PROCESS FOR PREPARING A FAT SLURRY COMPRISING OLIVE OIL AND FOR PREPARING A SPREAD WITH SAID SLURRY

Abstract

A process for preparing a slurry of an edible oil phase and fat powder, and to a process of preparing an edible fat-continuous spread out of such, wherein the oil phase comprises olive oil.

Claims

1. Process for preparing an edible fat slurry comprising fat powder and oil, by mixing 2-30% by weight (on the total slurry) of a fat powder of a structuring fat and 70-98% by weight (on the total slurry) of edible oil, wherein said edible oil is provided as at least two separate oil phases: (a) 50-99% of an edible oil phase (a) comprising at least 30% soy bean oil, by weight on edible oil phase (a), (b) 1-50% of an edible oil phase (b) comprising at least 50% (by weight, on total oil phase (b)) of olive oil, said process comprising the steps of: providing the fat powder; providing oil phase (a); combining the fat powder and oil phase (a) and mixing the fat powder and oil phase (a) in the mixing vessel to a fat slurry for a period of 1 to 30 minutes, during at least part of said mixing the pressure in the vessel is below 0.5 bar; providing oil phase (b); adding oil phase (b) to the slurry of fat powder and oil phase (a) followed by further mixing for 30 seconds to 10 minutes to provide the final slurry.

2. Process according to claim 1, wherein the total amount of olive oil in the final slurry is between 1-50% by weight, based on the total slurry, more preferably 3-30% by weight, based on the total slurry.

3. Process according to claim 2, wherein the level of saturated fatty acids in oil phase (b) is at least 15% by weight, based on total oil phase (b).

4. Process according to claim 1, wherein the edible fat slurry comprising fat powder and oil is prepared by mixing 5-25% by weight (on the total slurry) of a fat powder of a structuring fat and 75-95% by weight (on the total slurry) of edible oil.

5. Process according to claim 1, wherein the amount of edible oil phase (b) mixed with the slurry is 3-30% of the total amount of oil phase.

6. Process according to claim 1, wherein all of the edible oil phase (b) is olive oil.

7. Process according to claim 1, wherein the fat powder is a micronised fat powder.

8. Process according to claim 1, wherein the viscosity of the mixture of oil phase (a) and fat powder, prior to adding oil phase (b) to said mixture, is at least 5 dPa.Math.s, preferably at least 8 dPa.Math.s, more preferably at least 10 dPa.Math.s.

9. Process for making an edible oil-continuous emulsion containing 20-70% (by weight on the total emulsion) of a fat phase and 30-80% (by weight on the total emulsion) of an aqueous phase, which process comprises the steps of: providing the aqueous phase at a temperature below 35 C., providing a fat slurry of an oil phase and fat powder, mixing said aqueous phase and said fat slurry to obtain an oil-continuous emulsion, wherein said fat slurry is obtained by the process comprising the steps according to claim 1.

10. Process according to claim 9, wherein the emulsion does not contain protein.

11. Process according to claim 9, wherein the emulsion does not contain a fatty acid monoglyceride emulsifier.

12. Process according to claim 9, wherein the emulsion comprises 0.05%-0.5% of lecithin, based on the total emulsion.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0031] In other words, it was found that if olive oil is desired as part of the formulation next to other oils, e.g. when making oil-continuous emulsions like spreads and margarines by a method involving blending fat powder and oils to form a slurry, followed by mixing said slurry with an aqueous phase, it was found beneficial to post-dose the olive oil to the slurry compared to other oils, in particular soy bean oil. In other words, it was found to be beneficial for emulsion stability and water droplet size to first prepare the slurry of fat powder and soy bean oil and any oil other than olive oil, and then to add the olive oil fraction. This olive oil-containing slurry is thus prepared in two stages, following which it is blending with an aqueous phase

[0032] Although in theory all of the oil in the emulsion to be prepared may be olive oil, this is unlikely for reasons of supply and/or cost. Often, if olive oil is desired as a component in the oil phase, it is preferred that the total amount of olive oil in the final slurry is between 1-50% by weight, based on the total slurry, more preferably 3-30% by weight, based on the total slurry, and even more preferably 3-20% by weight, based on the total slurry.

