Demand for natural food preservatives in developed markets has boomed in recent years, particularly in Germany, France, the UK and Italy, according to a recent Markets and Markets report, which predicted the total preservatives market to reach a value of $2.55bn by 2016. Both Galactic and Naturex are active in the natural preservatives area, with Galactic specialising in lactic acid- and lactates-based natural ingredients, while Naturex specialises in plant-based natural ingredients.
So what does this partnership add to their current capabilities?
The companies say that it goes beyond just combining their existing ingredients, with researchers exploring how they can develop shelf life extending systems tailored to different applications. These systems must address shelf life as well as food safety, while also retaining good taste and mouthfeel.
“Preservation thus requires a combination of two types of ingredients, which must be synchronized to have the same duration of efficacy in order to optimize cost,” Naturex said in a statement.
Director of sales, marketing and business development at Galactic, Jean-Christophe Bogaert, told FoodNavigator: “What was so interesting for Galactic is that Naturex has a lot of experience in natural antioxidants for food and, on our side, Galactic has a lot of expertise with antimicrobials…We saw the potential to offer total freshness to customers, and especially in a natural way.”
He added that the two companies were contributing equally to the project in terms of laboratory facilities and scientists, building on the expertise of both companies. As the results emerge, they will then “see then who is in the best position to develop the products and also who is geographically best placed”, he said.
Bogaert will lead the research programme with François-Xavier Pierre, R&D food manager at Naturex.
Pierre said: “Besides proper calibration, we go beyond a simple combination of two ingredients; we will offer tested and proven comprehensive solutions for different matrices.”
The partnership mainly will focus on applications in which food safety and organoleptic properties are both important, starting with meat applications, followed by fish and seafood, Bogaert said. The first results from the project are expected in 2014.