Sweetener compositions and sweetness enhancing compositions including combinations of isolated volatile compounds are provided. Also provided are methods of increasing the perceived sweetness of a comestible by adding to/including in the comestible a sweetness enhancing composition effective to increase the perceived sweetness of the comestible, where the sweetness enhancing composition includes a combination of isolated volatile compounds.

Sweetener compositions and sweetness enhancing compositions including combinations of isolated volatile compounds are provided. Also provided are methods of increasing the perceived sweetness of a comestible by adding to/including in the comestible a sweetness enhancing composition effective to increase the perceived sweetness of the comestible, where the sweetness enhancing composition includes a combination of isolated volatile compounds.

The present invention addresses the problem of providing a novel freezing system and a method for producing frozen ingredients, the system and method being such that the amount of free water after defrosting of the frozen ingredients is lower than with conventional freezing. The present invention solves the above problem by providing an ingredient freezing system comprising two or more freezing units for freezing the ingredient, and a transport unit for transporting the ingredient to the two or more freezing units, the two or more freezing units being configured so as to freeze the ingredient in stages so that the ingredient is frozen at progressively lower temperatures as the ingredient is transported on the transport unit.

The invention relates to a method for producing a solid transformation product of a substrate comprising the following steps: ⋅preparing a substrate of biomass comprising carbohydrates and proteinaceous matter that originates from soya bean, rape seed, or mixtures thereof, optionally in further mixture with carbohydrates and proteinaceous matter originating from fava beans, peas, sunflower seeds, lupine, cereals, and/or grasses, ⋅mixing said substrate with an enzyme preparation or a combination of enzyme preparations and adding water in an amount which provides an initial incubation mixture having a water content from 30 to 70% by weight, and a ratio of wet bulk density to dry bulk density from 0.60 to 1.45 in the resulting mixture; ⋅incubating said initial incubation mixture for 0.15-72 hours at a temperature of 20-70° C.; and thereafter recovering wet solid transformation product from the incubated mixture; further comprising that the incubating step is performed as a continuous plug-flow process in a vertical, non-agitated incubation tank with inlet means for said mixture and additives and outlet means for said solid transformation product.

The invention relates to a method for producing a solid transformation product of a substrate comprising the following steps: ⋅preparing a substrate of biomass comprising carbohydrates and proteinaceous matter that originates from soya bean, rape seed, or mixtures thereof, optionally in further mixture with carbohydrates and proteinaceous matter originating from fava beans, peas, sunflower seeds, lupine, cereals, and/or grasses, ⋅mixing said substrate with an enzyme preparation or a combination of enzyme preparations and adding water in an amount which provides an initial incubation mixture having a water content from 30 to 70% by weight, and a ratio of wet bulk density to dry bulk density from 0.60 to 1.45 in the resulting mixture; ⋅incubating said initial incubation mixture for 0.15-72 hours at a temperature of 20-70° C.; and thereafter recovering wet solid transformation product from the incubated mixture; further comprising that the incubating step is performed as a continuous plug-flow process in a vertical, non-agitated incubation tank with inlet means for said mixture and additives and outlet means for said solid transformation product.

A method for producing a fermentate including the steps of obtaining a fruit or vegetable extract, treating the extract with a hydrolytic enzyme, mixing the extract with a fermenting microorganism, water, and a growth media to produce a liquid composition; and incubating the liquid composition at a controlled temperature and a controlled pH to produce a fermentate. A method for killing or inhibiting the growth of a contaminating microorganism on or within a food product, and a food product including a fermentate having a cellular mass component from a fermenting microorganism, a fermented fruit or vegetable extract and a hydrolytic enzyme are disclosed. A fermentate produced by any one of the methods described is contemplated. The fermentate may be a concentrated liquid or a dry powder and has the ability to inhibit the growth of a contaminating microorganism by 100% when diluted to less than 5% (w/v).

The invention relates to a fermented onion composition having a dry matter content of at feast 8 wt. %, said composition comprising, per gram of dry matter: a) 0-150 mg of saccharides selected from fructose, glucose, sucrose and combinations thereof; b) 5-250 mg of phenols selected from acid equivalent of gallic acid, acid equivalent of ferulic acid, quercetin, kaempferol and combinations thereof; c) 75-500 mg acid equivalent of organic acid selected from propionic acid, lactic acid, acetic acid and combinations thereof,

The fermented onion composition of the present invention can advantageously be used as an effective, label-friendly food ingredient to increase overall quality of foods.

The invention also provides a method of preparing a fermented onion composition, comprising: providing an onion substrate containing 10-50 wt. % dry matter and 50-90 wt. % water, wherein at least 40 wt. % of the dry matter is derived from onion; inoculating the substrate with a micro-organism selected from lactic acid bacteria, Propionibacterium and combinations thereof; and incubating the inoculated substrate at a temperature in the range of 25-60° C. for at least 12 hours to produce an onion ferment.

The invention relates to a fermented onion composition having a dry matter content of at feast 8 wt. %, said composition comprising, per gram of dry matter: a) 0-150 mg of saccharides selected from fructose, glucose, sucrose and combinations thereof; b) 5-250 mg of phenols selected from acid equivalent of gallic acid, acid equivalent of ferulic acid, quercetin, kaempferol and combinations thereof; c) 75-500 mg acid equivalent of organic acid selected from propionic acid, lactic acid, acetic acid and combinations thereof,

The fermented onion composition of the present invention can advantageously be used as an effective, label-friendly food ingredient to increase overall quality of foods.

The invention also provides a method of preparing a fermented onion composition, comprising: providing an onion substrate containing 10-50 wt. % dry matter and 50-90 wt. % water, wherein at least 40 wt. % of the dry matter is derived from onion; inoculating the substrate with a micro-organism selected from lactic acid bacteria, Propionibacterium and combinations thereof; and incubating the inoculated substrate at a temperature in the range of 25-60° C. for at least 12 hours to produce an onion ferment.

A food bar includes a mixture of dry ingredients including a protein and a binder including a sweetener. The food bar is able to maintain an initial texture so that the amount of force required to cut the food bar after storage of the food bar is substantially the same as the amount of force required to cut the food bar initially.

A composition and method for supplementing food, nutrition, and diet systems with omega-6 to omega-3 balanced oils comprising a synergistic blend of at least two oils. The composition further comprises a synergistic blend of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids as a means to further increase the nutritional value. The composition provides an effective increase in therapeutic and pharmacological properties in nutrition, and retards the rate of oxidation thereof.