Gonca Çelik
Baking Industry Biotechnology Specialist
Novonesis

At Novonesis, we prioritize innovation because we know that consumers are also inclined toward innovative products. Therefore, we are a company that serves the industry with various innovative solutions. Despite the resource shortages awaiting us in the future, we do not limit our efforts solely to the optimization of wheat flour. We also have effective solutions for optimizing different types of flour.

Optimization of flour began for the first time in 1930 by Jorgensen with the addition of ascorbic acid*. In 1998, the first fortified flour was produced by adding folic acid to flour. Nowadays, by primarily adding enzymes, which are biological solutions, to flour, we optimize and make our existing resources more sustainable.

Enzymes, which are biological proteins, help improve flour quality, reduce recipe costs, and mitigate the risks associated with fluctuations in final product quality. Flour optimization essentially means modifying the structural components of flour. The components and biological solutions we use in this modification are as follows:

•  Alpha-amylases, maltogenic amylases, and glucoamylases for starch,
•  Lipases for lipids,
•  Xylanases for non-starch polysaccharides, i.e., pentosans,
•  Proteases for proteins.

Flour optimization allows us to develop a standardized product process, expand producers’ product range by introducing new products, and standardize the quality of the final product.

There are two approaches to standardizing flour quality. The first is the standardization of flour for regular bread types. This is achieved by standardizing the quality of grains produced with different milling qualities. The second approach is to standardize the quality of flour produced for specific applications such as toast bread, wafers, pizza, pasta, etc. Nowadays, it is also possible to obtain multiple types of flour qualities from a single wheat variety using enzymes (Figure 1).

Figure 1

By optimizing the process with enzymes, we can help to reduce added sugar content and eliminate the use of emulsifiers. While doing this, we can achieve it without any perceptible loss in sweetness and even add additional textural properties (Figure 2).

Figure-2

In today’s consumer purchasing criteria, health is a significant parameter, and bread is included in this criterion. We can make bread healthier by reducing added sugar or producing whole-grain bread. According to a study conducted in 2021, with the pandemic, 21% of consumers globally reported that they increased their consumption of whole-grain bread and will continue to consume more in the coming years. However, meeting consumer expectations texturally is quite challenging for producers in making whole grain bread. As seen in Figure 3, it is possible to overcome these challenges with enzymes in a study conducted using 100% rye flour. (Figure 3)

Figure 3

At Novonesis, we prioritize innovation because we know that consumers are also inclined toward innovative products. Therefore, we are a company that serves the industry with various innovative solutions. Despite the resource shortages awaiting us in the future, we do not limit our efforts solely to the optimization of wheat flour. We also have effective solutions for optimizing different types of flour. For example, as seen in the example below, in a study conducted with a mixture of 25% chickpea flour and 75% white flour, different dosages of combinations of maltogenic amylase and lipase resulted in improved volume and enhanced crumb structure compared to the control sample (Figure 4).

Figure 4

Our biotechnological solutions not only cater to the bread cereal group but also provide high-quality textural experiences, sustainability, raw material flexibility, and cost optimization for a wide range of products in the food and beverage sector.

An example of raw material optimization can be illustrated with durum wheat: In pasta production, different countries integrate production according to different regulations. For instance, while Turkey predominantly uses 100% durum wheat for pasta production, markets like Africa, Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon demand pasta made from 100% bread flour. Therefore, depending on the quality of the raw materials, there are three main pasta production processes:

1. 100% Durum semolina

2. 100% Bread wheat flour

3. 70% Bread wheat flour + 30% Durum semolina, along with other various combinations.

In systems where 100% durum semolina is not used, producers often face various quality issues in the final product due to fluctuations in raw material quality. With enzymatic solutions, it is possible to achieve pasta with equivalent textural properties to those made with durum wheat, even in a 100% flour-based production. There are certain quality criteria for the best-quality pasta in terms of texture. These include:

•  Amber Yellow color level
•  Fragility-Hardness
•  Stickiness
•  Less cooking loss
•  High water retention capacity during cooking

At Novonesis, with the enzymes we have developed for pasta production, we can help improve the cooking quality of the final product and reduce cooking loss and stickiness. With these effects, we can optimize production costs and provide flexibility in raw material usage by reducing dependence on durum semolina. Below, you can see examples of short-cut pasta experiments made with 100% wheat flour (Figure 5) or a mixture of 70% wheat flour and 30% durum (Figure 6). In texture analysis, it is possible to see that the enzymes we have developed for pasta production increase firmness compared to control samples and yield better results in blind taste tests.

Figure 5

In conclusion, our biotechnological solutions help our customers achieve performance advantages for their products. Our offered bio-solutions options allow for greater utilization of raw materials, create new values, and provide energy and water savings. They also offer sustainability advantages in terms of performance, cost, and less waste to the environment.

Figure 6

Despite the challenges facing our world and industries, enzymes offer solutions that are both sustainable and meet consumer expectations. At Novonesis, we will continue to develop environmentally friendly solutions that contribute to the continuity of food supply chains, support the cost focus of our partner manufacturers, and provide production performance.

You can reach out to your preferred flour and/or bread developer partner to learn more about our solutions.

* Dizlek, H. ve Gül, H., 2007. L-Ascorbic Acid and its Functions at Bread Making. Süleyman Demirel Üniversitesi Ziraat Fakültesi Dergisi, 2 (1):26-34.