Symrise launches chickpea and aquafaba flakes for clean-label plant-based applications

Image courtesy of Symrise.

Symrise has announced the launch of a range of diana food chickpea and aquafaba ingredients, specifically chickpea and aquafaba flakes. Symrise explains that its chickpea flakes offer high protein and fiber content while also bringing texture and juiciness to a range of applications and plant-based recipes such as falafel, healthy snacks, and dips such as hummus. Aquafaba, which literally means “bean water” in Latin, is the cooking liquid of chickpeas. The Aquafaba flakes act as a vegan alternative to egg yolk, bringing texture to products as well as water and oil retention properties that make it ideal for vegan alternatives to mayonnaise and salad dressings.

A major benefit of these products, say Symrise, is the clear and understandable labeling that can be used on products, namely “Aquafaba (chickpea water)” or “Chickpea.” Nor do they contain any EU allergens, GMOs, or gluten. Pre-cooked, the flakes are easy to use, and because they only require ambient storage and have a long shelf-life of up to 18 months, they are convenient.

“According to a recent Euromonitor study, forty-two percent of the population is restricting its consumption of animal-based products,” said Sophie Helleux, product manager in the Naturals Business Unit of Symrise Food & Beverage, in a press release. “These chickpea ingredients constitute another way in which Symrise is addressing the growing, trendy plant-based market. Aquafaba offers the perfect vegan alternative to egg yolk, while chickpea flakes improve the nutritional value.”