Is fermentation the ingredient of the future? As more consumers fear technologically-processed food, manufacturers are turning to ancient processing methods to make ingredients. Nutritional Outlook published an interesting article detailing how manufacturers are using fermentation to extract ingredients from foods. It’s a sustainable solution that produces ingredients like MSG, cultured dextrose and the sugar alcohol erythritol. Erythritol, for example, is produced by some fruits and mushrooms in very small quantities. But by fermenting the fruits and vegetables, an economical, high-quality sweetener is produced. The article notes “in an environment that prizes transparency, fermentation present a refreshingly open book. …Fermentation may not strike the romantic chord of tugging an ingredient from the soil, but it’s unambiguously traceable, quantifiable, and safe.” Brands like Impossible Foods (plant-based meat) and EverSweet (sweetener) both use fermentation to extract ingredients.
Read more (Nutritional Outlook)