Iron supplementation of a bouillon concentrate

Abstract

The present invention is directed to an iron fortified bouillon concentrate comprising fat, sodium chloride, monosodium glutamate, ferric pyrophosphate, and a citrate buffer. It is directed to a process to prepare an iron fortified bouillon concentrate. This bouillon concentrate allows easy iron supplementation at low cost, without affecting either the original taste or the colour of the bouillon after dissolving and cooking, it does not discolour during shelf life of the bouillon concentrate, and it provides an optimal source of bioavailable iron to the consumer of the food comprising said bouillon concentrate.

Claims

1. Bouillon concentrate comprising the following ingredients in the following amounts, based on the total weight of the bouillon concentrate: 5 to 30 wt.-% of fat, 30 to 70 wt.-% of sodium chloride, 10 to 45 wt.-% of monosodium glutamate, 0.015 to 10 wt.-% of ferric pyrophosphate, 7.1 to 40 wt.-% of a citrate buffer being: citric acid and trisodium citrate in a weight ratio of citric acid to trisodium citrate between 0.05 and 0.45, wherein the sum of the weights of said ingredients in the bouillon concentrate sum up to 90 to 100 wt.-%, wherein the weight ratio of ferric pyrophosphate to said citrate buffer is in a range from 0.005 to 1.5, and wherein the bouillon concentrate has a water activity lower than 0.65.

2. The bouillon concentrate according to claim 1, wherein the fat is selected from the group consisting of pork fat, chicken fat, beef fat, olive oil, palm oil, and rape seed oil or mixtures thereof.

3. The bouillon concentrate according to claim 1, wherein the weight ratio of ferric pyrophosphate to citrate buffer is in a range from 0.05 to 0.7.

4. The bouillon concentrate according to claim 1, wherein the citrate buffer is citric acid and trisodium citrate in a weight ratio of citric acid to trisodium citrate between 0.20 and 0.3.

5. The bouillon concentrate according to claim 1, wherein ferric pyrophosphate is in the form of particles having an average particle size in a range from 1 to 5 micrometers as measured by laser diffraction.

6. The bouillon concentrate according to claim 1, wherein 4 g of the bouillon concentrate upon dissolving in 250 mL boiling water results in a bouillon with more than 40 wt.-% of the iron in a dissolved bioavailable form when prepared with water having hardness ranging from 0 to 3000 ppm.

7. A process to prepare the bouillon concentrate according to claim 1, comprising the following steps: (a) preparing a mixture comprising 5 to 30 wt.-% of the fat, 30 to 70 wt.-% of the sodium chloride, 10 to 45 wt.-% of the monosodium glutamate, 0.015 to 10 wt.-% of the ferric pyrophosphate, and 7.1 to 40 wt.-% of the citrate buffer, and thereafter (b) granulating or shaping the mixture resulting from step (a).

8. The process according to claim 7, wherein the shaping according to step (b) is carried out by pressing the mixture.

9. A ready-to-eat food composition having a pH in a range from 5.2 to 8, wherein the ready-to-eat food composition comprises the bouillon concentrate according to claim 1 which has been dissolved in a food product by heating the food product with the bouillon concentrate therein at a temperature of 80 to 120° C. for 5 to 120 minutes.

Description

EXAMPLES

Example 1: Bouillon Cube with 4 g for One Serving (250 ml)

(1) TABLE-US-00001 Vegetable fat 7 wt.-% Sodium Chloride 47 wt.-% Monosodium Glutamate 15 wt.-% Sugar 5.24 wt.-% Flavour incl Hydrolysed plant protein 14 wt.-% Ferric Pyrophosphate micrn. 0.3 wt.-% Citric acid 2.11 wt.-% Trisodium Citrate 9.35 wt.-%

(2) Put into about 250 ml water and boil for 20 minutes. Then consume.

Example 2: Bouillon Cube with 4 g for One Serving (250 ml)

(3) TABLE-US-00002 Beef fat stabilized 10 wt.-% Vegetable fat 10 wt.-% Sodium Chloride 35 wt.-% Monosodium Glutamate 10 wt.-% Dried Herbs 1 wt.-% Flavour incl Hydrolysed plant protein 3 wt.-% Ferric Pyrophosphate micrn. 0.3 wt.-% Citric Acid 1.58 wt.-% Trisodium Citrate 6.97 wt.-% Maltodextrin 22.15 wt.-%

(4) Put into about 250 ml water and boil for 20 minutes. Then consume.

