Comax Flavors and FutureCeuticals Inc said the collaboration which brings their ingredients together, will focus on beverages and confectionary such as cold pressed nutrition bars, that are strong delivery vehicles for functional ingredients.
Both companies are currently supplying value-added products to the nutrition and functional food markets, which they see as an area of significant growth in the future.
Dr John L Cavallo, president of Comax Flavors said: “Our future product offerings will provide customers with 'value-added solutions' combining functional ingredients and flavors.”
One of the challenges for food and beverage formulators is to make products with a full taste profile and the growth for foods that incorporate healthy ingredients has added to this.
Colleen Zammer, director of sales at FutureCeuticals said the two companies have already collaborated on customer specific requests including combining its VitaBerry antioxidant blend with popular flavors for children to be used as a water enhancer.
She added: “This prototype provides 500 ORAC units (the measurement system used to measure potential antioxidant activity) which is the approximate antioxidant equivalent of an average serving of fruits and vegetables.
“Because these high ORAC fruit extracts can be bitter and have some other characteristics requiring masking, we find it very valuable to be able to deliver a good tasting package right from the start rather than have the customer struggle with making it palatable for their consumer, especially children.”
They are also working on prototypes for a frosty drink with a black cherry and black currant flavor system as well as a white tea with white peach flavor. This includes FutureCeuticals Chromium 454 product that functions in modulating blood glucose.
Zammer added: “It has been proven time and again that taste is critical to compliance with functional foods and drinks.
“Die hard supplement users may still be willing to swallow some less than optimal tasting products for the promise of health benefits, but the average mainstream consumer will not.
“We feel if we can make functional foods a positive experience for consumers, the category will grow even more, which will benefit participants and consumers alike.”
Figures from analyst Mintel have showed that the functional beverage market alone shot up by 30 percent in five years, to reach $9.8bn in 2007.
And, according to Leffingwell and Associates, the global flavors and fragrance market is worth an estimated $19.9bn. Flavors are thought to make up just under half of this, and North America to account for just over a third.
Negative flavors
Other companies are also meeting the challenge of disguising off tastes. Earlier this year Symrise introduced a new series of flavor masking tools which it claimed were effective "in overcoming bitter, burning, astringent, chalky, salty, metallic tastes and a host of other off-flavors and off-notes."
The German-based firm with global sites said that they could be used for caffeine, green tea, proteins, soy, sweeteners, cacao, as well as other "problem ingredients".
A spokesperson for the company told foodnavigator-usa.com at the time that they were receiving more and more requests from food makers to mask off-tastes.
FutureCeuticals, Inc is a primary processor and developer of natural nutraceutical ingredients and technologies. Comax Flavors manufacturers liquid and dry flavorings and masking technologies. They are both family-owned and privately held companies.