Frost & Sullivan Awards Water-Soluble Technology for Fat-Based Ingredients

SoluBlend Technologies’ LLC (Frankfort, IL) solution for making fat-based ingredients water soluble, while maintaining stability, clarity, and nutritive value, has received Frost & Sullivan’s 2011 North American Technology Innovation Award in the functional foods and beverages category.

The technology is suited for such fat-based functional ingredients as fish, algae, and plant-based omega-3 fatty acids such as DHA, EPA, and ALA; CoQ10; resveratrol; fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K; as well as seed and fruit oils such as chia and cranberry oil.

By converting ingredients into a fully dissolvable format for aqueous mediums, SoluBlend allows formulators to create clear and transparent products in the functional food and beverage category. The company adds that the technology also helps reduce the rate of oxidation, resulting in longer shelf life.

“Acceptance of functional ingredients in the foods sector depends on water solubility, flavor, and bioavailability,” states Sujatha Vijayan, PhD, Frost & Sullivan’s senior research analyst. “SoluBlend’s novel water-soluble conversion technology platform is unique in addressing all of these criteria and is significant in providing products previously not available at a significantly lower cost to consumers.”

SoluBlend says that prior to its technology, other solutions for increasing the water solubility of functional ingredients have included encapsulation and emulsification, which can be sensitive to pH and temperature. It says that its product overcomes these challenges.