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OxiKan, a range of natural antioxidants extracted from the finest Rosemary offers a way to extend shelf life the natural way, without resorting to artificial or chemical means.
Antioxidants are substances that prolong the shelf life of food by delaying the oxidation process. Synthetic antioxidants were widely used to arrest undesirable deterioration of food products, but recent research studies indicate that these cause detrimental effects and are viewed as a threat to human health.
Mane Kancor has identified ways to tackle oxidation in food by providing natural solutions. It all started with the enquiry for a shelf life enhancement solution in a meat -product. Mane Kancor’s R&D team tried to understand the customer’s requirements and performed application studies to test the solutions for their oxidation management problems. Thus, OxiKan was born, a range of natural antioxidants extracted from the finest Rosemary. Research has identified three main principles in Rosemary – Carnosic Acid, Carnosol and Rosmarinic Acid that inhibit the oxidation of other molecules by being oxidised themselves. This helped in extending the shelf life of the product by fighting rancidity in oils and fats and stabilising natural colours.
The current food industry crisis is multi-fold in nature – geopolitical problems, production challenges arising from climatic changes, and supply chain disruptions. There is a widespread fear of food shortage, triggering a tendency to go on buying for long term rather than for immediate consumption.
The current crisis has most impacted the edible oil markets globally, affecting the world economy to its kitchen. As vegetable oils are inevitable and option-less when it comes to cuisines of the world, such crises and shortages force manufacturers to settle for the available quantity of oil, while exploring to extend the shelf-life of the same.
Apart from domestic usage, vegetable oils are largely consumed for commercial purposes in various applications like savoury, snacks, confectionery, bakery and ready-to-eat, to mention a few. If the quality of the vegetable oil diminishes in these categories, the quality of the end application will also be affected drastically.
Fatty acid profile of oils are individualistic in nature. Oils that have higher unsaturation and larger number of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are more prone to oxidation. Oxidation is a series of chemical reactions that reduces the quality of oil, create oil rancidity leading to its loss of flavour and formation that makes the end application less palatable to consumers.
Exposure to certain factors such as light, temperature, availability of oxygen, moisture and metal ions can speed up the rate of oxidation. Therefore, it is of primary importance that both intrinsic and extrinsic measures are adopted to delay oxidation and to improve the quality of oils and fats used in food processing.
Even before the current food industry crisis arose, Mane Kancor has been exploring ways to improve the shelf-life of various food ingredients. The focus on shelf-life was more challenging initially as we insisted on keeping it sustainable and natural.
At our laboratories we go through a range of experiments to understand the rate and different stages of oxidation of different types of oils. Rancimat Induction Time Analysis is one of the most common methods used to determine the oxidative stability of edible oils and fats. It analyses the induction time, which is the time period between relatively slow reactions before it speeds up and is expressed as number of hours. This induction time is an indication of the oxidative stability of the oil or fat. The longer the induction time, the lesser would be the lipid oxidation in the oil.
By recording the induction period and oxidative stability of different oils, we were able to nail down on the right requirement for an optimal antioxidant solution. Mane Kancor’s technical team has worked closely with oils & fat industry to understand the prevalent challenges in shelf-life and to develop a range of application-specific natural antioxidant solutions under its Trademark – OxiKan.
OxiKan covers a wide range of natural antioxidants that are extracted from Rosemary, a kitchen cupboard ingredient, and offers a way to extend shelf-life naturally without resorting to any artificial or chemical means. Highly refined OxiKan solutions successfully improves the shelf-life of various fats and oils by preventing on-set of rancidity without in any way impacting the colour, odour, or taste of the end application.
*In order to understand the capability of Mane Kancor’s proprietary solution OxiKan R Plus is replacing synthetic antioxidant molecules at a similar dosage and strength, both antioxidants were dosed at prevalent GMP levels in the oil and oxidative stability studies were conducted using Rancimat Metrohm.
The results of the evaluation in various oil formats with differing fatty acid profiles and level of unsaturation, shows that OxiKan has the capability to double the shelf-life of vegetable oils and can easily be a more label-friendly replacement to prevalent synthetic antioxidants in the industry.
To know about Mane Kancor’s focused shelf-life solutions for the oil industry and related applications, contact us at enquirykancor@mane.com
*Product application, usage and dosages are subject to region specific regulation. Contact Mane Kancor for more information.
Mane Kancor is a leading manufacturer of natural antioxidants. Our Award winning natural antioxidants extracted from the finest rosemary under the brand name Oxikan is complaint with global food safety strandards. It is exported to more than 75 countries worldwide.
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What is Shelf-life?
Shelf-life is defined as “the period of time during which the food product will remain safe; be certain to retain its desired sensory, chemical, physical, microbiological, and functional characteristics; where appropriate, comply with any label declaration of nutrition data, when stored under the recommended conditions.”
What is Oxidation?
Oxidation is a reaction that takes place when oxygen has access to products containing fat or pigments.
How does oxidation affect Shelf-life?
When fats oxidise, they produce “off” odours and flavours (stale, rancid odours). Often, if fats oxidise, vitamins also oxidise and lose their activity. When pigments oxidise, they can change colour completely.
What are Antioxidants?
