ditionally, the gelling quality makes it a great thickening agent and it
can be used in gluten-free formulations to provide moisture and a
more pleasing texture. Opt for the white chia over the black if you are
seeking a color-neutral base for your product.
Another one of the hottest health ingredients on the market is
maqui berry—which is said to contain the largest amount of antioxidants in the world, including three times more than acai berry and ten
times more than other berry fruits. This year HP Ingredients was the
first to introduce a line of organic maqui berry ingredients including a
65 brix liquid concentrate, freeze dried liquid concentrate powder, and crushed fruit. In addition, a
maqui berry 50 brix cloudy juice concentrate is
also available as a custom project.
Coconut water and coconut milk are also popular products in the functional health category.
Both products provide needed electrolytes and are
said to boost immunity, regulate intestinal func-
tion and detoxify the body. For a long time co-
conut water was not widely available in organic,
but this year Global Organics added fresh frozen
organic coconut milk and organic coconut water to
its wide array of coconut products available to organic for-
mulators. Sourced from Sri Lanka, these products can be
used as the base for many functional health beverages.
Orgenetics, which provides organic ingredients to supplement manufacturers, has had many of its products cross
over into use in functional foods marketed as supplements,
including bars, meal replacements, beverages and powdered drink mixes. The company’s Orgen-C, which has
been used in To-Go Brand’s drink mixes, Garden of Life,
Now Foods and many other products, is made from the extract of one of nature’s highest vitamin C sources—organic
amla fruit. The extract is standardized to 50 percent natural, organic
vitamin C, with the other 50 percent made up of the superfruit’s own
natural co-nutrients which stabilize and activate the nutrients.
This year the company introduced two other products that are also
making the crossover from supplement to functional food ingredients:
Orgen-B’s and Orgen-E. Orgen-B’s is a blend of organic guava extract,
holy basil extract and citrus limon extract that provides all natural, organic B vitamins including vitamin B1, B2, B3, B5, B6 and B9 as per
the RDA. Including just 600 mg of Orgen-B’s allows a product to meet
100 percent of the FDA’s recommended daily allowance (RDA) of all
the B-vitamins, except B- 12. Also new this year is Orgen-E, an organic
annatto extract standardized to 15 percent of vitamin E- alpha tocopherol. Just 100 milligrams of Organ-E meets 100 percent of the RDA
for vitamin E. All Orgenetics products are water-extracted and do not
use any carriers or synthetic solvents.
This year, Ultimate Superfoods launched three new organic
“super” powders from South America including lucuma, yacon and
camu camu. Lucuma is a fruit packed with beta-carotene, niacin (B3)
and iron. When in powder form, it has notes of maple and sweet po-
tato. Yacon, a tuber similar to a yam, has become a popular sweetener
because of its low glycemic index.
Camu camu is loaded with vitamin C
—containing nearly 900 percent of
the RDA in one serving.
Navitas Naturals also added a raw,
organic freeze-dried pomegranate
powder to its lineup in 2010. This raw,
kosher powder has a mild fruity flavor
that can add a boost of nutrition to a
variety of products. Pomegranate is
packed with many vitamins and minerals, especially vitamin C and potassium, and is also a powerful source of
antioxidant phytoestrogens, ellagic
acid, polyphenols and anti-inflamma-tory essential amino acids.
New versions of the popular “su-
pergrains” quinoa and amaranth are
available this year as well. SK Food In-
ternational introduced Identity Pre-
served certified organic, precooked
quinoa and amaranth
flakes. Both quinoa
and amaranth are
gluten-free, and offer
a vegetarian source
of complete protein,
meaning that they
contain all the essen-
tial amino acids. Cus-
tom milled from
heirloom grains, SK’s
flakes are gluten-free and kosher.
Product applications include, but are
not limited to, cereals, tortillas, snack
foods, baby food, flat breads, baking
mixes and energy bars.
Pea-based products are another
gluten-free, allergen-free option for
product formulators that have grown
in popularity this year. Pulses such as
peas are not only packed with protein, fiber and minerals, but have also
been shown to act as a probiotic and
to help manage blood sugar and cholesterol levels. This year, Marroquin
launched organic pea flours, pea
fiber and roasted split peas. Produced in a dedicated gluten-free facility, applications range from baked
goods to meat extenders and pet
food. The roasted split peas can be
Maqui berri is said to have three
times the antioxidants of acai,
and 10 times the amount of
other berries.
Pre-cooked amaranth and
quinoa flakes make healthy formulating easy to do.
