Sourced from citrus peels and apple pomace, pectin has appeal for a wide range of applications. This label-friendly texturizer with gelling and thickening functionalities features everything from ice cream to vegan gummies.

Pectin has widespread consumer recognition as an ingredient by evoking memories of homemade jams and jellies “like grandma made”. In fact, 53% of European consumers are familiar with pectin as a key ingredient in food. It also plays into key consumer trends such as sugar reduction, label-friendliness and sustainability. Product launch numbers illustrate this success. 7% growth was reported in new product launches containing pectin in Europe (2023 vs. 2022).

Jams remain the biggest application area for pectin, with the ingredient featuring in some 80% of new spread launches. At the same time, pectin is staking its claim in dairy too. The ingredient features in 55% of all new spoonable dairy and plant-based yogurt launches, where it delivers texture and stability. Here, the rise in plant-based alternatives presents significant growth potential for pectin too.

Pectin is one of the core ingredients in the Cargill label-friendly portfolio. Whether customers are looking for specific gelation, setting speed, viscosity, mouthfeel or stabilisation, there is a UniPectine solution that has undergone extensive testing and will help to deliver an outstanding consumer product. The latest addition to the UniPectine solutions portfolio is label-friendly LMCPlus, a range of conventional low methoxyl pectins (LMC) that delivers great gel strength performance.

UniPectine LMCPlus solutions perform in low-sugar/high-fruit applications, including jams, jellies and bake-stable fruit fillings. A new variant has also been developed which is suitable for dairy and dairy alternative applications.

UniPectine LMCPlus solutions are suited for both conventional and organic market applications in Europe!

• UniPectine LMCPlus for fruit applications: LMCPlus for fruit allows fruit processors to market high-quality, cost-efficient and on-trend jams/jelly/spreads and fruit-filled bakery products. They make novel textures possible due to their superior gel strength performance while improving cost-effectiveness. This new family of solutions is available in a range of gel strengths and setting temperatures/rates

• UniPectine LMCPlus for dairy applications: LMCPlus for dairy is the key ingredient to achieving smooth, appealing stirred yogurt with no compromise on texture while enjoying label-friendly, organic-suitable ingredients and cost-efficiencies. It provides a smooth texture and a nice appearance to stirred yogurt and dairy alternatives. It can replace LMA (amidated low methoxyl) pectin with no material compromise on functionality and can offer cost efficiency, too.

These two new solutions are just part of the broad UniPectine range, which is all about taking our customers’ product formulations further. Through the combination of our technical and application expertise and our unparalleled portfolio, Cargill can help our customers navigate the technical demands of a whole range of specifications in terms of reactivity, pH, calcium content of fruit, filling temperature and more.

Learn more here.

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