Powdered food components

Abstract

To improve the flowability of a powder food composition including rice bran with ferulic acid added thereto.SOLUTION: A powder food composition includes rice bran with ferulic acid added thereto. The powder food composition further contains tea extract.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a powdered food composition.

Background Art

[0002] Generally, a powdered food composition containing rice bran is known. For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, it has been proposed to effectively utilize the action of the functional components contained in rice bran.

[0003] Ferulic acid is a functional component contained in rice bran. For example, Patent Document 2 describes the antioxidant action of ferulic acid. For example, Patent Document 3 shows the relationship between ferulic acid and the improvement of cognitive function.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Patent Document 3

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] In a powdered food composition containing rice bran, there is a desire to improve the actions such as the above-mentioned antioxidant action and the improvement of cognitive function. The inventors of the present case attempted to achieve the above desire by further adding ferulic acid to the powdered food composition containing rice bran. However, the inventors found that when ferulic acid is further added to the powdered food composition containing rice bran, the fluidity of the powdered food composition decreases as compared with the case where ferulic acid is not added.

[0006] If a powdered food composition has low fluidity, work efficiency may decrease, for example, when filling the powdered food composition into containers. Therefore, powdered food compositions that ensure high fluidity are required. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A powdered food composition for solving the above problems is a powdered food composition obtained by adding ferulic acid to rice bran, and is characterized by containing tea extract. In the above powdered food composition, it is preferable that the content of ferulic acid is 0.1 parts by mass or more and the content of tea extract is 0.01 parts by mass or more per 100 parts by mass of rice bran.

[0008] The above powdered food composition preferably further contains heated palatinose. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] The powdered food composition of the present invention can improve the fluidity of a powdered food composition obtained by adding ferulic acid to rice bran. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a test apparatus used to evaluate the fluidity of an example of a powdered food composition. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the hopper in the test apparatus. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] The following describes one embodiment of the powdered food composition. The powdered food composition of this embodiment is a powdered food composition obtained by adding ferulic acid to rice bran, and contains tea extract.

[0012] The following describes each component that makes up the powdered food composition. <Rice bran> The above-mentioned rice bran is not particularly limited, and any known rice bran can be used. Known rice bran includes, for example, the pericarp, seed coat, exotosperm, and starch layer of brown rice, which are by-products when brown rice is polished to produce white rice.

[0013] Rice bran may be treated with lipase inactivation. Rice bran generally contains about 20% by mass of oil, so there is a risk that hydrolysis and oxidation of the oil by lipase will proceed rapidly. For this reason, it is preferable to perform lipase inactivation treatment as soon as possible after polishing. The lipase inactivation treatment is not particularly limited, but can be carried out by heating the rice bran at a temperature of 70°C to 130°C, for example. For the heat treatment, cooking equipment, dry extruders, wet extruders, steam treatment devices, etc. can be used.

[0014] The oil content of the rice bran is not particularly limited, but is, for example, 5% by mass or more and 19% by mass or less. The upper limit of the oil content is more preferably 15% by mass. The lower limit of the oil content is more preferably 9% by mass.

[0015] The oil content of rice bran may be adjusted by degreasing the rice bran using a known method. Rice bran with an oil content of 19% by mass or less is also referred to as defatted rice bran. Commercially available defatted rice bran that has been pre-treated with lipase inactivation may be used as the defatted rice bran.

[0016] The particle size distribution of rice bran is not particularly limited, but it is preferable that the proportion of particles with a particle size of 35 μm or less is 50% or more, more preferably 70% or more, and even more preferably 90% or more.

[0017] The method for measuring particle size distribution is not particularly limited, and known measurement methods can be used. Examples of known particle size distribution measuring devices include the laser diffraction / scattering particle size distribution analyzer (LMS-3000, manufactured by Seishin Corporation).

[0018] Ferulic acid Ferulic acid is a type of polyphenol. Ferulic acid is also called, for example, trans-4-hydroxy-3-methoxycinnamic acid.

[0019] Although there is no particular limitation on the ferulic acid contained in the powdered food composition, for example, extracts extracted from cereals such as rice, wheat, and barley, vegetables such as tomatoes and carrots, and fruits such as pineapples and oranges can be used. It is particularly preferable to use an extract extracted from rice bran. The method for extracting ferulic acid is not particularly limited, and a known extraction method can be adopted.

[0020] Chemically synthesized ferulic acid may also be used. The ferulic acid contained in the powdered food composition may be a derivative such as dihydroferulic acid. Ferulic acid may be contained as a salt. Examples of ferulic acid salts include salts with inorganic bases such as sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium, and salts with organic bases such as ammonium and triethylamine.

