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HERENTALS, Belgium (July 18, 2022) – Kemin Industries, a global ingredient manufacturer that strives to sustainably transform the quality of life every day for 80 percent of the world with its products and services, has developed a unique, patent-pending, nitrite-free alternative for use in the first stage of emulsified cooked sausages. RUBINITE^™ GC Dry, a label-friendly ingredient offering food safety while maintaining taste and colour, is available for food producers in the EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) region.

An all-in-one solution, RUBINITE GC Dry maintains product stability with active molecules from plant extracts, which also provide a natural pink colour. RUBINITE GC Dry’s buffered vinegar also provides optimal microbial protection against foodborne pathogens, such as Clostridium botulinum and Listeria monocytogenes.*

Kemin Food Technologies – EMEA’s latest innovation is helping food producers respond to consumers’ questions regarding the composition of their food, with buyers citing general health concerns as the top motivator for avoiding chemical-sounding ingredients.¹

For the past two decades, nitrites have been the most commonly used ingredient to cure meat, but their lack of clarity makes it difficult for consumers to understand the purpose of the ingredient in their food.

“Nitrite is responsible for the bright-pink to red colour we like to see when buying processed meat, but it also functions as an antioxidant and a preservative to protect against foodborne pathogens” said Caroline Ecoffard, Product Platform Manager, Kemin Food Technologies – EMEA. “Over time, though, authorities have looked closer into nitrite as an ingredient. Since the 1970s, the legal limit of its inclusion in processed meat has been decreased, and authorities keep decreasing the permitted level of nitrite, which reinforces a negative perception of the ingredient and its use.”

Studies support this shifting mindset, as the Innova Market Insights’ 2019 Consumer Survey showed two out of three European consumers say they specifically want to avoid products with ingredients that are difficult to understand.²

At the same time, consumers and retailers are looking to natural solutions for clear and transparent labeling. Processed meat and meat products are still very much integral to consumers’ food purchasing, with chilled cuts of meat and sausage being the third and fourth, respectively, most purchased manufactured products among all food and beverage categories.³ To bridge consumers’ shopping habits with their desire for recognizable ingredients they can trust, Kemin Food Technologies – EMEA has put its efforts into discovering an alternative solution that is completely nitrite free.

“Today, most processed cooked products—such as emulsified cooked sausages, cooked ham or any other type of “cold cut”—contain sodium nitrite,” said Ines Colle, R&D Manager, Kemin Food Technologies – EMEA. “By developing a nitrite-free solution, we can offer food manufacturers the opportunity to remove ascorbate or diacetate from their formula, thus cleaning up their product labels. RUBINITE GC Dry can be used alone or in combination; for example, it can be used with reduced levels of nitrate salts. This customization from Kemin’s Customer Laboratory Services allows us to serve the final application and country regulation impacting the finished product.”

Utilizing buffered vinegar in its RUBINITE GC Dry also supports Kemin’s increased focus on sustainability. Produced at Kemin Food Technologies – EMEA’s new facility in Crema, Italy, buffered vinegar is part of an improved supply chain that supports customers’ growing demand for food safety solutions.

“We are proud that our newest ingredient, RUBINITE GC Dry, complies with the integrated vision of Kemin Industries,” said Marsha Bro, President, Kemin Food Technologies – EMEA. “One of the main challenges our customers are facing is a reliable supply chain. With the establishment of the new Crema production facility, we are streamlining our manufacturing capabilities in a sustainable way. At the heart of our product development for RUBINITE GC Dry was the goal to provide a solution that helps all aspects of food manufacturers’ business, and we believe this newest patent-pending product accomplishes that.”

Click here to learn more about the Kemin Food Technologies – EMEA’s new innovation in shelf life and food safety for processed meat products.

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About Kemin Industries

Kemin Industries (www.kemin.com) is a global ingredient manufacturer that strives to sustainably transform the quality of life every day for 80 percent of the world with its products and services. The company supplies over 500 specialty ingredients for human and animal health and nutrition, pet food, aquaculture, nutraceutical, food technologies, crop technologies, textile, biofuel and animal vaccine industries.

For over half a century, Kemin has been dedicated to using applied science to address industry challenges and offer product solutions to customers in more than 120 countries. Kemin provides ingredients to feed a growing population with its commitment to the quality, safety and efficacy of food, feed and health-related products.

Established in 1961, Kemin is a privately held, family-owned-and-operated company with more than 3,000 global employees and operations in 90 countries, including manufacturing facilities in Belgium, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Italy, San Marino, Singapore, South Africa and the United States.
 

REFERENCES: 

¹Food Industry Executive – How Consumers View Food Ingredients, published June 2022
²Innova Market Insight – Consumers Survey, 2019
³Eurostat – Key figures on the European food chain – 2021 edition
 

*European Union (EU) Buffered Vinegar Dossier pending