Arla Foods Ingredients has developed a new solution to increase the protein content of juice-style oral nutrition supplements (ONS) for medical nutrition. The concept will be on show at the forthcoming Vitafoods Europe (May 9th to 11th).
Most ONS are milky beverages, but recent years have seen juice-style drinks emerge as a fresh-tasting alternative. However, such products remain niche, accounting for just 3.7% of adult liquid ONS launches over the past five years.* One reason for this might be that the average protein content of ONS juice-style drinks is just 4.2g per 100g.
Arla Foods Ingredients has now created a solution that makes it possible to increase the level of protein in ONS juice-style drinks to 7% without compromising on taste or mouthfeel. The new concept incorporates Lacprodan® BLG-100, a 100% pure beta-lactoglobulin with an outstanding nutritional profile. It contains 7g of protein per 100g and is high in essential amino acids, including leucine (1.13g per 100g).
Juice-style medical drinks made with Lacprodan® BLG-100 are an excellent source of protein and energy. The new solution is fat-free and the use of BLG-100 enables very low viscosity and stability over shelf life. In addition, it tastes less astringent than typical ONS juice-style products and provides a more pleasant mouthfeel, encouraging compliance in medical nutrition.
Troels Nørgaard Laursen, Director for Health & Performance at Arla Foods Ingredients, said: “Juice-style options are a promising alternative to traditional milky oral nutritional supplements, but there has been room for improvement when it comes to their protein profile. Lacprodan® BLG-100 is a great solution to this challenge. It’s rich in essential amino acids – in particular leucine – and helps ONS deliver a more palatable drinking experience.”
Arla Foods Ingredients will exhibit at Vitafoods Europe on Stand G30. Other concepts on show will include innovative solutions for high-protein ready-to-drink tea and coffee, and a multi-textured bar with protein in every layer, a special edition of which has been created for Vitafoods.
