The shelf-stable straws contain hundreds of probiotic ‘UniBeads’ that dissolve as liquid is sucked through them, enabling beverages previously off limits as carriers of ‘good’ bacteria to be ‘turned’ into probiotic beverages without needing refrigeration.
New South Wales-based Unistraw had originally partnered with Danisco under a deal struck in 2008 giving Danisco worldwide exclusivity to sell and market the patented unistraw concept for use with its HOWARU probiotics.
New straw available by Q2, 2012
Under its new deal with Ganeden, Unistraw International will begin manufacturing a new straw packed with BC30 from the second quarter of 2012, which will be available in a stand-alone format or as an integrated product suitable for attachment to aseptic juice and dairy cartons, said md Tim York.
“Unistraw tested a variety of probiotic strains and found GanedenBC30 is the strain with the best stability to complement the Unistraw delivery system.
“GanedenBC30 is one of a very few probiotic strains capable of meeting the durability and longevity standards necessary for this concept to be fully embraced by beverage manufacturers.”
BC30 can be boiled, baked, frozen, pasteurized and extruded
BC30 has significant advantages over rival probiotic strains in food and beverage applications owing to its unique ability to withstand extremes of temperature and harsh processing techniques.
BC30 is a spore-forming bacterium, which means that inside the bacterial cell is a hardened structure, or spore, a bit like a seed. This safeguards the cell’s genetic material from the heat and pressure of manufacturing processes, stomach acid and bile.
Once it is inside the small intestine, the viable spore is then able to germinate and produce new vegetative cells or ‘good’ bacteria.
In contrast, traditional probiotic organisms such as lactobacillus, acidophilus and bifidobacteria are not able to form these protective spores, making them vulnerable to heat, pressure and acidity and typically restricting their use to short shelf-life chilled foods.
Because BC30 can be boiled, baked, frozen, pasteurized and extruded, it could be used in a whole swathe of food applications previously closed to probiotics from hot tea to muffins, Ganeden vice president of business development Mike Bush told NutraIngredients-USA.
Interest from food/bev manufacturers has been ‘remarkable’
Interest in BC30 from food and drink manufacturers and retailers looking to develop new private label products had been “remarkable”, said Bush, with new launches spanning a wide spectrum of products from a protein powder to oatmeal, macaroni and cheese and private label nutrition bars for Safeway.
Now available in more more than 50 foods, including Red Mango frozen yogurt and ice teas, Naked Pizza pizza dough and R.C. Bigelow's Herb Plus Tea, BC30 could be incorporated into anything from orange juice to frozen yogurt, he said.
A Danisco spokeswoman said: "Unfortunately, for reasons of confidentiality, we cannot provide you with any insights or comments on the 2008 agreement between Danisco and Unistraw.
"But I can confirm that we no longer intend to commercialize any products based on Unistraw's technology."