Special Report
S
avory, or umami, flavor is one of the basic human taste sensations detected in the mouth; the others being sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. Umami taste is due to the action of L-glutamate on receptors on the tongue. This sensation in the mouth, combined with the odour of the food, gives an agreeable savory flavor sensation when the food is consumed. Yeast extract, hydrolysed vegetable protein or combinations of both are frequently used to give create meaty or cheesy flavor notes. These ingredients can even be used to give a meaty character to vegetarian food if so desired. Monosodium glutamate provides neutral umami taste and enhances the savory character of food. Ribonucleotides do not themselves give umami flavor, but are very effective in boosting the effect of glutamate, so enhancing savory flavor characteristics. For many years monosodium glutamate has been used as a cost-effective means to boost the savory flavor of processed foods. However, more recently there has been strong pressure from consumer groups in many markets across the world, fuelled by adverse comment in the popular press, to reduce, or eliminate, added monosodium glutamate from food. Despite the fact that glutamate is a natural component of many foods, human breast milk is particularly
is easy to understand why the Gulf States offer so much potential.
GIRACT EXCLUSIVE
rich i h in i glutamate, gl t t and d that th t it is i widely used in Asian foods; monosodium glutamate has become a target for criticism and has been linked to various digestive and nervous disorders. While there is little evidence to support these claims, food producers are bowing to pressure and reducing or eliminating MSG from many foods. The race is on in many markets to find alternatives which deliver the desired flavor profile at an acceptable cost.
YOUNG POPULATIONS & CHANGING EATING HABITS Gulf States have young and fast growing populations. In Saudi Arabia the average age of the population is only 25 years. In United Arab Emirates annual population growth is more that 3%. Comparing these figures to those for Western Europe, where the average age of the population is over 40 years and population growth is below 0.2% p.a., or the USA, where the average age is 37 years and population growth around 0.8% p.a.; it
Traditionally much of the food consumed in the Gulf States has been home-made and, as a result, demand for savory flavor ingredients in the region has been rather limited. However, this is changing. Busy consumers in the Gulf States, like those elsewhere in the world, no longer want to spend so much time in preparing food and either buy more packaged food or eat out in restaurants, fuelling demand for processed foods and therefore for food ingredients. Young consumers have different eating habits to those of their parent’s generation. In particular, this group includes the major purchasers of snack foods, such as potato chips, corn chips, or extruded and puffed savory snacks. These products usually contain savory ingredients, especially monosodium glutamate and ribonucleotides, which form an important part of the seasoning blends used in savory snacks.
WHICH INGREDIENTS? In Giract’s new study of the market for savory flavor ingredients across Turkey, the Middle-East and key counties in Africa, a number of important conclusions have emerged.
Ingredients Business January - February 2013
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