[0033] As there needs to be a minimum amount of oil phase (a) to be mixed with the fat powder to prepare the slurry, it is preferred that in the process according to the present invention the amount of edible oil phase (b) mixed with the slurry is 3-30% by weight of the total amount of oil phase, and preferably such is 5-20% by weight of the total amount of oil phase.

[0034] As there needs to be oil for oil phase (a) and as post dosing requires additional equipment, the post dosing of oil phase (b) is preferably kept to a minimum in volume. On the other, as mentioned, better emulsions are obtained if olive oil is post dosed to the slurry. Hence, in a preferred embodiment all of the olive oil desired in the formulation is post-dosed. Thus, in the process according to the present invention it is preferred that all of the edible oil phase (b) is olive oil.

[0035] Olive oils, being a natural product, differ in their chemical composition, e.g. with respect to the various fatty acids and triglycerides. It was found that the present invention is particularly suitable when wishing to use olive oils which are relatively high in saturated fatty acids, as such olive oils appear to present the most problems in creating stable emulsions when using fat powder and oil to make a slurry which is turned into an emulsion by blending with water under shear. Hence, in the process of the present invention it is preferred that the level of saturated fatty acids in oil phase (b) is at least 15% by weight, based on total oil phase (b), more preferably at least 17%.

[0036] When making water in oil emulsions such as spreads with the method of using fat powder and oil to make a slurry which is turned into an emulsion by blending with water under shear as set out herein, one needs as much fat powder as is needed for emulsion stability and for firmness of the resulting product. Still, preferably one uses as little as possible of such fat powder, as it is more costly than oil, and as too much fat powder dispersed in oil may render the slurry to firm to be processed. Hence, in the present invention it is preferred that the edible fat slurry comprising fat powder and oil is prepared by mixing 5-25% by weight (on the total slurry) of a fat powder of a structuring fat and 75-95% by weight (on the total slurry) of edible oil, and more preferably these amounts are 8-22% and 78-92%, respectively.

[0037] The fat powder can be made by any suitable process for making fat powder. Suitable methods to prepare the fat powder include for example cryo-crystallization, in which atomized liquid droplets come in contact with liquid nitrogen causing the droplets to instantaneously solidify, and Super Critical Melt Micronisation (ScMM), also known as particles from gas saturated solutions (PGSS). ScMM is a commonly known method and is for example described in J. of Supercritical Fluids 43 (2007) 181-190 and EP1651338. For some applications fat powders prepared by this super critical melt micronisation (micronized fat powders) are preferred, as it is a very effective stabiliser for use in the emulsions as are targeted here is micronized fat powder. Hence, in the process according to the present invention, the fat powder is preferably a micronised fat powder.

[0038] The fat powder comprises hardstock fat and preferably comprises at least 80 wt. % of hardstock fat, more preferably at least 85 wt. %, even more preferably at least 90 wt. %, even more preferably at least 95 wt. % and even more preferably at least 98 wt. %. Still even more preferably the edible fat powder essentially consists of hardstock fat. The hardstock fat as present in the edible fat powder preferably has a solid fat content N10 from 50 to 100, N20 from 26 to 95 and N35 from 2 to 60. Preferably the hardstock fat consist of fatty acid triglycerides.

[0039] For a process in which microporous fat particles are mixed with oil, following which microporous particles are broken down into smaller particles, the viscosity of the oil/particle slurry will increase. For these fat slurries, the viscosity increase is desired as it shows good structuring potential, and a minimum viscosity can be the target. Higher viscosity relates to more intense mixing, and following this, in the present invention, it is preferred that the viscosity of the mixture of oil phase (a) and fat powder, prior to adding oil phase (b) to said mixture is at least 5 dPa.Math.s, preferably at least 8 dPa.Math.s, more preferably at least 10 dPa.Math.s.

