News

Kalsec makes "significant investment" with new UK lab

21 Nov 2017

Natural spice and herb extract producer Kalsec has made what it describes as a significant investment in its European operation with a new laboratory at the Mildenhall, United Kingdom location.

Natural spice and herb extract producer Kalsec has made what it describes as significant investments in its European operation. A new laboratory with state-of-the-art analytical facilities has been installed at the Mildenhall, United Kingdom location.

“Our company is known for supplying superb natural herb, spice, vegetable and hop ingredients to food and drink manufacturers,” said James Smith, managing director, Europe. “The new lab delivers benefits beyond those already offered by our products and supplies customers with scientific measures of changes in their food products over set periods of time. This means Kalsec can offer retailers scientific evidence to back up their claims about consistency, stability and, most importantly, shelf life. These results will show the positive impact of Kalsec ingredients on flavour and aroma retention – and sustaining the colour and appearance of products.”

The new laboratory offers Kalsec the capability to support meat suppliers and processors, fats and oils producers and soup, sauce and dressings manufacturers with scientific evidence as well as insights and novel applications.

“The opportunity to increase shelf life and reduce waste while enhancing flavour and overall experience for the consumer continues to be a priority for packaged food and ready-meal manufacturers,” said Smith.

Kalsec says its naturally-sourced herbs and spices can extend the shelf life of ground beef, stabilize the color of pepperoni, and provide innovative flavour profiles for sauces or marinades for prepared meals.

“We’re continuously researching and conducting trials to improve techniques for extracting natural raw materials that help stabilize a wide range of foods,” said Smith. “Retailers and consumers get the benefit of products that consistently look, taste and smell fresh regardless of season or location. We combine our extraction capabilities and knowledge of culinary expertise to transform customer products into world class meals with ethnic or regional dimensions.”

The enhanced team of food scientists is equipped to duplicate a wide range of preparation techniques, including baking and confections, soups, sauces, dressings, marinades, snacks, pickled products, meat and poultry, seasonings and beverages. New additions to the team include Dr. Paul Seymour, technical director, Dr. Henna Lu, lead antioxidant scientist, and Justyna Klusek, food applications scientist.

“The laboratory gives us the capability to conduct state-of-the-art technical analysis,” said Vince Martin, European market development manager at Kalsec. “Our highly-qualified and experienced team is able to support our natural extract applications with scientific evidence of the benefits to the final product.”