愛爾蘭Marigot推動在豆奶中使用海藻鈣Aquamin

愛爾蘭礦產企業Marigot致力於將自家產品---Aquamin---一種含有鈣和多種礦物質的原料加入豆奶裡，並在近期做了試驗表明其特殊優越的特性。

Aquamin是一種海藻衍生物，含有豐富的鈣和鎂，還有70多種其他的微量礦物質。自1996年即被用於食品添加物。

該公司委託一間透過感知測試來分析產品的接受度的公司(Independent Sensory Services)來測試Auqamin的客戶接受度，發現測試者比較推薦在豆奶裡加Aquamin的味道還有口感，勝過於添加碳酸鈣或磷酸三鈣，並發現到有較少的沉澱物。

因為傳統的礦物強化飲品會有不吸引人的沉澱物，所以對加工業來說是一個很重大的發現。

更甚於外觀的是在當沒有沉澱物的情況下，消費者實際上是從飲料中攝入了鈣。一份在美國大學的研究指出，因為鈣添加物會在包裝底下產生沉澱物，所以在大豆和米製的飲料裡所含有的鈣比產品標籤上的量會有低於85%的情況。

Marigot發言人指出，Marigot想充分利用典型乳糖不適症產品日益增長的市場。

並指出: “我們現在雖然已有購買大豆的客戶，但我們想要透過獨立的研究來支持Aquanmin優越的特性以拓展業務。”

Marigot pushes Aquamin use in soy milk

Irish mineral firm Marigot is seeking to build use of its Aquamin calcium/mineral ingredient in soy milks, with recent tests indicating superior sensory properties compared to other fortification forms.

Aquamin is a seaweed-derived organic mineral ingredient, which is rich in calcium and magnesium, and also contains 70 other trace minerals. It has been used in foods since 1996.

The company commissioned the tests from Independent Sensory Services. Not only did the assessors prefer the taste and texture of a soy drink containing Aquamin to others using calcium carbonate or tri-calcium phosphate, according Marigot, but it also left behind less sediment in the glass.

"This is a significant finding for manufacturers looking to overcome the traditional problems of unappealing residue in mineral fortified drinks."

More than being just about appearance, the absence of residue means that the consumer is actually ingesting the calcium. A study carried out at Creighton University and published in Nutrition Today in February 2005 found that the calcium actually available in some soy and rice drinks can be as much as 85 percent lower than the amount on the product label, owing to the mineral settling at the bottom of the pack.

The assessors also measured mouth-coating characteristics, viscosity, powdery mouthfeel and astringency.

David O'Leary, commercial manager at Marigot, told NutraIngredients.com that the company is eager to make the most of the opportunities afforded by the growing market for products for the lactose-intolerant.

"We have existing soy customers but we want to grown that business by having independent research carried out to back up Aquamin's superior properties," he said.

The European soy milk market has grown by between 16 and 19 per cent per year for the last four year, according to Euromonitor International, which valued the retail market at €461.6m in 2005.

資料來源：

生資有限公司摘譯/ by Amy