[0040] When powders such as fat powders, especially fat powders with a very low bulk density (examples of such are micronized fat powders) are to be mixed with oil, preferably at concentrations of 1-25 weight % powder on oil, more preferably at 2-20%, this is preferably achieved at a reduced pressure. A reduced pressure makes that wetting is quicker and also any potential remainder of the gas used in production of the fat particles (entrapped in the small cavities) that could prevent complete mixing with oil is thus removed.

[0041] As mentioned, mixing is to be carried out of the fat powder and the oil. This may be carried out by any suitable means. Preferably, the oil and the fat powder are mixed by one or more of (a) recirculation means, (b) a dynamic mixer, and (c) a stirrer in the mixing vessel. When the mixing vessel contains a recirculation means as part of the mixing equipment, such will usually contain a pump, but it may also be preferred that the recirculation means (recirculation loop or tube) comprises mixing means, preferably an in-line mixer, preferably a dynamic in-line mixer.

[0042] It will be clear that the fat powder is mixed with the oil to achieve that a slurry is obtained. This slurry can only exist if the temperature of the mixture oil+fat powder is kept below the melting point of the fat powder. In most cases fat powders will be used that melt at in the mouth conditions. Therefore preferably the temperature of the fat powder, oil phase, and mixture thereof is kept at a temperature of below 35 C., more preferably below 30 C.

[0043] The process to make the slurries prepared according to the present invention is primarily designed to deliver slurries of fat powder (comprising structuring fat) and oil that can be mixed with a water phase to give a stabilised water-in-oil emulsion, such as e.g. spreads. The basics of such process are set out in EP1651338. Typically, such spreads comprise 20-70% fat and 30-80% of an aqueous phase. Thus, apart from making such slurries, the present invention further relates to a process for making an edible oil-continuous emulsion containing 20-70% (by weight on the total emulsion) of a fat phase and 30-80% (by weight on the total emulsion) of an aqueous phase, which process comprises the steps of: [0044] providing the aqueous phase at a temperature below 35 C., [0045] providing a fat slurry of an oil phase and fat powder, [0046] mixing said aqueous phase and said fat slurry to obtain an oil-continuous emulsion,

[0047] wherein said fat slurry is obtained by the process as set out herein and above.

[0048] The water in oil emulsions so prepared are preferably free of monoglyceride emulsifier, as these components have an artificial image. Thus, in the process as set out above, it is preferred that the emulsion does not contain a fatty acid monoglyceride emulsifier. An emulsifier that is beneficial or even required is lecithin. Hence, in the processes as set out above, wherein the emulsion preferably comprises 0.05-0.5% of lecithin, based on the total emulsion.

[0049] As mentioned above, emulsions according to this invention preferably do not contain monoglyceride. When omitting monoglycerides, it is also preferred that the emulsion produced by the process does not contain protein (e.g. milk protein like whey and buttermilk powder). Hence, in the process according to the present invention, it is preferred that the emulsion does not contain protein.

[0050] Both the process for making the slurry as well as the process to make an water in oil emulsion out of such is preferably carried out as a batch process.

EXAMPLES

[0051] Water Droplet Size Distribution of W/O Emulsions

[0052] The normal terminology for Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) is used throughout this method. On the basis of this method the parameters d.sub.3,3 and exp() of a lognormal water droplet size distribution can be determined. The d.sub.3,3 is the volume weighted mean droplet diameter and (e-sigma) is the standard deviation of the logarithm of the droplet diameter.

[0053] The NMR signal (echo height) of the protons of the water in a water-in-oil emulsion are measured using a sequence of 4 radio frequency pulses in the presence (echo height E) and absence (echo height E*) of two magnetic field gradient pulses as a function of the gradient power. The oil protons are suppressed in the first part of the sequence by a relaxation filter. The ratio (R=E/E*) reflects the extent of restriction of the translational mobility of the water molecules in the water droplets and thereby is a measure of the water droplet size. By a mathematical procedurewhich uses the lognormal droplet size distributionthe parameters of the water droplet size distribution d.sub.3,3 (volume weighed geometric mean diameter) and a (distribution width) are calculated.

