we received feedback that our coated Fumaric Acid effectively extended the sandwich bread shelf life to 11 days, four days beyond the requirement. While this was good news, the bakery representative indicated that it was necessary to repeat the trial to ensure repeatability.
- We sent a larger amount of the slow-release encapsulated Fumaric Acid, and the feedback came back the same: a shelf life of 11 days was achieved. Sensory evaluation yielded similar results as the control with Calcium Propionate, except that the bread made with the encapsulated Fumaric Acid was softer, fresher, and had a more pleasing aroma.
Weeks later, the new product was approved by the bakery company. And after the documentation was submitted, we started to receive orders for commercial quantities of our slow-release Fumaric Acid. We not only delivered a clean-label product but a gluten-free one, too, for their global fast food customers. The results were so compelling that the bakery started using our encapsulated Fumaric Acid across all their bakery products.