The agreement, with Taiwan’s Mingtai, will see Danisco add MCC to its Grindsted line of ingredients, with the firm ready to supply the product immediately.
MCC is derived from wood pulp and is used largely to replace fat in emulsified products. Mingtai claims to be the world’s second largest global manufacturer of the ingredient, and will produce all MCC that Danisco will supply to its food customers around the world.
Two-pronged deal
According to Niels Thestrup, vice president of Danisco’s Gums & Systems division, the partnership has two legs: exclusive global distribution and R&D for the development of more products in the line.
Grindsted MCC can be used to stabilise emulsions and foam structures, suspend particles, improve freeze-thaw stability and enable fat replacement.
Applications it is particularly suited for include bakery, dairy, beverages, soups, sauces, dressings and confectionery.
Danisco said the ingredient is manufactured to ISO standards and is derived from naturally occurring sustainable cellulose. It works by forming a three-dimensional network of insoluble crystalline cellulose, and it said to be “generally unaffected” by other food ingredients.
Hydrocolloids complete
The partnership between Danisco and Mingtai will see the two companies investing in the development of more MCC ingredients for the Grindsted range, including enhanced blends for targeted formulations.
R&D investment could also include working raw material sourcing, said Thestrup.
Danisco already has a wide range of hydrocolloid products, including pectin, xanthan gum, carrageenan, alginate, cellulose gum, locust bean and guar gum.
With the addition of MCC, Thestrup said the company has taken on the last “interesting” product remaining for its food hydrocolloid range.