Naturex and Galactic together to develop a range of preservation systems

There is a new French-Belgian joint research program in the bioeconomy. Naturex, the global leader in specialty plant-based natural ingredients, headquartered in Avignon, and Galactic, the world expert in lactic acid and lactates based natural ingredients, headquartered in Brussels, launched it last Friday to develop a range of preservation systems that include both anti-microbial and antioxidant protection.

Guaranteeing adequate shelf life for food and beverage products can be particularly challenging for manufacturers who are seeking natural solutions. Products must be safe to consume and keep their organoleptic properties. Preservation thus requires a combination of 2 types of ingredients, which must be synchronized to have the same duration of efficacy in order to optimize cost.

Combining their respective areas of expertise in natural food safety and natural antioxidant solutions, Galactic and Naturex will develop standardized and all-in-one shelf life solutions tailored to each type of application. “This partnership aims at creating a palette of preservation systems that will help manufacturers to simplify product development,” said Jean-Christophe Bogaert, Director Sales, Marketing & Business Development at Galactic.

Jean-Christophe Bogaert co-heads the research program with François-Xavier Pierre, R&D Food Manager at Naturex. The team brings together the R&D and application laboratories of the two companies. Scientists will explore the possibilities of integrating complementary preservation systems, as well as creating synergistic blends from a selection of materials and incorporating them into the final application. “Besides proper calibration, we go beyond a simple combination of 2 ingredients, we will offer tested and proven comprehensive solutions for different matrices,” explained Pierre from Naturex.

The R&D team will mainly focus on applications where both food safety and organoleptic properties play an important role. The first results of this long-term collaboration will be unveiled in 2014.