Das neue R&D-Labor am Loryma-Firmensitz in Zwingenberg wurde im November vergangenen Jahres er-öffnet.
Dort werden weizenbasierte Ingredients und Applikationen entwickelt, Kundenprodukte optimiert
sowie Schulungen durchgeführt. / The new R&D laboratory at Loryma’s headquarters in Zwingenberg was
opened last November. Here, wheat-based ingredients and applications are developed, customer products
are optimized and training courses are held.
sollten sich mehr nachhaltige Konzepte etablie-ren,
die Ansätze sind unterschiedlich. In Sachen
Natürlichkeit, sowohl hinsichtlich der Rohstoffe
als auch der Verarbeitung, können weizenbasier-te
Fleisch-alternativen punkten. Die Akzeptanz
beim Verbraucher ist groß und ich bin zuversicht-lich,
dass der Markt weiter stabil wächst. Anders
als andere pflanzlichen Inhaltsstoffe haben die
Loryma-Ingredients keinen Off-Taste und erzeu-gen
die typische Textur und den Biss, den der
Verbraucher von Fleisch gewohnt ist.
Continued from page 28
courses. At the heart of the freshly refurbished
technical center is a professional test kitchen
in which both industrial production processes
and preparation for the end consumer can be
run through. Why wheat? That‘s the subject
of this interview with the head of research and
development at Loryma, a leading manufacturer
of wheat starches in Europe.
To start off with a provocative question: Wheat starches
and proteins - are they consumer deception or the future
of nutrition? Or neither, or both?
Wheat is one of the oldest cultivated plants,
an important staple food and a raw material
for a wide variety of applications. Its deriva-
tives, for example starches and proteins, are
of natural origin and are becoming increasingly
important as the world‘s population grows.
Plant proteins have a significantly lower carbon
footprint than animal proteins, especially if
they are grown regionally like wheat. Starch
products can contribute to longer food shelf life
and help reduce food waste. The ingredient list
makes the composition of a product transparent
to the consumer. It is therefore in no way
a deception. On the contrary, our ingredients
enable a proven and healthy way of eating.
Why wheat as the basis for Loryma‘s food ingredients?
Was and is there also research into alternative base
materials?
Wheat is the first choice for us: For 160 years,
our parent company, the Crespel & Deiters
Group, has specialized in processing this raw
material. The fascination for its many facets has
remained. Wheat is also absolutely sustainable:
Due to its versatility and high yield, together
with its regional availability, which eliminates
the need for long transport routes, it is consid-ered
a sustainable raw material. Nevertheless,
we are also looking to the right and left: Field
bean, for example, complements the amino
acid profile of our clean-label binders.
Where do you see future applications for your products
that go beyond or complement current applications?
Wheat texturates are ideal for authentic
meat alternatives, which are currently in high
demand. Using our wheat-based binding
components, manufacturers can target tex-ture
and create an appealing bite. Soon there
will even be a do-it-yourself solution for the
home: we are currently developing an inno-vative
wheat-based clean-label product that
consumers can use to easily prepare vegan
products without special equipment. We are
also working on concepts for the production
of low carb/high protein baked goods and
other clean label systems, including breaded
schnitzels and nuggets.
Meat, fish, veggie/vegan, baked goods and confec-tionery,
convenience and delicatessen - which of the
application areas is currently number 1? Is the weighting
in the portfolio shifting again and again, and if so, in
which direction?
The versatile applications of functional ingredi-ents
is what makes wheat special - that‘s why
we are active in various sectors and will remain
so. At the moment, the focus of our R&D team
is on meat alternatives, because the demand
is very high. One particularly exciting aspect is
that the extrusion process offers great potential
for giving vegetable proteins a new form, for
example powder, flakes or chunks. We also
have new concepts in the pipeline on the sub-ject
of nutritional value optimization: „High-
protein“ products succeed with hydrolyzed
Lory protein, resistant wheat starches increase
the fiber content of the application and reduce
the energy density.
Are meat substitutes a permanent solution or just for the
transition until meat from the test tube or the 3D printer
is feasible on an industrial scale?
Reducing meat consumption is a major chal-lenge
in which all players, consumers, the food
industry and also politics, must pull together.
In the long term, more sustainable concepts
should become established, and the approaches
vary. In terms of naturalness, both in terms
of raw materials and processing, wheat-based
meat alternatives can score points. Consumer
acceptance is high, and that‘s why I‘m con-fident
that the market will continue to grow
stably. Unlike other plant-based ingredients,
Loryma ingredients have no off-button and
produce the typical texture and bite that
consumers are used to from meat.
Saftig und knusprig: Veganer Bacon von Loryma. /
Juicy and crispy: vegan bacon from Loryma.
INTERVIEW
30 5 / 2021
Fotos: Loryma/Crespel&Deiters