Example 3: Bouillon Cube with 4 g for One Serving (250 ml)

(5) TABLE-US-00003 Beef fat stabilized 10 wt.-% Vegetable fat 10 wt.-% Sodium Chloride 35 wt.-% Monosodium Glutamate 10 wt.-% Dried Herbs 1 wt.-% Flavour incl Hydrolysed plant protein 3 wt.-% Ferric Pyrophosphate micrn. 0.3 wt.-% Citric Acid 1.6 wt.-% Trisodium Citrate 8.8 wt.-% Potato Starch 20.3 wt.-%

(6) Put into about 250 ml water and boil for 10 minutes. Then consume.

Example 4: Effect of the Citrate Buffer on Iron Release

(7) Measurement of Iron Released During Broth (Bouillon) Preparation

(8) In order to detect the iron released as free Fe2+ and Fe3+ during the bouillon preparation, a dedicated methodology was developed (by adapting an already existing methodology for the iron detection in drinking water; Manual, 2008). The methodology uses the reaction between ferrous ions and 1,10-phenanthroline to form a red complex. The molar absorptivity of the complex is 11100 at 508-510 nm. The intensity of the color is independent of pH in the range 2 to 9, moreover the complex is very stable and the color intensity does not change appreciably over long period of time. Beer's law is obeyed.

(9) Because the iron must be in the ferrous state, a reducing agent is added before the color is developed. Hydroxylamine chloride was chosen as reducing agent.

(10) Reagents and Procedure

(11) Acetate buffer: 10 grams of sodium-acetate trihydrate (Sigma, USA) are weighted and poured into a volumetric flask. Nanopure water is then added up to 1000 mL (solution pH=8.1), subsequently the desired pH is adjusted by dropping acetic acid (10% solution) until pH 6.8 is reached (a Methrom pHmeter was used to continuously monitor the pH value).

(12) Reducing agent solution: one gram of Hydroxylamine Hydrochloride (Sigma, USA) is weighted and poured into a volumetric flask, subsequently nanopure water is added up to 100 mL.

(13) Dye solution: 100 mg of 1,10-phenanthroline (Sigma, USA) is weighted and poured into a volumetric flask, subsequently nanopure water is added up to 100 mL. The solution is magnetically stirred until complete dissolution of the 1,10-phenanthroline.

(14) Procedure:

(15) Pipette 3 of filtered (syringe 250 micrometers disposable filter) bouillon in a 10 ml plastic tube (Corning 430791 or Falcon 352097) Add 5 ml sodium-acetate buffer (pH 6.8) Add 1 ml Hydroxilamine Hydrochlorate solution Add 1 ml of 1,10-phenanthroline solution Shake the tube by hand and let them stand for 10 minutes with occasional shaking. The sample's spectrophotometric absorption is then measured with a spectrophotometer (Perkin Elmer Lambda 35) by scanning the wavelength from 390 nm to 700 nm (maximum absorbance ˜508 nm) The plain bouillon without iron is used in order to prepare the blank (reference solution)
Calibration Curve

(16) Calibration curves were built by using each type of analyzed and prepared bouillon (in order to avoid differences in matrix effects). The desired amounts of iron ions were added to the analyzed bouillon by spiking standard iron 1000 ppm solution (Sigma Aldrich, Saint Louis, USA).

(17) Each calibration curve (Absorbance at 510 nm as a function of Fe3+ concentration) was a final interpolation of three replicates performed during different days and by preparing every time fresh samples and fresh reagents. Moreover each replicate was performed by replicating (twice) each iron concentration measurement.

(18) Iron Release During Cooking Conditions

(19) (Spectrophotometric Test Based on the Color Change of 1,10-Phenanrtroline in Presence of Iron Ions):

(20) First 250 mL of water were heated up to or 96° C., then a bouillon cube was added under stirring condition. Time 0 was set when all the bouillon cube was dissolved and then one aliquot (3 mL) was taken every 15 minutes up to one hour.

