Sampling the latest delicacies from the lab
July 1, 1996
Web posted at:From Correspondent Carolyn O'Neil
NEW ORLEANS (CNN) -- There's a lot of science in food product development today. Low-fat and reduced-fat foods are often made with special ingredients developed by food scientists, and not by chefs in the kitchen.
Food industry professionals gathered recently in New Orleans to check out what was new at the Institute of Food Technologists' annual meeting. They found everything from state-of-the-art stuffing mix to a unique new beverage flavored with floating gel beads.
A taster described the beverage, which looks like it is filled with floating multi-colored balls, as "different ... very different ... it's strange."
Another newcomer on display, in the perhaps over-stimulated fat-free and reduced-fat segment of the food industry, was Yogurtesse. Billed as a "fat replacer" made from skim milk, it also can be used to trim the fat and calories in baked goods, soups, sauces and salad dressings.
"It's made with cultured skim milk, and we feel it's a revolutionary product that's going to give mouth-feel and taste much better than anything on market right now," said Terry Wight with Yogurtesse.
The fat substitute olestra is getting off to a slightly rougher start. olestra, which tastes and feels like fat but contains no calories, has been approved for use in snack chips and is currently being test-marketed by Frito Lay in three U.S. cities.
It is being manufactured under the name Olean by Proctor & Gamble. The FDA is requiring the company to educate consumers on the product's potential side effects by using food-label warnings saying: "olestra may cause abdominal cramping and loose stools."
"I think this has been something that's really been blown out of proportion, not unlike fiber or other things, where some people may experience differences, particularly if they eat a whole lot," said Proctor & Gamble's Lisa Papa.
"However, we've done very large-based studies where we tested over 3,300 consumers, and in that we saw no difference between placebo and olestra," Papa said.
The FDA approved olestra in January.
Related stories:
- Anti-olestra ads to air - June 12, 1996
- olestra makers ask FDA to tone down warning labels - April 10, 1996
- CNNfn - P&G wants less-graphic olestra labels - April 9, 1996
- Fake fat - January 25, 1996
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