Epi Ingredients to showcase dairy ingredient nutrition solutions at FIE 2021

 French dairy ingredients supplier Epi Ingredients is presenting its innovative solutions at FI Europe 2021, booth 30H181 at FIE 2021. Featured will be a range of products that meets the expectations of consumers in constant search of naturalness, practicality, health and clean label.

1) Fermented products for a natural and functional diet

Epi Ingredients, specialist in the production of yogurt powders, plays a role in the nutritional quality of the food industry’s products.

Epi Ingredients is a reference in the fermentation industry, a trend where tradition and technology are combined to reveal the best of nature. The dynamics of this sector are driven by eco-friendly awareness and clean labelling. According to the company, consumers are more than ever looking for natural products with intrinsic health benefits.

This demand, amplified by the health crisis, creates a space for dairy products with a beneficial effect on digestive, immune and mental health, with ingredients rich in proteins and lactic ferments.

The fermentation process adds beneficial bacteria and enhanced micronutrients to foods for better nutritional quality. Scientific research suggests that our digestive and immune systems can benefit from a balanced gut flora.

In parallel, for consumers looking for new culinary experiences, Epi Ingredients has developed fermented dairy powders such as Skyr and Kefir. The process makes it possible to obtain a mixture of milk and living cultures. These “ethnic” powders can be used in the formulation of fresh or long-life products that are positioned on authenticity and discovery.

In this ecosystem, Epi Ingredients has developed EPILAC: providing the health benefits of yogurt with added convenience.

EPILAC is a full range of premium fermented powders perfectly adapted to the development of products offering functional, nutritional and organoleptic benefits, without refrigeration constraints.

The company cites the benefits of this range as:

• Natural taste of yogurt: Epi ingredients makes a yogurt and then dries it, unlike a more acidic milk powder. It is easy to implement, and can be incorporated into a wide selection of food matrixes; thus providing strong but pleasant dairy flavors and natural acidity to the finished product.
• Controls fermentation to obtain active or inactive flora
• Quality: Clean label ingredients. Epi Ingredients can adapt formulations to comply with local regulations. Epi’s powders are made using an industrial machine which manufactures infant powder, thus a very high level of hygiene which allows for infant application.
• Originality: In 2019, a range of ethnic powders (Kefir and Skyr) was launched to join the finished product trend.

Visitors to the Fi Europe event will be able to get an idea of thepotential of these milk powders designed to be used as ingredients or fillings in a wide range of applications such as: Ice cream, Beverages, Infant Nutrition, Adult Nutrition, Bakery.

2) And tomorrow: how to innovate in other applications (snacking, confectionery…) with dairy ingredients?

Epi Ingredients is also able to develop new references quickly according to the specific needs of its customers. Epi uses the  example of confectionery, stating that this is a shrinking market that is heavily criticised, with sugar now the subject of particular attention.

To meet consumer expectations, industry players are vigilant about sugar and are looking for growth opportunities. Bringing more functionality and naturalness to the product is possible. After a difficult year in 2020, the confectionery industry is getting back on track. Naturalness is at the heart of innovation, says Epi.

“This is what Epi Ingredients is proposing with its So Candy concept, a comprehensive confectionery application presented exclusively at the FIE. Epi Ingredients offers a concrete opportunity to improve recipes using a nutritional approach with less sugar. In fact, it is interesting to associate the ingredients of confectionery, which suffers from a bad image, and those of yogurt, which conveys a good image to consumers driven by naturalness,” comments Mathieu Lucot, Epi Ingredients’ marketing manager.

Several other tasting models with yogurt powders will also be presented at the show, such as:

• Marshmallow with choco shell (with Yoghurt Powder 48 (Black Choco) and Kefir Powder (Ruby Choco) in the marshmallow and the choco
• Jelly candies in two flavours containing Yogurt Powder 48
• Berlingot containing Epiyog 47 and Skyr Powder.

The use of yogurt powders is not limited. Epi ingredients will also present an application in wafer fillings at FIE 2021.

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