In the last decade, consumer demand for clean label products has increased. Nowadays, consumers are demanding a lot more from food. Delivering fresh and tasty food is not enough, it must also be natural and healthy. But as time passes, the quality of food starts to deteriorate and this affects not only taste, aroma and texture, but also causes health risks and waste. In response to this, Kancor has created OxiKan CL, which won the IFT 2018 Food Expo Innovation Award for the comparative study on the shelf-life enhancement of popcorn.

Kancor developed their breakthrough natural antioxidant, OxiKan CL, a fully decolorized, deodorized and deflavored liquid extract of selective antioxidant molecules of rosemary, which doesn’t alter the organoleptic profile of the food matrix. OxiKan CL has been tested extensively for its impact on the most sensitive foods and has proven to now contribute any visible color or odor to the matrix, even at the highest dosage levels, according to Kancor.

Furthermore, when it comes to oxidative stability, OxiKan CL was also tested for efficacy in sensitive food matrices. Its impact was comparable to that of other leading natural and synthetic antioxidants. OxiKan CL successfully outperformed natural tocopherol at a fraction of its dosage and also TBHQ, which is a popular synthetic antioxidant, thereby demonstrating increased effectiveness in enhancing shelf-life of sensitive foods like popcorn.

OxiKan CL is an entirely natural, label-friendly solution that is free from irradiation, is non-GMO, halal and kosher certified. According to Kancor, it is an ideal natural antioxidant solution for sensitive food applications that include popcorn, beverages, spreads and dressings.

One of the major reasons for the deterioration of food is the auto-oxidation of lipids by which the food develops off-odors and flavors, loses its visual appeal and nutritional value. Antioxidants are substances that prolong the shelf-life of food by delaying the oxidation process and preventing the degradation and rancidity of unsaturated fats and oils in it.

Since the 1940s, synthetic antioxidants have been dominant in food preservation and shelf-life extension. Recent studies question the safety of using synthetic antioxidants, with research clearly pointing to the fact that these can be detrimental to human health. This has led to a rapid change in preferences, with consumers increasingly choosing natural products over synthetic ones.

Meanwhile, rosemary extract has been the most dominant natural antioxidant among North American and European consumers due to its familiarity and acceptance as a common culinary ingredient. Rosemary extracts, when used as an antioxidant imparts flavor, aroma and color to the final applications.

This poses a challenge and was always considered a significant limitation by food processors in using it in pre-packaged foods. Rosemary extracts are thus not preferred for sensitive food matrices which are sensitive to flavor and color. Food technologists at Kancor decided to address this problem directly, by developing a robust, yet fully refined natural antioxidant solution from rosemary.

Kancor's R&D team has undertaken extensive application studies on various food matrices like snacks such as meat patties, popcorn, chips, fats, oils beverages using this innovative ingredient.