Telos Ceuticals launches carotenoid-rich Gac fruit extract

12-Oct-2010 - Last updated on 14-Mar-2017 at 11:17 GMT

Michigan-based Telos Ceuticals, LLC has launched a new carotenoid-rich extract from Momordica cochinchinensis Spreng, offering 76 times the amount of lycopene in tomatoes, 60 times the vitamin C in oranges, and 10 times the beta-carotene in carrots.

The ingredient, branded Carogac, is set to debut at next week’s SupplySide West show. Tom Morse, Telos Ceuticals co-founder and director, told NutraIngredients-USA that Carogac is the first commercially cultivated form of the fruit that contains standardized concentrations of carotenoids, including lycopene and beta-carotene.

According to analysis by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (2004, Vol. 52, pp 274-279), extracts from the gac fruit also contain 40 times the zeaxanthin in corn, and is a source of omega-6 and omega-9 fatty acids, and vitamin E.

“The high potency of carotenoids in Carogac is the result of extensive agricultural research, proprietary and controlled growing processes and sustainable, ethical harvesting,” said Morse.

“Unlike the Gac fruit, Carogac is cultivated and harvested year round and tested and certified by world class labs in the USA. We are not aware of any other company in the world offering a stable, water-soluble, certified pure fruit powder or puree equivalent to Carogac,” he added

The ingredient, which is self-affirmed GRAS, Kosher, and Hallal is available in 100 percent pure fruit powder, 100 percent pure frozen puree, and fresh puree.

Morse said that the new ingredient offers manufacturers a range of opportunities, including: “Replacing costly extracted carotenoids with more a bio-accessible water-soluble natural source of carotenoids, fortifying and differentiating their product with the benefits of carotenoids and Carogac”.

The ingredient is described as water-soluble and flavor neutral, and can be easily integrated into a range of foods, beverages and supplement, said Morse. Carogac is stable and suitable in most food and beverage processing environments, as well as personal care product processing, he added. It can also be used as a natural food colorant, and has a “vibrant red-orange color”.

Superfruit?

Morse said that the company are not “actively marketing this as a superfruit”, but instead the company was concentrating on the many bioactive components and its benefits over alternative sources. “‘Superfruit’ is a somewhat trendy term, whereas we see Carogac as having huge potential to become a staple ingredient in a great many products for years to come,” added Morse.

The ingredient is sourced from farms in Southeast Asia, said Morse, and Telos Ceuticals offers 100 percent traceability.