[0054] A Bruker magnet with a field of 0.47 Tesla (20 MHz proton frequency) with an air gap of 25 mm is used (NMR Spectrometer Bruker Minispec MQ20 Grad, ex Bruker Optik GmbH, DE).

[0055] Stability of the Spread

[0056] Stability of the produced spreads was measured by the spreading test score. The spreading test is as follows: [0057] a sample is stored for a minimum of 24 h at 5 C.; [0058] the sample from the cooling cabinet; [0059] spreading approximately 30 g of sample with the pallet knife 6 times back- and forwards, whereby the thickness of the layer of spread should be reduced to about 2 to 3 mm; [0060] scoring the appearance of the spread against the photographic scale: a score 1 is good, score 5 is very poor, crumbly, broken.

[0061] Where the spreading score is translated to a score ranging from 100% to 20%. Where 100% represents the spreading score of 1 and 20% the spreading score of 5. Free water indication during spreading giving a negative score of 20% and oil exudation a negative score of 0 to 10% where 0% expresses no oil exudation and 10% significant oil exudation. Resulting in a Stability score range from 0-100%. Where 0% is the worst score and 100% the best.

[0062] Composition

[0063] Seven 44.6% fat spreads (44.6% fat by weight on the total formulation) were prepared. First the slurries having the fat composition as in table 1 plus 0.2% lecithin were prepared by the method as described below. Two slurries were prepared according to the invention (examples 1 and 2) and 5 comparatives (A to E).

TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 fat composition examples 1-6, % on end emulsion BO, oil RP, oil PK, oil OV, oil OV, oil SAFA OV Fat phase phase phase phase phase (% of total Nr. powder (a) (a) (a) (a) (b) OV) A 4.5% 31.6% 4.5% 4% 17.1 1 4.5% 31.6% 4.5% 4% 17.1 B 4.5% 31.6% 4.5% 4% 14.3 C 4.5% 15.8% 15.8 4.5% 4% 17.1 D 4.5% 31.7 4.5% 4% 17.1 E 4.5% 31.6% 4.5% 4% 17.1 2 4.5% 31.6 4.5% 4% 17.1

[0064] In table 1:

[0065] Fat powder erES48 was obtained using a supercritical melt micronisation process similar to the process described in Particle formation of ductile materials using the PGSS technology with supercritical carbon dioxide, P. Mnkl, Ph.D. Thesis, Delft University of Technology, 16 Dec. 2005, Chapter 4, pp. 41-51. The fat powder consisted of an interesterified mixture of 65% dry fractionated palm oil stearin with an Iodine Value of 14 and 35% palm kernel oil (made by the process as set out in WO 2005/071053).

[0066] BO is bean oil, RP is rape seed oil, PK is palm kernel oil, and OV is olive oil. Of the olive oils the amount of saturated fatty acids (SAFA) was determined and is given in table 1.

Preparation of the Fat Slurry Examples A-E

[0067] In a mixing vessel the liquid oils including the olive oil were dosed. The mixing vessel was equipped with a high shear mixer and a loop (running from the bottom to the top of the vessel), fitted with a recirculation pump and dynamic mixer. The main body-space of the vacuum vessel was further fitted with an agitator.

[0068] The recirculation pump was started, the dynamic mixer operated at 3000 rpm, the high shear mixer at 960 rpm and the agitator at 6 rpm. The lecithin was added to the mixing vessel, while pressure was maintained in the mixing vessel at 0.2 bar. After the dosing of the lecithin the fat powder was added to the oil blend in the mixing vessel and mixed until a homogenous slurry was obtained with well-dispersed fat powder, while pressure was maintained in the mixing vessel at 0.1 bar, after which the vacuum was released to allow pressure to equalize to atmospheric levels.