Antioxidants are substances used to preserve food by retarding deterioration, rancidity, or discoloration due to oxidation. Antioxidants gets to oxidise themselves to inhibit the oxidation of other molecules.
Where are antioxidants applied?
All food & beverages, cosmetic & personal care applications and feed and petfood applications will need antioxidants for shelf-life stability. Different antioxidants maybe required for different applications depending on the antioxidant activity, level of refinement, solubility, format for mode of application, label claims and sustainability factors.
What are natural antioxidants?
Natural antioxidants are substances (plants) found in nature that are said to possess antioxidation properties. Some of the most commonly available natural antioxidants are:
Tocopherols - One of the first liposoluble herb based antioxidant to be isolated from plants. Due to their high concentration and habitual presence in vegetable oils, such as soybean or sunflower oil, Tocopherols are known as the most common antioxidant in nature. This herb based antioxidant mainly exists as a combination of 4 isomers Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta. Numerous studies have proved that the antioxidant property of shelf life enhancement lies in the Gamma and Delta isomers.
Rosemary Extract – Another herb based antioxidant, it is an extract obtained from the herb Rosemary using solvents suitable for consumption. Carnosic Acid, Carnosol and Rosmarinic Acid are the 3 main components that provide its natural antioxidant property.
What are Synthetic or Artificial Antioxidants and how does it affect our health?
Synthetic antioxidants unlike natural antioxidants, are composed using chemical compounds. They help in longer shelf life enhancement but at the same time could lead to health concerns. Some of the most commonly used artificial antioxidants are:
BHT / BHA - These compounds are termed as phenolic antioxidants and are capable of stabilising free radicals by isolating them and preventing chain reactions. BHA is primarily used for food preservatives whereas BHT is a synthetic variant of vitamin E and can be found in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, petroleum products etc. Unlike natural preservatives, these antioxidants are said to be carcinogenic.
TBHQ - Another antioxidant that is commonly used in vegetable oils and animal fats. It is heat-stable and is considered an effective antioxidant in the prevention of oxidation of frying oil. This is also considered to be harmful for health and is known to cause visual impairments, neurotoxic effects that can lead to paralysis.
Ascorbic Acid - A white crystalline powder used to stabilise beverages, fruits and vegetables. This additive acts as a natural antioxidant through the removal of oxygen, the reduction of free radicals and the regeneration of primary antioxidants. It is considered to be safe as a food additive and does not have any usage limitations.
Why are Rosemary Extracts preferred as a natural antioxidant?
Rosemary Extracts contain naturally fat-soluble and water-soluble antioxidant molecules. Carnosic acid, the fat-soluble, antioxidant molecule in rosemary has been proven to have higher antioxidant power than natural mixed tocopherols. Also, being mostly wildly grown in the Mediterranean region, rosemary is non-GMO and has minimal risk of contamination from pesticides and pollutants. It is also available in large quantities for industrial extraction and use.
What is OxiKan?
Mane Kancor, a pioneer in providing natural ingredient solutions since 1969, has come up with OxiKan – a range of natural antioxidants extracted from the finest of rosemary to tackle oxidation.
How is OxiKan different from other Rosemary Extracts in the Market?
Rosemary extracts, when used as an antioxidant, imparts flavour, aroma and colour to the end application. This poses a challenge to many manufacturers. Mane Kancor addressed these challenges by developing a range of OxiKan products that has no impact on the colour, odour or flavour of the end application. Also, many food manufacturers find it difficult to replace leading synthetic antioxidants with rosemary extracts due to the high dosages required. Mane Kancor addressed these challenges by developing a range of OxiKan products with very high antioxidant activity and thermal stability. These variants can outperform synthetic antioxidants in various applications. Mane Kancor provides a wide range of OxiKan variants for different end applications.
Is OxiKan an effective natural preservative for fresh meat?
Prone to surface oxidation, the best way to retain freshness and shelf life enhancement of meat is by topical application of antioxidants. However, natural antioxidant solutions like rosemary extracts contain lipid soluble colour components that lend a yellow colouration to the meat fat, which can be misconstrued as spoilage by consumers. Unlike other commercially available rosemary extracts, OxiKan, a highly refined enriched natural antioxidant, prolongs the shelf life without impacting colour or odour.
Does the herb based antioxidant, OxiKan, work effectively on packaged foods that are cooked under high temperatures?
Foods processed under high temperature conditions face accelerated oxidation, and a much shorter shelf-life. However, this natural preservative, Mane Kancor’s unique enriched extract of selective antioxidant molecules of rosemary, is more potent than other synthetic and natural antioxidants; it efficiently stabilises packaged foods and aids in the shelf life enhancement.
What kind of products can herb based antioxidants like OxiKan be applied on for shelf life enhancement?
Mane Kancor’s highly refined multi-purpose, high performance, colourless and flavourless natural herb-based antioxidant solutions, OxiKan, offers a wide range of natural antioxidant solutions suitable for different product applications. It can be used for shelf life enhancement of seasonings, packaged foods, baked foods, fats and edible oils, flavouring ingredients, meat, poultry and seafood, cosmetic & personal care products etc. It works as a natural preservative. Available in both liquid and powder format, this herb based antioxidant is also suitable for food processed under high heat.
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