Blue colored foods have usually been synonymous with artificial food colorings and additives. Now Israeli foodtech startup Gavan Ltd has created a method of extracting a "true blue" food tint from a natural source.
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"Both synthetic blue dyes and plant-based blue coloring have regulatory, stability, intensity, or price challenges," explains Yael Leader, head of product for Gavan.
"The main barrier to creating food formulations with natural colors is stability – the ability to overcome formulation challenges and ensure vibrant and consistent true blue throughout the product's shelf life."
Phycocyanin is a pigment-protein complex found in blue-green algae that naturally produces a beautiful pure blue. Gavan utilizes its innovative technology to extract phycocyanin from spirulina and produce a stable, natural blue colorant. Blue is one of the three primary colors and as such, it opens a window to producing other high-in-demand colors – anywhere from non-chlorophyll green to purple shades.
According to Gavan, the new formulation can be used for hot and cold beverages and in sports drinks.
"A growing trend in beverages is fortified drinks with high amount of vitamins and minerals," adds Leader. "These ingredients can react with the pigment and accelerate the color-degradation process, cause fading, or create a complex binding of pigments and minerals that can deposit sedimentation in the final application."
"Gavan's proprietary technology enables us to transform spirulina or other plant-based compounds and sources into easy-to-use, water-dispersible food colorings suitable for hot and cold beverages," contributes Itai Cohen, CEO and co-founder of Gavan.
"Gavan's blue can replace artificial coloring and opens options for acidic beverages to be colored with any blue shades. It has no impact on flavor, and maintains a clear, clean label. Our advanced platform can revolutionize plant-based products across multiple categories."
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