Preparation of the Fat Slurry Examples 1 and 2

[0069] In a mixing vessel the liquid oils excluding the olive oil were dosed. The mixing vessel was equipped with a high shear mixer and a loop (running from the bottom to the top of the vessel), fitted with a recirculation pump and dynamic mixer. The main body-space of the vacuum vessel was further fitted with an agitator.

[0070] The re-circulation pump was started, the dynamic mixer operated at 3000 rpm, the high shear mixer at 960 rpm and the agitator at 6 rpm. The lecithin was added to the mixing vessel, while pressure was maintained in the mixing vessel at 0.2 bar. After the dosing of the lecithin the fat powder was added to the oil blend in the mixing vessel and mixed until a homogenous slurry was obtained with well-dispersed fat powder, while pressure was maintained in the mixing vessel at 0.1 bar, after which the vacuum was released to allow pressure to equalize to atmospheric levels. The olive oil was added to the dispersion in the mixing vessel and mixed for 5 minutes (factory scale)/2 minutes (pilot scale) without high shear, while pressure was maintained in the mixing vessel below 0.2 bar. After mixing the vacuum was released to allow pressure to equalize to atmospheric levels.

[0071] The processing of the examples on factory scale (2, E) was the same as for the pilot plant scale (1, A-D), except that the scale was different: about 80 kg product for pilot plant scale, and about 2000 kg for factory scale.

[0072] Spread Preparation

[0073] The slurries so-prepared were processed into spreads of the composition as in table 2, by the process as described below.

TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 2 Spreads product formulation (wt. %). Ingredient wt % on total emulsion Fat phase table 1 44.6% BOLEC ZT (lecithin) 0.2 Colourant/flavours minors Demi-water (incl. acidifier) balance Salt 1.65

[0074] Bolec ZT (Supplier: Unimills B.V., the Netherlands) is lecithin comprising 37 wt. % phosphatidylcholine, 19 wt. % phosphatidylethanolamine and 22 wt. % phosphatidylinositol.

[0075] The pH of the water-phase was adjusted to 3.6 using lactic acid.

[0076] Salt weight % based on total water-phase.

[0077] Preparation of the Water Phase

[0078] The water phase was prepared by dissolving the sodium chloride in the water and adjusting the pH to about 3.6 using 20 wt. % lactic acid solution.

[0079] Mixing the Fat- and Water Phase

[0080] The fat slurries and water phase as prepared above were used to produce the fat continuous spreads. For the pilot plant scale this was done by feeding the fat phase and water phase, after post-dosing minors, to a C-unit (volume 1.5 l) operating at a flow-rate of 100 kg per hour and at 2500 rpm. Tubs were filled and stored at 5 degrees Celsius for a period of up to 1 week. After this storage period, the samples were subjected to cycle tests to test stability.

[0081] For the samples on factory scale processing was the same, except that the scale of operation was different

[0082] Results

[0083] The droplet size and distribution (d.sub.3,3 and e-sigma) and the stability of the manufactured spreads were measured: [0084] after storage at 5 C. for one week, [0085] after having been subjected to a heat-cycle tests: the C-cycle, in which spreads were stored for 2 days at 30 degrees Celsius, followed by 4 days at 15 degrees Celsius, followed by 1 day at 10 degrees Celsius before being measured.

TABLE-US-00003 TABLE 3 analysis of spreads after production and heat-cycle treatment 5 C./1 5 C./1 5 C./1 week week week C-cycle C-cycle C-cycle Nr. d.sub.3,3 e-sigma stability d.sub.3,3 e-sigma Stability A no no no no no no product product product product product product 1 6.03 2.31 80% 13.4 2.43 90% B 5.35 2.26 80% 7.2 2.17 100% C 4.4 2.18 80% 6.39 2.1 100% D 3.74 2.12 90% 6.34 2.0 100% E no no no no no no product product product product product product 2 8.28 1.95 90% 9.5 2.0 80%