(21) Table 1 shows a composition according to present invention (Fe; C:TSC) compared to a similar composition without citric acid-Trisodium citrate (Fe).

(22) TABLE-US-00004 INGREDIENTS (Fe) (Fe; C-TSC) Sodium Chloride 47.41 47.41 Monosodium glutamate 15.27 15.27 Hydrolysed vegetable protein 14.07 14.07 Sugar 5.57 4.91 Palm fat 7.18 7.18 Citric acid — 1.38 Trisodium citrate — 8.75 Fe-Pyrophosphate micrn. 0.60 0.60 Patato Starch 9.90 0.44 Total 100 100

(23) The above two bouillon cubes were then cooked into Nanopure water (close to a water harness of 0 ppm) as described above, and the iron release calculated as a percentage of therotecal fe content. (See table 2).

(24) TABLE-US-00005 TABLE 2 Percentage of iron release as a function of time in the two bouillons prepared with the two above mentioned bouillon cubes. Time (Min) 0 15 30 45 60 Fe; C-TSC 34 55 72 79 78 Fe; 1 3 5 6 8

(25) Final pH in the two bouillons were 5.64 for (Fe) and 5.83 for (Fe; C-TSC).

Example 5: Effect of the Amount of Citrate on Iron Release

(26) Experimental conditions are exactly as in above example 4. Table 3 shows the two bouillon cubes as comparative example.

(27) A: Bouillon cube with 6.9% citrate buffer

(28) B: Bouillon cube with 11.5% citrate buffer

(29) TABLE-US-00006 TABLE 3 Bouillon cube compositions: INGREDIENTS (6.9% citrate) (11.5% citrate) Sodium Chloride 47.41 47.41 Monosodium glutamate 15.27 15.27 Hydrolysed vegetable protein 14.07 14.07 Sugar 5.57 4.22 Palm fat 7.18 7.18 Citric acid 1.25 2.50 Trisodium citrate 5.43 9.35 Fe-Pyrophosphate micrn. 0.30 0.30 Patato Starch 3.52 — Total 100 100

(30) TABLE-US-00007 TABLE 4 Percentage of iron release as a function of time in the two bouillons prepared with the two above mentioned bouillon cubes. Time (Min) 0 15 30 45 60 6.9% citrate buffer 0 5 3 4 6 11.5% citrate buffer 0 54 88 99 100

(31) Final pH in the two bouillons were 5.13 for (6.9% citrate buffer) and 5.62 for (11.5% citrate buffer).

Example 6: Effect of the Citrate Buffer on Iron Release

(32) Iron Release During Cooking Conditions

(33) Bouillon cubes of 4 g were prepared by mixing 3.5 grams of the bouillon powder (table 5) with the citric acid buffer ingredients comprising 65 mg citric acid and 290 mg trisodium citrate and 12 mg of iron pyrophosphate (3.3 mg iron per bouillon cube/serving—250 mL—). In order to reach the final bouillon cube 4 grams, potato starch was used as “filler”.

(34) First 250 mL of water were heated up to or 96° C., then a bouillon cube was added under stirring condition. Time 0 was set when all the bouillon cube was dissolved and then one aliquot (3 mL) was taken after 1 hour.

(35) Table 5 shows a composition according to present invention comprising a citrate buffer made of citric acid and trisodium citrate (C:TSC).

(36) TABLE-US-00008 INGREDIENTS (Fe; C-TSC) Sodium Chloride 54 Monosodium glutamate 17 Hydrolysed vegetable protein 16 Sugar 6.2 Palm fat 6.8 Total 100

(37) The above bouillon cube was then cooked for 1 hour into water of different hardness as described above, and the iron release calculated as a percentage of theoretical Fe content (see Table 6).

(38) As shown below (Table 6), water type (harness) and citric buffer source, clearly influence the percentage of iron ions released (from the iron pyrophosphate) after one hour of cooking procedure.

(39) TABLE-US-00009 Water hardness pH of the bouillon % iron release  90 ppm 5.3 100 250 ppm 6.0 75 550 ppm 5.3 40