[0021] The powdered food composition may contain one type of ferulic acid or may contain a combination of two or more types of ferulic acid. 〈Tea extract〉 The tea extract is an extract extracted from tea leaves obtained from Camellia sinensis. Examples of the type of tea leaves include green tea, black tea, oolong tea, etc. The method for extracting the tea extract is not particularly limited, and a known extraction method can be adopted.

[0022] The tea extract contains, for example, catechins. The content of catechins in the tea extract is not particularly limited. The form of the tea extract is not particularly limited, but it is preferably in powder form. When the tea extract is in powder form, the particle size (mesh path) is not particularly limited, but for example, it is between 10 and 100. The upper limit of the particle size is preferably 80, and more preferably 60. The lower limit of the particle size is preferably 30, and more preferably 50. When the tea extract is in powder form, the D50 is not particularly limited, but for example, it is between 1 μm and 50 μm. The upper limit of the D50 is preferably 40 μm, and more preferably 30 μm. The lower limit of the D50 is preferably 10 μm, and more preferably 20 μm. When the tea extract is in powder form, the D90 is not particularly limited, but for example, it is between 30 μm and 90 μm. The upper limit of the D90 is preferably 80 μm, and more preferably 70 μm. The lower limit of the D90 is preferably 40 μm, and more preferably 50 μm.

[0023] Note that D50 refers to the median diameter in the cumulative distribution of particle size. For powders, D10, D50, and D90 refer to the particle size of the particles corresponding to the bottom 10% of the cumulative distribution, the median particle size, and the particle size of the particles corresponding to the bottom 90% of the cumulative distribution, respectively, when the cumulative distribution of particle size for the powder is measured.

[0024] The powdered food composition may contain one type of tea extract, or it may contain a combination of two or more types of tea extracts. It is particularly preferable that the powdered food composition contains a tea extract obtained from green tea leaves.

[0025] <Palatinose (heated product)> The powdered food composition preferably further contains heated palatinose. Heated palatinose is an example of a heated sugar obtained by heat treatment using sugar as a raw material. Heated palatinose can be obtained, for example, by heating isomaltulose at 140°C to 200°C for 10 to 120 minutes.

[0026] The heated palatinose may be isomaltulose that has undergone the heat treatment described above, to which dextrin has been added. The dextrin content in the heated palatinose is not particularly limited, but for example, it is 50% by mass. The particle size (mesh pass) of the heated palatinose is not particularly limited, but for example, it is between 10 and 50.

[0027] <Content of each ingredient> The content of rice bran, ferulic acid, and tea extract in the powdered food composition is not particularly limited, but it is preferable that the rice bran content is 10% to 99% by mass, the ferulic acid content is 0.1% to 5.0% by mass, and the tea extract content is 0.01% to 5.0% by mass.

[0028] The upper limit of the rice bran content is more preferably 70% by mass, and even more preferably 50% by mass. The lower limit of the rice bran content is more preferably 20% by mass. The upper limit of the ferulic acid content is more preferably 3.0% by mass. The lower limit of the ferulic acid content is more preferably 0.5% by mass. The upper limit of the tea extract content is more preferably 3.0% by mass. The lower limit of the tea extract content is more preferably 0.05% by mass.

[0029] Furthermore, the powdered food composition preferably contains 0.1 parts by mass or more and 10 parts by mass of ferulic acid per 100 parts by mass of rice bran. The upper limit of the above content is more preferably 5 parts by mass. The lower limit of the above content is more preferably 0.5 parts by mass. Furthermore, the powdered food composition preferably contains 0.01 parts by mass or more and 10 parts by mass of tea extract per 100 parts by mass of rice bran. The upper limit of the above content is more preferably 5 parts by mass. The lower limit of the above content is more preferably 0.1 parts by mass.

[0030] The content of heated palatinose in the powdered food composition is not particularly limited, but it is preferably 0.5% by mass or more and 5% by mass or less. The upper limit of the heated palatinose content is more preferably 2% by mass. The lower limit of the heated palatinose content is more preferably 1% by mass.

[0031] Furthermore, the powdered food composition preferably contains 0.5 to 20 parts by mass of heated palatinose per 100 parts by mass of rice bran. The upper limit of the above content is more preferably 5 parts by mass. The lower limit of the above content is more preferably 1 part by mass.

[0032] <Application Forms and Uses> The form of the powdered food composition is not particularly limited and includes, for example, powder, flake, and granule forms. Here, "powder" refers to a powdery form with a particle size of 5 mm or less. Therefore, even if it is in the form of flakes or granules, if the particle size is 5 mm or less, it is included in the definition of powder. In other words, the powdered food composition of the present invention is not limited to a form in which the particles of each component are mixed in powder form, but also includes a form in which the particles of each component are molded into flake or granule forms. To put it another way, the powdered food composition includes flake and granule forms.

