Company: Cargill

Website: www.cargill.com

Ingredient Snapshot: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) Letter of No Objection for Cargill’s canola lecithin for use as a multipurpose ingredient in a variety of foods.

This determination gives food manufacturers another tool to deliver label-friendly product attributes consumers increasingly seek. Canola lecithin is a non-GM^* option, may be used in organic products and does not have to be declared as a major food allergen in the US.

“Increasingly, our customers wish to formulate their products with simple ingredients that consumers know and trust,” said Cargill texturizing solutions regional director Americas, David Henstrom. “We know lecithin is well accepted by consumers. By adding canola lecithin to our well-established soy and sunflower lecithin GMO and Non-GMO portfolio, our customers can be assured that whatever their needs, we have plant-sourced lecithin options that will work for them.”  

A versatile emulsifier and dispersing agent, Cargill’s canola lecithin may be used in a wide variety of food applications, including chocolate and confectionery, beverages, bakery and convenience foods. Its dispersibility as well as its functionality, taste and color are comparable to that of soy and sunflower lecithin. As a result, Cargill’s canola lecithin may be used as a one-to-one replacement for other lecithin types, making it easy for food manufacturers to incorporate into their product formulations with only minor adaptations.

Among their many applications, Cargill researchers have determined that the company’s premium plant-sourced lecithin products can be used to reduce the number of ingredients in commercial breads, helping meet consumer demand for simpler labels with fewer ingredients.