Brown algae could be used as a salt substitute and help to reduce the salt content of industrially chewable calcium citrate tabletsprocessed foods, according to Fraunhofer IVV researchers.###They were working with partners from Iceland, Irelancalcium citrate petite with vitamin d 3d, France, Spain, Slovenia and Geconstipation medicine magnesiumrmany to investigate whether seaweed could be a good substitute for salt in the EU-funded TASTE project.###As well as studying the aroma and taste of the algae, the scientists from Freising developed essential components of the production chain. ###The institute also tested the derived seaweed ingredient in bread. ###TASTE’s research focused on three large saltwater algae: Ascophyllum nodosum, Saccharina latissima and Fucus vesiculosus. ###Native to Europe, these types of brown algae can be cultivated in coastal regions or harvested wild.###The researchers also checked out what salt substitutes are currently available on the market. These range from mineral salts and aromas to flavor enhancers. ###“We needed a benchmark to help us decide how to process the seaweed,” says Dominic Wimmer, a researcher at the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV in Freising. ###Part of the preparatory work was to develop a common flavor language that all project partners understood. ###“Tastes differ from country to country. What we might describe as fishy here in Bavaria might taste completely different to someone frvitabright magnesium citrateom Iceland,” Wimmer says. ###This is why in their ‘flavor language’ the researchers assigned the term ‘fishy’ to a specific substance, namely trimethylamine.###Together with the partners, the IVV researchers determined what substances the seaweed species contain. ###“We then developed the process engineering based on the data,” he adds.###“The goal was to come up with an algae product that can be processed industrially as a salt substitute.”###The challenge was to grind the algae so as to preserve the minerals they contain, while removing odor-intensive substances.###And so the researchers ground, cooked, blanched and dried. ###The equipment they needed is available in various sizes at the Freising institute‘s food technology center. ###Parallel to this, two partners took care of the enzymatic treatment of the algae. ###The result was a brownish-green seaweed powder that could be used industrially as a salt substitute in the future. ###“The outcome of our work is two methods for the species Ascophyllum nodosum and Saccharina latissima, which work on a pilot scale up to 400 liters,” Wimmer says.

Outlook###But how salty do bread, cold meats and so on taste when they are made using seaweed? ###Does it change the consistency and appearance of the products? ###Can they still be produced to the same quality? ###These are all things that the researchers are testing in sausage products, snacks, soups and sauces. ###The experts took a look at white bread – one of the biggest culprits of our excessive salt intake. ###They found that the brownish-green color of the seaweed powder is still apparent after baking and the salty taste is not as strong as with salt. ###But it is easy to process and can help to reduce the salt content. ###“Sacitomag medicinelt can’t be replaced entirely: as a functional baking ingredient, there’s nothing quite like it,” Wimmer says.