[0033] Having powdered food compositions in flake or granular form makes it easier to maintain the mixed state of each component. Furthermore, it improves the handling of the powdered food compositions. Furthermore, when forming the material into flakes, granules, or other shapes, known binders may be used as appropriate.

[0034] The powdered food composition of this embodiment is not particularly limited in its use and can be used in general foods, health functional foods, special dietary foods, etc. Furthermore, as a health functional food, it can be used in foods for specified health uses, nutrient function foods, foods with functional claims, etc.

[0035] Specific applications of powdered food compositions include, for example, powdered beverages and powdered soups. As a powdered beverage, it can be used in, for example, green juice drinks, tea-based drinks, sports drinks, beauty drinks, fruit juice drinks, carbonated drinks, alcoholic beverages, soft drinks, etc.

[0036] Furthermore, the powdered food composition may be used as an ingredient in confectionery such as tablets, jellies, snacks, baked goods, fried goods, cakes, chocolates, gum, candy, gummies, soups, noodles, rice dishes, and cereals.

[0037] The powdered food composition may contain food-permissible additives in addition to the components of this embodiment. The amount of these additives is not particularly limited and can be included within a range that is acceptable in terms of its effect on this embodiment.

[0038] <Mechanism of Action and Effects> The operation of this embodiment will now be described. Adding ferulic acid to rice bran results in a decrease in fluidity compared to when ferulic acid is not added.

[0039] Therefore, the powdered food composition of this embodiment contains tea extract in addition to rice bran and ferulic acid. According to the powdered food composition of this embodiment, it is possible to add ferulic acid to rice bran while maintaining good fluidity.

[0040] The effects of this embodiment will now be explained. (1) The powdered food composition is made by adding ferulic acid to rice bran and contains tea extract. According to the powdered food composition, high fluidity can be ensured even while adding ferulic acid to rice bran.

[0041] (2) A powdered food composition in which the content of ferulic acid is 0.1 parts by mass or more and the content of tea extract is 0.01 parts by mass or more per 100 parts by mass of rice bran can suitably be obtained while adding ferulic acid to rice bran and ensuring high fluidity.

[0042] (3) Powdered food compositions further containing heated palatinose can have better fluidity. (4) If the fluidity of the powdered food composition is low, work efficiency may decrease, for example, when filling the powdered food composition into containers. Specifically, if the fluidity of the powder put into the hopper is low, powder that adheres to the inner wall of the hopper is more likely to remain inside the hopper. If the compression and accumulation of the powder remaining in the hopper progresses, phenomena such as bridging and arching may occur, which can cause the hopper to become blocked. If powder adhesion to the hopper or blockage of the hopper occurs in this way, for example, it will be necessary to perform a new process to resolve the adhesion or blockage. In other words, work efficiency will decrease.

[0043] In this respect, the powdered food composition of this embodiment ensures high fluidity. Therefore, when filling the powdered food composition into a container, it is less likely for any powdered food composition to remain in the hopper. As a result, phenomena such as bridging and arching are less likely to occur. The high fluidity of the powdered food composition helps to suppress a decrease in work efficiency when filling the powdered food composition into a container.

[0044] (5) Silicon dioxide is known as an ingredient that can improve the fluidity of powders. In the powder food composition of this embodiment, even if silicon dioxide is not contained, the fluidity can be improved by containing tea extract. Compared to silicon dioxide derived from minerals, tea extract derived from tea leaves is more likely to suit the tastes of users of the powder food composition.

[0045] (6) A powdered food composition in which ferulic acid is added to rice bran can be expected to improve antioxidant activity. (7) A powdered food composition in which ferulic acid is added to rice bran can be expected to improve cognitive function.

[0046] <Example of changes> The above embodiment can be implemented with the following modifications. The above embodiment and the following modifications can be combined with each other to the extent that they do not contradict each other technically.

[0047] The powdered food composition of this embodiment is not limited to food use. For example, it can also be used as a pharmaceutical, quasi-drug, or cosmetic. The powdered food composition of this embodiment may contain silicon dioxide, but the silicon dioxide content is preferably low, and more preferably substantially absent. Here, substantially absent means that it is permissible to contain it at an impurity level. [Examples]

[0048] The powdered food composition will be described in more detail based on the following examples. Note that the powdered food composition is not limited to the configurations described in the Examples section. Commercially available reagents were used for each reagent described in the Examples section.

