Want a soymilk shake with those fries?

Researchers offer new "functional foods"

Kim Severson, Chronicle Staff Writer

Wednesday, May 21, 2003

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The link between health and diet is growing by the day, which means that shoppers are increasingly hungry for "functional foods" -- that is, food that is either enhanced or marketed as doing more than just filling you up.

Food processors are well aware of the trend, and are searching for products that consumers will buy because of perceived extra health value. That's in large part why the California Institute of Food and Agricultural Research, based at UC Davis, chose "food functionality" as the theme for a conference last week at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena.

The event brought together some of the world's top food scientists and agricultural researchers. Among the speakers were representatives from the Danish company Danisco, one of the world's largest makers of food ingredients. (To understand what they do, consider their latest product: a frozen fruit bar made with a combination of locust bean gum and another stabilizer that doesn't melt in the sun, but rather turns into a fruity jelly.)

Also on hand was a research chef from New Jersey-based Firmenich, Inc., the largest privately owned flavor and fragrance company in the world.

So what's the future of nutritionally enhanced food? Here are a few of the ideas being worked on in the labs:

-- Flavored trans-fat free fryer oil.

-- Reduced carbohydrate baked goods. In particular, food scientists are developing low-carbohydrate buns for the fast-food giants.

-- Some of those same companies -- McDonald's, Wendy's and Burger King, in particular -- have asked for a formula to make soy-based milk shakes.

-- Organic flavorings for snack foods, so companies like Frito-Lay can offer all-organic chips.

-- Foods made without the use of genetically modified ingredients.

-- Veggie burgers made without allergens such as seafood, nuts and soy.

-- Vegan and vegetarian processed food with better flavors.

-- Food with more health-giving flavonols, like the ones found in cocoa, red wine and green tea.

-- New uses from herbs and other plants common in Chinese medicine.

Demographics and social change are driving the development of many of these projects, researchers said. For example, the number of people categorized as "nutritionally conscious" is growing. And, the population is aging -- by 2010, 20 percent of Americans will be 65 or older. That means people will be hungrier than ever for food that might help them live longer, look younger or feel better.

Also, as private and public health care costs continue to rise, prevention of disease will be more important than ever and the responsibility for health will shift to the individual.

But, notes Leif Kjaergaard, senior vice president of Danisco, taste will drive all the changes on the market. If the new functional foods don't taste good, consumers won't buy them. "When you have a Mars bar that has some nutritional value," he says, "now that will be interesting."

E-mail Kim Severson at kseverson~sfchronicle.com.