23 October, 2012 – Tate & Lyle, the global ingredients and food solutions provider, announces the global launch of a ground breaking, new salt reduction ingredient, SODA-LO™ Salt Microspheres, that tastes, labels and functions like salt because it is salt. With SODA-LO™, food manufacturers can reduce salt levels by 25 to 50 per cent in various applications without sacrificing taste.
SODA-LO™ Salt Microspheres has been created using a patent-pending technology that turns standard salt crystals into free-flowing crystalline microspheres. These smaller, lower-density crystals efficiently deliver salty taste by maximizing surface area relative to volume. SODA-LO™ makes it possible to enjoy the same salt taste while consuming lower levels of salt. Because SODA-LO™ is made from real salt, it has none of the bitter aftertaste or off-flavours associated with some other salt compounds or substitutes.
"As public health advocates continue to call for a reduction in salt intake worldwide, studies show that consumers associate products labelled as low-salt as having inferior taste," said Andy Hoffman, Director of Health and Wellness Innovation, Tate & Lyle. "Having a salt reduction alternative that's made from real salt and delivers on that taste expectation could be the first step towards breaking that link in people's minds that a low-salt product is a bland one."
Tate & Lyle testing shows that consumers perceive parity tastes between products made with regular salt and foods containing SODA-LO™ Salt Microspheres. Furthermore, consumers reported no "off" tastes.
"Salt is a staple in food production – not just because of taste, but function, as well. It acts as a preservative and texturizing aid, for example. Through advanced technology, Tate & Lyle has produced salt microspheres to give manufacturers an ingredient that functions as well as, if not better, than salt," said David Lewis, Director, Health and Wellness Product Management, Tate & Lyle.
SODA-LO™ Salt Microspheres has been tested and shown to work well in a wide variety of foods including baked goods, breading and coatings, salty snacks and work continues to assess its suitability in a number of other applications.
SODA-LO™ Salt Microspheres was recently recognised as one of the most innovative new ingredients at Food Ingredients South America. Its global debut in North America and Europe will be next month at SupplySide West between 5-9 November 2012 (Las Vegas, Nevada) and Health Ingredients Europe between 13-15 November 2012 (Frankfurt, Germany).
About SODA-LO™ Salt Microspheres:
A salt reduction ingredient, SODA-LO™ Salt Microspheres tastes, labels* and functions like salt because it is salt.
Tate & Lyle licensed SODA-LO® from Eminate Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of The University of Nottingham, UK, to commercialize it globally. Under the license agreement, Tate & Lyle assumes responsibility for commercialising the SODA-LO® salt reduction technology on a global basis including manufacturing, product development, sales and marketing.
* Labelling requirements vary by country
About Tate & Lyle:
Tate & Lyle is a global provider of ingredients and solutions to the food, beverage and other industries, operating from over 30 production facilities around the world.
Tate & Lyle operates through two global business units, Speciality Food Ingredients and Bulk Ingredients, supported by Innovation and Commercial Development. The Group's strategy is to become the leading global provider of Speciality Food Ingredients through a disciplined focus on growth, and by driving the Bulk Ingredients business for sustained cash generation to fuel this growth.
Speciality Food Ingredients include starch-based speciality ingredients (corn-based speciality starches, sweeteners and fibres), no calorie sweeteners (including SPLENDA® Sucralose) and Food Systems which provides blended ingredient solutions. Bulk Ingredients include corn-based bulk sweeteners, industrial starches and fermentation products (primarily acidulants). The co-products from both divisions are primarily sold as animal feed.
Tate & Lyle is listed on the London Stock Exchange under the symbol TATE.L. American Depositary Receipts trade under TATYY. In the year to 31 March 2012, Tate & Lyle sales totalled £3.1 billion. http://www.tateandlyle.com and http://www.foodnutritionknowledge.info.
SPLENDA® is a trademark of McNeil Nutritionals, LLC