[0049] (Reference test) The powdered food compositions shown in Reference Examples 1 to 7 in Table 1 were manufactured by mixing each component according to conventional methods.

[0050] [Table 1] In Reference Examples 1-7, rice bran was used in which 90% or more of the particles had a diameter of 35 μm or less. The oil content of this rice bran was 15% by mass or less.

[0051] <Test equipment> Figure 1 shows the test apparatus 10 used in this test. As shown in Figure 1, the test apparatus 10 includes a rectangular base plate 11 and a top plate 14. The test apparatus 10 also includes four support columns 12. The test apparatus 10 also includes a box-shaped container 13. The base plate 11, top plate 14, support columns 12, and container 13 are molded from acrylic resin.

[0052] Each support column 12 is positioned at the four corners of the base plate 11. The box-shaped container 13 is positioned at the center of the base plate 11. The top plate 14 is supported by the support columns 12. The top plate 14 is positioned parallel to the base plate 11. An opening 15 is formed at the center of the top plate 14. The opening 15 is circular. The container 13 is positioned vertically below the opening 15.

[0053] As shown in Figure 1, the test apparatus 10 is equipped with a hopper 20. The hopper 20 is a stainless steel cylinder. The hopper 20 is inserted into the opening 15 of the top plate 14. The hopper 20 is fixed to the top plate 14.

[0054] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the hopper 20 has an inlet 21 located above the top plate 14. The diameter R1 of the inlet 21 is 155 mm. The hopper 20 has an outlet 22 located below the top plate 14. The diameter R2 of the outlet 22 is 38 mm. In the hopper 20, the total length L, which is the length from the inlet 21 to the outlet 22, is 110 mm. In the hopper 20, the inclination angle θ of the inclined surface toward the outlet 22 is 45°. Note that Figures 1 and 2 are schematic illustrations of the test apparatus 10 and the hopper 20 provided in the test apparatus 10, and do not represent the actual dimensional relationships.

[0055] As shown in Figure 1, the test apparatus 10 is equipped with a vibration generator 30. The vibration generator 30 is attached to the hopper 20. The vibration generator 30 is equipped with an electric motor. The vibration generator 30 can transmit vibrations generated by the operation of the electric motor to the hopper 20.

[0056] In the test apparatus 10, the bottom plate 11, top plate 14, support column 12, and container 13 were made from the "Angle of Repose Measuring Instrument ASK-01" manufactured by AS ONE Corporation, with the attached powder hopper removed.

[0057] In the test apparatus 10, the hopper 20 used was the "SA18-8 grain funnel (wide-mouth funnel)" manufactured by Endo Shoji Co., Ltd. In the test apparatus 10, the vibration generator 30 used an electric whisk. The base end of the shaft of the vibration generator 30 is inserted into the rotating shaft of an electric motor (140RA). The tip of the shaft is equipped with an annular ring with a larger diameter than the shaft. The power supply for the electric motor is DC 3.0V.

[0058] <Testing Method> The test apparatus 10 was set up so that the bottom plate 11 was horizontal. 100g of powdered food composition was prepared as the sample powder. The outlet 22 of the hopper 20 was sealed with food wrap film. The sample powder was put into the inlet 21 of the hopper 20. The outlet 22 was opened by removing the food wrap film from the hopper 20, and the vibration generator 30 was activated. The vibration generator 30 was operated for 2 seconds. The vibration generator 30 was stopped 2 seconds after it started operating. The weight of the powder in the container 13 was measured as the amount of powder that fell out of the hopper 20. The sample powder was removed from the test apparatus 10.

[0059] The above procedure was repeated for each sample powder, with five trials. The average of the powder discharge volume measured over the five trials was calculated as the powder discharge volume for each sample powder. Based on the calculated powder discharge volume, the relative discharge value described later was calculated.

[0060] <Example test results> Based on the calculated powder discharge volume, the relative values ​​for Reference Examples 1 and 3-7 were calculated by setting the powder discharge volume in Reference Example 2 to 100%. The results are shown in Table 1.

[0061] Reference Example 1, which did not contain ferulic acid, showed a higher relative efflux value compared to Reference Example 2, which contained ferulic acid. This result indicates that the addition of ferulic acid to rice bran reduces its fluidity.

[0062] Reference Example 3 contains silicon dioxide, which is known to improve the fluidity of powders. Reference Example 3, which contains silicon dioxide in addition to ferulic acid, showed a higher relative efflux value compared to Reference Example 2. Furthermore, the relative efflux value in Reference Example 3 was higher than that in Reference Example 1.

