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SPECIAL FOCUS

The Unique Properties of Natural

Citrus Fiber for Beverage Applications

A natural citrus fiber derived from citrus by preventing the network from contracting. All natural citrus fiber products act as natural
1
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fruit, has a wide variety of functions emulsifiers and can be used to emulsify fat and flavor oils in these beverages.
Whether you are looking for mouthfeel, a clouding agent, an emulsifier, or you would
within the beverage market. A natural like to make your pulpy formulations more cost effective, a natural citrus fiber can deliver
1
citrus fiber is manufactured from the on functionality without resorting to less natural alternatives.
1
fiber left over from the citrus juicing A natural citrus fiber is non-GMO, gluten-free and contributes fiber. This natural
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industry. The fibrous material is run ingredient can be labeled as citrus fiber, dried citrus pulp or citrus flour which resonate
through a physical process that opens well in the clean label markets.
the fiber up. No chemicals or additives
are used in the process, just water. The
fiber still retains much of the architecture
that nature designed it to have, which
includes insoluble cellulosic material
and pectin. A natural citrus fiber can
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hold seven to ten times its weight in
water, and can emulsify fifteen to twenty
times its weight in oil. It is a particle
rather than a long chain hydrocolloid,
which means it gives a natural body
to any beverage. It does not require
heat to hydrate and is stable in low pH,
thermally processed applications.

A natural citrus fiber comes in three major grind
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sizes. A natural citrus fiber passes through a mesh
1-a
with 595 micron; a natural citrus fiber passes
1-b
through 149 micron; and a natural citrus fiber 1-c
passes through 74 micron mesh. These different
grind sizes can be used to control the appearance,
mouthfeel and viscosity of the finished beverage.
A natural citrus fiber 1-a can be used where a pulpy
texture is desired. A natural citrus fiber 1-b can be
used to replace finer pulps. These are especially
useful for extending or replacing more expensive
fruit pulp such as durian or mango. Using 0.25-1%
natural citrus fiber can replace up to 30% of the
1-b
fruit pulp in a smoothie type beverage without
compromising the mouthfeel or flavor.
The extensive surface area gives a natural citrus
fiber some unique properties. The natural fiber’s
1-c
surface area is ideal to plate flavor oils on. It is
possible to achieve a 20-25% load on a natural
citrus fiber simply by mixing the oil with a natural
1-c
citrus fiber with a ribbon blender. This gives the
1-c
formulator a tool to deliver more intense flavor,
mouthfeel as well as cloud to powdered instant type
beverages.
A natural citrus fiber can also be used in
1-c
conjunction with high acyl gellan gum to add a
creamy note to ready-to-drink creamy beverages.
Gellan gum is a useful suspending agent because
it forms a fluid-gel network that easily suspends
larger particles. However, its fluid-gel network can
tighten up over time causing syneresis. Addition of
a natural citrus fiber helps to stabilize the network
1-c
JUN 2018 FOOD FOCUS THAILAND 39