“Let them eat cake” resonates in every consumer’s mind when they troll the grocery aisles looking for a tasty morsel. At the same time, the left side of the brain takes over pulling them like a tractor beam to healthier options. Too often this relentless battle happens in the bakery department. In the past, healthy baked goods were analogous to cardboard textures and earthy tastes. Today, bakery exploded into a variety of cleaner options including sugar reduction, digestive support, gluten-free, plant-based and minimally processed. As a result, bakers can create healthy bakery formulations.

Sugar Reduction Formulation Goals in Bakery

The rising awareness of obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease put the spotlight on sugar intake. Now, the overconsumption of sugar is prevalent in children's diets. Because of this, consumers are seeking indulgence but with less the guilt. Bakers are faced with creating delicious products with less sugar which is challenging. Sugar not only stimulates the palate, but it also acts like a humectant. In other words, it binds the water to keep bakery items moist and fresh.

However, there are solutions available to help with bakers’ sugar reduction goals. For instance, Citri-Fi citrus fiber, at low usage levels (<%1), binds water and oil to lock in the moisture post bake. As a result, this extends the perception of freshness over shelf-life. This benefit not only applies to sugar-reduced bakery items but also conventional baked goods. Citri-Fi can improve the texture, stability and nutrition in a variety of healthy bakery formulations including sugar-reduced muffins, cakes, cookies and breads.

Enhancing Digestive Health one Slice at a Time

Thanks to probiotics and the yogurt category, digestive health awareness increased over the years. Now, probiotics are not the only ingredient on the block promising a happier gut. Other digestive health ingredients like prebiotics, symbiotics and postbiotics are emerging and becoming mainstream. At the same time, dietary fiber still remains the number one go-to when consumers are searching for digestive well-being. And baked goods are an ideal food source to promote digestive health options.

Citri-Fi citrus fiber qualifies as a dietary fiber source. Though, the usage level in bakery items (<1%) rarely entitles it to make fiber claims. Citri-Fi can be used with other dietary fibers to meet the requirements. This natural upcycled citrus fiber can be used to improve the moisture retention and perception of freshness in a variety gut friendly bakery items. At the same time, it contributes dietary fiber to the nutrition label of healthy bakery formulations.

Gluten-free Bakery Formulas are Advanced

In the past, creating a tasty gluten-free baked good was the critical success factor. Today, bakers are well-versed with formulating for taste. Now they focus on the nutritional profile. Most of the first-generation gluten-free products were formulated with unfortified flours that were low in protein. Today, bakers expanded their formulating expertise to include more nutritional options. One of the strategies adopted was fortifying the baked goods with dietary fiber. However, adding a fiber is not as straightforward since fibers come in different sources and formats which affects its functionality in bakery items.

One natural functional fiber which is key in gluten-free formulating is Citri-Fi citrus fiber. This gluten-free citrus fiber binds nine times its weight in water and locks in the water over shelf-life. One of Citri-Fi’s key benefits in gluten-free is its ability to tether the water during the freezing process to minimize water migration. Since many gluten-free products are frozen and then slacked on the store shelf, using Citri-Fi can improve its moist texture and perception of freshness over time.

Plant-based Bakery: Egg-free, Dairy-free, Vegan-friendly

Consumer preferences have grown sophisticated over the years. Many bakery items use allergens like eggs and dairy which are also frowned upon amongst the vegans. However, formulating for each specific consumer segment can be tricky. As a result, bakers take the blanket approach. Some focus on creating baked goods without both eggs and milk ingredients to meet the needs of multiple consumer groups. These types include vegan, allergen-free and health conscious.

Removing 100% of the eggs from certain baked goods is the holy grail. There is no one-to-one egg replacement regardless of what food ingredient company promises. Instead, a solutions approach is the most effective option when replacing egg. Citri-Fi citrus fiber can reduce egg content up to 25% in bakery items. And when used with other food ingredients such as plant proteins, food gums and/or starches, it is possible to replace 100% of the egg. Citri-Fi provides the water binding and the emulsification properties that egg typically contributes. Creating healthy bakery formulations is feasible using Citri-Fi citrus fiber alongside other texturants.

Natural and Minimally Processed Bakery Items

However, creating reduced sugar, digestive friendly, gluten-free and plant-based baked goods now need to fit the natural and minimally processed paradigm. Today, there is speculation that ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are linked to onset diseases. As a result, product developers are tasked to use more natural ingredients. This prerequisite also requires manufacturers to not only revisit their formulations but also the manufacturing processes involved. While the industry is cobbling together a definition for ultra-processed, consumers rely on ingredient statements and storylines when purchasing foods.

Bakery formulations benefit greatly using Citri-Fi citrus fiber. This clean label bakery ingredient is produced from byproduct of the citrus juicing industry. The process, which is free from chemical modifications, opens up the fiber to give its high water holding and emulsification properties. Because of this dual functionality, Citri-Fi can reduce the number of texturants, stabilizers and/or emulsifiers used in bakery items. As a result, this natural citrus fiber can simplify ingredient statements. The labeling options include citrus fiber, dried citrus pulp or citrus flour which resonate well in the natural markets.

Citri-Fi citrus fiber is non-allergenic, gluten-free and non-GMO project certified. There is no e-number associated with this food ingredient which is ideal for regions like Europe. Now, certified organic citrus fiber is available – Citri-Fi 400 series.

Baking for the Future

With new artificial intelligence (AI) technology implementing across the food industry, it is no doubt that bakers will be able to produce products more efficiently. The most obvious places to implement AI is in manufacturing. However, the most exciting areas, as a prior developer, will be formulating bakery products. Bakers will be able to dial in formulations more efficiently with less bench to pilot plant scale-up steps. The precision that AI promises may even phase out early testing stages and let bakers take formulas straight to the plant.

Another key area for AI will be customizing bakery formulations to meet the needs of niche consumer segments. These niche consumer groups are overlooked due to cost advantages with economies of scale. But, with AI available, creating niche products including healthy bakery formulations at less cost may be a possibility in the future.

For more information, please contact the Fiberstar team!