September 9, 2008

Cost Reduction with Citri-Fi®

If compared with other fibers available to processed meat manufacturers, Citri-Fi might give the first impression of being a high priced ingredient. However, when you look at Citri-Fi’s “cost in use” in processed meats, it becomes quickly obvious that Citri-Fi can do what no other fiber can do – replace up to 11 parts of animal fat with only 1 part of Citri-Fi plus 10 parts of water. And it does this without changing the taste or texture of the original product, when used to replace between 30-50% of the animal fat in a processed meat product. Not only does it make processed meat products healthier, but the healthier products come at a substantial cost savings! Citri-Fi can do this because it is a great all-natural emulsifier that can bind and hold more water and fat through a cooking process than any other fiber.

At a time when the global price of food ingredients is rising, and in particular, vegetable oil and animal fat prices, Fiberstar’s Citri-Fi presents a unique opportunity for a food or processed meat manufacturer to substantially reduce its fat/oil costs. Here is an example of how easy it is to cut the cost of vegetable or animal fat by replacing it with the combination of Citri-Fi and water:

1. Assume the price of animal fat is € 0.85 per kg
2. The average price of Citri-Fi is € 5.20 per kg.
3. In bakery and processed meats, one part of Citri-Fi is usually combined with 10 parts of water (1:10 ) to replace 11 parts of fat

The table below shows the savings calculations:

1) (Citri-Fi : Water Ratio) 1: >	7	8	9	10	11
2) Fat Cost/ Kg >	0.85	0.85	0.85	0.85	0.85
3) Savings taking 7-11 parts of fat out of the formula >	6.80	7.65	8.50	9.35	10.20
4) Cost of adding 1 part of Citri-Fi to the formula >	5.20	5.20	5.20	5.20	5.20
5) Citri-Fi Saves >	1.60	2.45	3.30	4.15	5.00
6) % Savings In Fat Cost >	24%	32%	39%	44%	49%

No wonder that more and more food and processed meat manufacturers are referring to Citri-Fi as the “magic ingredient” that helps them control costs while making their products healthier. Under the pressure of rising costs and increasing global competition, they cannot afford to overlook such significant saving opportunities.

Citri-Fi and water can also provide great savings in baked goods as well replacing an average of 11 parts of vegetable oil/animal fat saving anywhere from 24%-50% of the oil cost depending on the application.

The question, however, will arise about the taste and texture of such cost reduced products. To answer this concern, Fiberstar as well as its many global customers have performed multiple sensory tests to evaluate a wide variety of these reduced cost products. The common response is that the products made with Citri-Fi taste the same or better than the full fat version.

In line with the current all-natural and healthy food trends among the consumers, Citri-Fi has become that “magic ingredient” that can provide great tasting healthy products at a reduced cost for the food manufacturer.

Increased Profits

Besides applications where Citri-Fi is used to replace fat to reduce costs, it is also used to increase the yield of meat products. At usage levels of 0.25-1%, Citri-Fi can strongly compete with phosphates solutions used in whole-muscle products like chicken. It can be used in combination, or in substitution, of phosphate solutions, and result in less moisture loss and increased yields. Adding low levels of Citri-Fi to products having excessive drip loss or in combination with 10 times its weight in water can substantially increase the yield of the finished product. Large benefits have been researched and documented for the use of Citri-Fi in, for instance: beef patties, Dutch loaf, battered products, sausages, frankfurters, meat balls and fillings, meat marinades, etc.

Citri-Fi was first produced in 2004. Since then Citri-Fi has been sold in increasing quantities in the US, South America, Australia, Europe, and Asia. For more information please contact us at +1 715 425 7550 or by email to n.kovalenko@fiberstar.net