Natural shelf-life extension food additives edge out synthetic antioxidants

The shift to production of natural ingredients spurred by demand for healthier options will easily edge out synthetic antioxidants, says Frost & Sullivan in the report North American Shelf-life Extension Food Additives Market. Products like green tea extracts, oregano and grape extracts are growing in popularity amongst customers looking to enhance their brand image with clean label tags.

But manufacturers face several challenges in production of natural products. The shortage of the by-product form from the vegetable oil distillation (VOD) process has caused a significant scarcity of natural Vitamin E as a shelf-life extension food additive.

"Apart from the shortage of raw materials used for extracting natural antioxidants, a demand-supply imbalance has escalated the prices of natural antioxidants," said Frost & Sullivan research analyst Ashwin Raj Ravinder. "Naturally derived antioxidants such as mixed tocopherols are particularly challenged by huge price hikes."

As a result, ingredient manufacturers are blending different antioxidants that prolong the shelf life of food products. For instance rosemary extracts are blended with mixed tocopherols and ascorbyl palmitate to reduce the final cost of the product and yet improve the overall efficacy of the antioxidant.

"Furthermore, antioxidants manufacturers are resorting to vertical integration," said Ravinder. "Strategic partnerships and alliances with raw material suppliers are critical to gain market share in the natural shelf-life extension food additives market."

Suppliers can also remain competitive by partnering with end users and implementing co-branding strategies.

The report part of the Food and Beverage Ingredients Growth Partnership Services programme, which also includes research in the following markets: European Shelf Life Extension Food Additives Market and Asia-Pacific Shelf-Life Extension Food Additives Market. All research services incAir Max 90 LTHR Suede