DSM Honored For Enzyme, Protein Isolation

DELFT, NetherlandsDSM Food Specialties was awarded the Savoury/Meat Innovation of the Year award for its Maxipro HSP enzyme as part of the Food Ingredients Excellence Awards 2013 during Food ingredients Europe in Frankfurt, Germany, Nov. 19-21.

Maxipro HSP is a unique protease that effectively extracts valuable protein from animal-based products, such as animal blood, allowing producers of processed meat to increase ingredient functionality, nutritional value and taste of consumer products. Calculations show that if all pork and beef blood would be available for human consumption, an additional 65 million people could meet their protein need for a full year.

"Although blood is a very traditional and nutritious ingredient in many cultures, its use as an ingredient for todays food industry is limited due to its red color and strong taste," said  Cindy Gerhardt, innovation manager, enzymes, DSM. "Maxipro HSP is a unique protease with high histidine specificity, allowing selective removal of the heme group responsible for the red color and iron taste, leaving an odorless, colorless and neutrally-flavored protein source. We estimate that this enzyme is able to triple the value of blood throughout the meat value chain because of its specific properties."

The enzyme is considered a natural processing aid. The selectivity of the enzyme will generally create protein hydrolysates with a low degree of hydrolysis, thereby not inducing the typical bitterness of extensively hydrolyzed proteins, nor destroying the functional protein properties such as gelation, waterbinding and foaming.