Probiotic Candy Encapsulation via Pressure and Humidity Control
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for producing candies with probiotics or fish oil face challenges in maintaining low water activity and low oxygen concentrations, which are essential for preserving the viability of these ingredients, as they are often compromised when mixed with other food ingredients.
Innovation Solution
A method involving specific control of temperature, pressure, and humidity during candy production, including deoxygenation, nitrogen filling, and precise pressure adjustments to create a low-water-activity and low-oxygen environment, ensuring the probiotics or fish oil remain dormant and active only when needed, involves mixing ingredients like oil, sugar, syrup, emulsifier, protein powder, and hydrated colloid under controlled conditions, followed by encapsulation and rapid cooling to form candies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If probiotics or fish oil are mixed into other ingredients to make composite foods like candy, then the product becomes more versatile and appealing, but the water activity and oxygen concentration in the environment increase, causing the probiotics to activate prematurely or die
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies nesting by placing probiotics or fish oil inside an encapsulating sugar mass, which itself is embedded within the candy matrix. This multi-layer encapsulation structure creates a protected micro-environment with controlled water activity and oxygen levels, allowing the probiotics to remain dormant while still being part of the composite food product.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by creating a specific protected environment around the probiotics or fish oil within the candy matrix. The encapsulating sugar mass forms a localized zone with different water activity and oxygen concentrations compared to the surrounding candy, allowing the probiotics to maintain their dormant state in this specific micro-environment while the rest of the candy can have normal composition.
2Ease of manufacture
If the candy production process uses conventional mixing and molding methods, then the manufacturing process is simple and efficient, but the water activity and oxygen concentration cannot be controlled, leading to premature probiotic activation or death
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by forming the encapsulating sugar mass and incorporating the probiotics or fish oil into the candy matrix before the final molding and cooling stages. This preliminary encapsulation creates the protected environment needed for probiotic survival while allowing the rest of the candy production process to proceed using conventional methods.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies parameter changes by controlling the temperature, pressure, and moisture content during the encapsulation and molding processes. By adjusting these parameters, the patent creates a low water activity and low oxygen environment around the probiotics or fish oil, preventing premature activation or death while maintaining manufacturing efficiency.
3Ease of operation
If the candy is stored under normal atmospheric conditions, then storage is simple and accessible, but the probiotics or fish oil are exposed to oxygen and moisture, causing degradation of beneficial properties
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies nesting by creating a multi-layer protective structure where the probiotics or fish oil are encapsulated within sugar mass, which is then integrated into the candy matrix. This nested structure provides continuous protection against oxygen and moisture during storage, maintaining probiotic viability while allowing the candy to be stored under normal atmospheric conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies flexible shells and thin films through the encapsulating sugar mass that forms a protective barrier around the probiotics or fish oil. This flexible encapsulation layer prevents direct contact with oxygen and moisture in the storage environment, maintaining the beneficial properties of the probiotics or fish oil during storage.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This method effectively maintains the viability of probiotics and fish oil in candies by ensuring low water activity and oxygen levels, extending their shelf life and maintaining their beneficial properties over time.
Implementation Method 1
evenly stirring the aforementioned materials in a deoxygenated environment with a pressure of 10 ̃50 mmHg
Implementation Method 2
the deoxygenated environment in the step b) is to fill a small amount of nitrogen to maintain the pressure of 10 ̃50 mmHg in the environment for stirring the stuffing
Implementation Method 3
increasing the pressure of the stuffing to 370 ̃390 mmHg, adding dormant probiotic powder into the stuffing
Implementation Method 4
cooling down the temperature to 18-22° C. within 5 seconds and cutting the probiotic sugar bar
Implementation Method 5
in the absence of air, encapsulating the sugar core with a encapsulating sugar mass at a temperature of 50 ̃60° C. to form a probiotic sugar bar
Data Source
AI summary
A method for making candies comprises steps of: a) providing oil, sugar, syrup, emulsifier, protein powder and hydrated colloid; b) evenly stirring the materials in a deoxygenated environment with a pressure of 10˜50 mmHg and a temperature of 115˜125° C. to form a stuffing; c) cooling the stuffing to 24˜26° C. under a relative humidity of 10˜15% and a pressure of 10˜50 mmHg; d) increasing the pressure of the stuffing to 370˜390 mmHg, adding dormant probiotic powder into the stuffing, and evenly mixing the stuffing to form a sugar core; e) increasing to atmospheric pressure for the sugar core; f) in the absence of air, encapsulating the sugar core with a encapsulating sugar mass at a temperature of 50˜60° C. to form a probiotic sugar bar; and g) stretching the probiotic sugar bar, and then cooling down the temperature to 18-22° C. within 5 seconds and cutting the probiotic sugar bar to form candies.