ASIA – Food and Beverage ingredients supplier, Ingredion has launched a new range of organic tapioca and rice starches Purity Bio starches manufactured in its Thailand facility.
Purity Bio ranges are the company’s first organically-certified products to be manufactured in Asia Pacific and the company plans to introduce the products globally.
“Purity Bio range is the only range of organic starches we manufactured in Asia Pacific. The other range of organic starches in our portfolio are manufactured in the US or EU,” Valdirene Licht, Senior Vice President and President for Asia Pacific, told FoodIngredientsFirst.
The company said that the new range improves viscosity for a smooth and creamy mouthfeel in liquid-based food and drink applications, while also supporting a clean and fast flavor release.
The starches are tailored to meet the needs of customers in the Asia Pacific region, both in terms of product development and operational efficiency.
Licht notes that since the range is manufactured in Thailand, it would be natural to launch this range of starches to food manufacturers in Asia Pacific, whereby they could source for organic starches locally.
“Consumers in Asia Pacific are demanding organic foods, similar to the rest of the world. As this demand in Asia Pacific increases, food manufacturers would need to develop and produce more organic foods; thus, having a local source would be more convenient and more economical,” she explains.
“In addition, by providing manufacturers with a local source of organic starch – as opposed to the US or EU supply – we can shorten delivery, turnaround and response time by around a third or more,” Licht adds.
Marketed as organic and gluten-free, the ingredients are also ideally suited for use in products with corresponding on-pack claims.
“Not only does the new range offer the technical functionality to elevate product textures across applications, but its organic certification also enables manufacturers to capitalize on the demand for clean and ethically produced products.
“In the baby food category, for example, where there is organic growth, the Purity Bio range of products is the ideal option to create products with both the smooth texture and clean label that consumers prefer,” Licht said.
The two products, Purity Bio 301 organic tapioca starch and Purity Bio 805 organic rice starch are certified organic starches and can, therefore, be aligned with relevant product export strategies.
