Aromatic Shelf Life Extenders – K-line, GL-line

Shelf Life Extenders are used to prevent antimicrobial growth and therefore prolong the shelf life of your products. Mould occurs almost everywhere and spreads easily through the air, therefore products quickly get contaminated and it’s important to inhibit mould growth especially if the product is stored over a longer time period. The key factors influencing mould growth are the availability of nutrients, temperature, the available water (water activity aW), and pH value. 

Since baked goods always provide sufficient nutrients and mould growth can occur between -10 °C and 60 °C it’s crucial to control the water activity and pH. Mould can hardly grow if the water activity is lowered below 0.78. However, in many cake recipes it is not possible to lower the aW below 0.78 without affecting the eating quality i.e. the softness and moistness. Consequently, the pH has to be lowered and as an additional hurdle, preservatives are frequently used to further prevent mould growth. It is important to mention that preservatives need a certain pH in order to develop their antimicrobial effect. If the pH in the product is not low enough, the preservative will have no or only little effect on microorganisms. 

The Aromatic Shelf Life Extenders can be added together with other liquid ingredients such as egg, water, oil etc. They are very easily dispersible and only a small amount is needed. 

Aromatic Shelf Life Extenders enables a longer shelf life of cakes up to 6-12 month. They control the water activity and pH, which in combination with highly effective preservatives inhibits mould growth and ensures the microbiological safety of the product. Further, they help to retain the moisture and keep the product soft and moist during long storage periods.