[0063] Reference Examples 4-7 contain ferulic acid, but the amount differs from that in Reference Example 2. From Reference Examples 2 and 4-7, it can be seen that the relative leachate value changes depending on the amount of ferulic acid.

[0064] (Liquidity assessment test) <Manufacturing of powdered food compositions> The powdered food compositions of Examples 1-9 and Comparative Examples 1-2 shown in Table 2 were prepared by mixing each component according to a conventional method.

[0065] In each example and comparative example, rice bran was used that, as in Reference Examples 1 to 7, had a particle size of 35 μm or less, with a proportion of 90% or more of particles and an oil content of 15% by mass or less.

[0066] [Table 2] The tea extract A contained in Examples 1 and 9 is a mixture with a tea extract content of 30% by mass. Tea extract A contains 64% by mass of starch hydrolysate. The details of tea extract A, as measured, are as follows: Particle size (mesh pass) is 60. D50 is 23 μm. D90 is 61 μm.

[0067] The tea extract B contained in Example 6 has a tea extract content of 100% by mass and a catechin content of 30% by mass or more. The tea extract C contained in Examples 2-5 and Example 7 has a tea extract content of 100% by mass and a catechin content of 70% by mass or more.

[0068] The tea extract D contained in Example 8 has a tea extract content of 100% by mass and a catechin content of 94% by mass or more. For the heated palatinose, we used one with a dextrin content of 50% by mass.

[0069] <Testing Method> Similar to the test method in the above reference example, the amount of powder discharged from the powdered food compositions of Examples 1-9 and Comparative Examples 1-2 was measured using the test apparatus 10.

[0070] Furthermore, based on the amount of powder discharged, the relative discharge value was calculated by setting the amount of powder discharged in the reference example with the same amount of ferulic acid content to 100%. That is, the relative discharge values ​​for Examples 1, 6-9, and Comparative Examples 1 and 2 are relative to Reference Example 2. The relative discharge value for Example 2 is relative to Reference Example 4. The relative discharge value for Example 3 is relative to Reference Example 5. The relative discharge value for Example 4 is relative to Reference Example 6. The relative discharge value for Example 5 is relative to Reference Example 7. The results are shown in Table 2.

[0071] Furthermore, liquidity was evaluated according to the following criteria. The evaluation results are shown in Table 2. • Liquidity assessment criteria ○ (Good): Relative outflow value is 110 or higher. × (Defective): The relative outflow value is less than 110.

[0072] <Test Results> In Examples 1-9, the fluidity was evaluated favorably. Specifically, in each example, the flow rate of the powder increased compared to the corresponding reference example, i.e., the reference example with the same amount of ferulic acid. Due to the increased flow rate of the powder, the amount of powder released within the measurement time increased in each example. In Example 4, the entire amount of 100g was released.

[0073] These results indicate that a powdered food composition containing ferulic acid added to rice bran, and specifically a powdered food composition containing tea extract, exhibits good fluidity. In other words, the effect of ensuring high fluidity while adding ferulic acid to rice bran was confirmed.

[0074] Furthermore, in Examples 1 to 9, the amount of powder flowing out increased compared to Reference Example 1, which did not contain ferulic acid. In other words, an improvement in fluidity was achieved compared to the case without ferulic acid.

[0075] In Example 9, the fluidity was evaluated favorably. Furthermore, the relative efflux value in Example 9 was even higher compared to Example 1. In other words, the fluidity was improved. This can be attributed to the additional inclusion of heated palatinose in addition to the tea extract, as can be seen from a comparison with Comparative Examples 1 and 2.

[0076] Table 3 shows examples of formulations of the present invention. The values ​​in Table 3 represent the content (mass %).

[0077] [Table 3] [Explanation of symbols]

[0078] 10…Test equipment 20...Hopper 30…Vibration generator

Claims

1. A powdered food composition made by adding ferulic acid to rice bran, and containing powdered tea extract, The oil content of the aforementioned rice bran is 15% by mass or less. The particle size distribution of the aforementioned rice bran is such that 90% or more of the particles have a diameter of 35 μm or less. The particle size (mesh path) of the aforementioned tea extract is 10 or more and 100 or less. The D50 of the tea extract is between 10 μm and 40 μm, and the D90 of the tea extract is between 40 μm and 80 μm. Powdered food composition.

2. With respect to 100 parts by mass of the aforementioned rice bran, The ferulic acid content is 0.1 parts by mass or more and 10 parts by mass or less. The powdered food composition according to claim 1, wherein the content of the tea extract is 0.01 parts by mass or more and 10 parts by mass or less.

3. The powdered food composition according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising heated palatinose.

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